Poll: Majority of Americans do not believe schools should teach gender identity in elementary school

A poll conducted by The New York Times and Siena College showed that a majority of Americans do not believe schools should be allowed to instruct students on gender identity and sexual orientation at the elementary school level.

The poll, published on September 16, showed that 70 percent of Americans either “strongly” or “somewhat” agreed that schools should not instruct elementary school students in anything related to gender identity or sexual orientation. The poll revealed that while younger voters tended to be more open to these subjects being addressed in public schools, only 51 percent of respondents 18-29 years of age either opposed or strongly opposed it.

In total, 58 percent of respondents strongly opposed students being exposed to the topics in schools, while only 13 percent strongly supported it. About half of Democrat respondents were in favor, while only 1 percent of Republican respondents strongly supported teaching gender issues in elementary school. 

When it came to middle school aged students, 44 percent of respondents said they would “strongly” or “somewhat” support gender identity and sexual orientation being addressed in public schools. Almost half of voters (49 percent) aged 18-29 supported instruction on the topics at this age.

Republicans still opposed the idea, however, with 74 percent of respondents saying they strongly disagreed with schools discussing the subject matter in middle schools.

The poll echoes other recent findings on the topic of gender issues being addressed in schools. A Fox News poll conducted in May showed 55 percent of respondents did not support teaching about these subjects in schools before 4th grade.