Elementary School Uses Elliot Page to Teach ‘Positive Masculinity’
An elementary school has made headlines for using transgender actor Elliot Page as an example of “positive masculinity.”
Streatham Wells Primary School included Page in its teaching material as part of a push to challenge harmful stereotypes and promote gender equality. Pupils at the school are aged between three and 11.
Head teacher Sarah Wordlaw, who also chairs the Lambeth Violence Against Women and Girls forum, explained why Page was chosen. She said Elliot Page shows masculinity “can mean softness and strength.”
The school received an “outstanding” rating from Ofsted after an inspection last year. Pop star Harry Styles was also used as an example to show children that masculinity can be multi-dimensional. In a piece for Teachwire, Wordlaw said the school is committed to tackling “toxic masculinity” while creating a more equal environment for pupils.
“We Need to Encourage Empathy and Kindness,” Says Head Teacher
Wordlaw wrote: “For any project to be successful, it has to lie deep within the fabric of the school’s vision.”
She added that the curriculum aims to be “actively anti-racist, anti-homophobic, anti-sexist, anti-ableist, and to acknowledge intersectionality.”
She said teaching about harmful stereotypes is vital, but warned against simply branding masculinity as dangerous.
“If [we brand masculinity ‘toxic’ the first time we teach about it], that could do more damage than good to our boys.”
Instead, she pushed for a gentler, more balanced approach.
“It is extremely important to teach about positive masculinities,” she wrote.
“We need to encourage empathy, kindness, showing emotions, listening to alternative points of view, and developing emotional literacy.”
Wordlaw noted the school has already seen “a significant improvement in children’s awareness of key issues surrounding gender equality.”
She said pupils now know how to “use their voice to advocate for others.”
As part of this effort, the school highlights public figures like Styles and Page.
“They show that masculinity can mean softness and strength, and everything in between,” she said.
Wordlaw also said the school works with groups like White Ribbon, which helps men tackle misogyny.
Schools Told to Counter ‘Toxic Masculinity’ Under New Guidance
These lessons line up with Labour’s wider plans to address misogyny — a topic recently pushed back into national debate after the Netflix hit Adolescence. Schools across England are being asked to challenge toxic masculinity as part of updated relationships, health and sex education guidance.
The Times reported that the guidance includes content to “support healthy relationships” and “ensure that misogyny is stamped out and not allowed to proliferate.”
Streatham Wells says its curriculum is “ambitious, progressive and knowledge-rich.”
The school adds that its PSHE lessons “help pupils develop resilience, and to know how and when to ask for help.”
PSHE, they say, is “at the core of what we do” and helps children grow “intellectually, morally, socially and spiritually.”