Teaching Non-Binary German Language in the Czech Republic

Abstract

The differences in the research on gender-inclusive language and in attitudes toward it mean that Czech teachers of German, as well as teachers from countries with a similar situation, are currently facing significant challenges. Their lived reality in the Czech Republic is heteronormative and binary-oriented in much greater frequency and degree than in Germany and Austria. In front of many teachers, trans*, non-binary, and intersex people do not feel comfortable expressing their gender identity, which further reinforces the binary. The first step for teachers, then, must obviously be to become familiar with the diversity of gender identities.

However, as emancipation efforts (currently especially for trans* people) progress, it seems likely that there will be many more situations where teachers will have students in their classrooms whose gender identity challenges the gender binary. It is to be expected that teachers will not know how to work with them, how to address them appropriately, and how to adapt language so that these pupils also feel included and addressed.

Unfortunately, there are no pedagogical/didactic recommendations for working with non-binary persons in Czech. Several articles on the use of gender-fair language (especially to make women more visible) in teaching have been published by Valdrová (2006, 2007, 2013, 2022). Recently, however, there have been training/workshop offerings that give teachers at least some insight into the issues of trans* and non-binary learners (e.g., the course Transgender Pupils and Learners: Inclusion in the School Environment run by Transparent). However, language issues (here in Czech) are only one of the topics covered in the course.

In conclusion, it can be stated that Czech teachers of German face great challenges in this area, for which, however, they do not have sufficient theoretical training, practical skills, and opportunities to acquire them are very limited. Teachers who want to address the topic of non-binary gender identities and their linguistic reflection have to rely to a large extent on themselves, independently search for the necessary theoretical and didactic information, and test various teaching materials and teaching methods suitable for the topic. However, given the topicality, it is to be expected that not only a professional publication base will gradually develop but also further didactic recommendations, which will be conveyed in the form of workshops and other seminars.