I finally reach the top of the hill in the Roci, the group of men following close behind. I thank one of the men and, what is now clear, his friends for all protecting me together. I explain that I’m trying to work out here and they look at one another, nod confusedly. … trying to work out what?

@edpsydan.bsky.social and I laugh about ice hockey, shared endeavours, cultural curricula, neo-liberal views of resilience, and singing at the cinema. Honestly, recording a podcast shouldn't be this much fun.

'We will stand up for you' Is the world beginning to turn back toward supporting the trans community, and is there a way that we can grow and thrive even in a world that does not? Even in the context of transphobia, you know how we psychologically grow? Together. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

Dan and I ponder sleep in adolescence and how our systems of school and work create problems when our adolescents naturally become night-owls. Then we think about being outside and how consultation outside can be good for creativity and collaboration. Welcome home to the Educated Guess podcast!

'They should be in a straightjacket with a hard steel lock on it' Why are gender diverse folk reluctant to engage with research? Let's take care as we dive together into some of the most harmful research conducted on gender diverse people. It's Classroom Psychology. open.spotify.com/episode/3pDf...

Episode 2 of The Educated Guess was filmed in front of a live audience at the EdPsy Festival, and now you can listen and watch the episode on Youtube, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

She bent low, clasped her hands, and smiled. I like to think of myself a rogueish corsair, a dragon rider, flying from place to place aboard the Rocinante, dashing and debonair. But when this lady wished me a happy birthday, which was in November, all I saw reflected back at me was... sympathy.

'Mobility has to be the honourable mention. I’m good most of the time but when I’m hot or especially when a fever hits I walk like an adventurously bipedal stoat. Lifting my legs becomes less of a command and more of an enthusiastic hope, like offering prayers to Norse gods for the chance of rain.'

We started a new video podcast!! @edpsydan.bsky.social and I are hosts of the new podcast Educated Guess, where we talk about education, psychology, and society, and show just how much we have to learn. But fortunately we have educated guests to teach us. Welcome to Educated Guess!!!

'Now sure, he didn't give me his number. I was strong but I'd left attractive behind as soon as it started raining, and being this covered in mud with hair slick to my face, sexy was just a particularly strong option in scrabble.'

'Unequivocally... those who underwent surgeries faced higher risks.' This week Cora goes up against an influencer to understand how a handful of studies show surprising outcomes from transition related healthcare, and we look at a systematic review to break the deadlock. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

'Recently I’ve been making friends without telling them I'm trans. That’s what happened at jury service, why I’m pulling endless tissues out of the box like a children’s magician. For just a little while I experienced what it was like not to be openly trans in this world. And I loved every moment.'

The EdPsy festival is just around the corner. You know who is headlining? No... not Oasis... me... I'm headlining. But there are other, better, speakers. People like Keri Opai, Bernard Coard, Jawad Shah, Sarah Gillborn, Anish Chhibber, Will Shield, Jen Daffin and many more. Get your tickets!!!

'When the Usher held out an arm to my ailing self, careful to ensure that I got out of the court safely, it wouldn’t have been prudent to refuse him and then faceplant in front of the stenographer. I’m pretty sure you can be held in contempt for being a defiant asshat.'

'It's a fetish, Janet!' What are gender critical beliefs and how have they become so mainstream? We take a look at how framing trans exclusion as the protection of women influences public opinion. And we laugh at just how radical some of these beliefs have become. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

The UK has released new statutory schools' guidance around keeping children safe and relationships and sex education and Cora reviews them both. They're an example of trans erasure, but don't worry, Cora totally keeps her cool... totally... It's Classroom Psychology!!!

'The transgender movement is the most violent domestic terror threat in the world' Cora takes on Donald Trump Jr. and we take a look at the largest survey ever conducted, released just this week, about the health and wellbeing of gender diverse folk. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

For trans folk being legible in the world can sometimes involve a change to their voices. Cora has been working on her voice and we take a look at before... and after... Can trans voices change with training? You be the judge. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

‘This is our last chance’ If Ocrevus failed us there was no rescue mission, no plucky rebellion, no plan ‘B’. I opened the MRI results clumsily. I gasped. The MS is in remission.

Loving the EHRC: 'Excuse me miss, Karen over there thinks you're trans, can I see your birth certificate?' 'By all means I carry mine everywhere' 'I still think you're trans, can you supply your GRC?' 'No, I'm not trans so I don't have one' 'OK, well now I need to make additional requests... so...

'Children experienced gender dysphoria after binge watching trans content on social media' Trans folk use social media like everyone else, but what happens when the models of what is possible in transition are somewhat idealised online? It's Classroom Psychology! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

'He asked me if I was ok and I blurted out how I’d been using a wheelchair for 18 months and that in that time I hadn’t really met many other disabled people and I for sure have never seen a place like this. He smiled at me broadly: ‘You have found your people.’

Wes Streeting, while segregating trans patients to separate hospital rooms, said most people in the UK are “fair-minded and decent” and want transgender people to live with freedom, dignity and respect and “that’s what this Government wants too” - they just want us to do it... somewhere else.

This week Cora takes on the EHRC, the Government, and the Supreme Court. What is 'passing' and why shouldn't legibility be the benchmark for entry to appropriate spaces it is fast becoming? Bring your hot chocolate and pull up a chair, we'll get into it together. It's Classroom Psychology!!!

This just in: Kier Starmer no longer believed to be left-wing, regardless of how he identifies.

'I once came out during a Local Authority ice breaker activity asking delegates to introduce themselves with a surprising fact. Needless to say, mine was a doozy.' For new folks, I'm Cora, known for the trans science podcast 'Classroom Psychology' and for the disability blog 'RollingForInitiative'.

If you're hoping, in this difficult moment, to support a trans writer, I recommend Shon Faye's 'The Transgender Issue', and 'Love In Exile'. Shon is a truly outstanding writer and I adore everything she writes.

We'll talk about the Supreme Court's ruling in the next episode of Classroom Psychology. But in the meantime, UK gov, if you think trans folk needed a court's validation to know who and what we are you haven't been paying attention. We don't need your help to make a world in which we can all belong.

'They're attributing their experiences to gender when they're actually better understood as an autistic trait' What is life like for young people at the intersection of multiple marginalised identities? We have the indefatigable Dr Abby Vines to help us hear their voices. It's Classroom Psychology!!

@lastweektonight.com was a great watch this week about the inclusion of trans athletes. Fancy a deep dive of their cited literature? Classroom Psychology is here for you.

'It’s the Kobayashi Maru, it’s the hab exploding, it’s John Snow facing a charging army. That part of myself sees these situations and draws her sword, not because fighting is how we win, but because when our life and freedom are on the line, fighting is all there is. Fighting is who we become.'

'It does not mean we have to accomodate all these individals' Where should we house transgender prisoners, and what are their experiences in prison? This one is challenging, take some care listening, but we'll go through it together. It's Classroom Psychology!!! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

'Tr***y tr***y tr***y, I don't care, you want pe****s in women's bathrooms' We ponder stigmatising language and what happens when people begin to internalise stigma. It's a wild world out there but thankfully we're not alone. It's Classroom Psychology!!! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

'Seeing these social rules and expectations for what they are, the doors and bars of a psychological prison, I can see what I need to do. I don’t need to shape myself to fit into the prison better. I need to break free.'

This week's Classroom Psychology episode is a cozy answering of listener questions from California. This was a video podcast episode, so you can watch me talk about gender diversity, religion, puberty blockers, hospital rooms, and bodily autonomy. You are welcome here, it's Classroom Psychology!!!

Classroom Psychology is trying something new. It's a cozy, personal Q&A featuring questions from researchers in California. Grab a chair and a hot chocolate as we ponder hospital rooms, puberty blockers, religion, and bodily autonomy. It's Classroom Psychology!

"...to say therefore 'I am a woman' is just a betrayal of language" We tackle the question of gendered brain development and wonder what kind of brains transgender folk have. Cora's mind is blown, but we're in this together, it's Classroom Psychology!!! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

It was an absolute joy to spend time with @ashleigh.whatthetrans.com refording this video podcast episode for the legendary @mssocietyuk.bsky.social. A wonderful reminder to gender diverse wheelchair users that we are not alone. www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKpP...

"He tells me that he will go and get me a jacket and points out of the train. I’m not sure where he’s pointing, there are no shops here, and I’m unsure how a passenger on the train could acquire a jacket from somewhere on the platform. Is he offering to assault a fellow passenger to steal one?!"

'How has nobody been looking at this?' There are only a handful of studies that look at the relationship between puberty blockers and cognitive development in terms of IQ and executive functioning. Let's get into them together in Classroom Psychology! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

"We are disabled, but primarily that means that we are unable to be churned by the economic machine, and maybe we are through with playing by the rules of someone else’s game." www.rollingforinitiative.com/blog/a-wicke...

It has been quite the year and I know that the holiday season can be difficult, so here is a little episode just for you. Remember that you are loved, you are valid, and that together we're going to make a world where everyone can find a place to belong. creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

"I immediately know what to call her. She’s light, fast, modern in her construction and design, and piloted by a true wildcard who is as likely to crash or fall off this thing as she is to reach her destination in one piece. I call her The Rocinante." www.rollingforinitiative.com/blog/the-roc...

“They say that placing a hand upon a burning stove makes seconds pass like hours. Well, the silence lasted for an epoch. Civilisations rose and fell while I sat there trying in vain to implode.” Thanks to the MS Trust, wonderful to work together as always. mstrust.org.uk/news/stories...

'The gender craziness is most common in wealthy, White, progressives' We take a look at the demographics of trans and non-binary people as we take on a question from JD Vance. Is this VP-in-waiting right? Let's dive in together in Classroom Psychology! creators.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

"My legs were the kind that functioned better as floatation devices. My balance was in the ‘well you are getting a bit older’ range and my leg strength was between ‘couldn’t break the surface of a puddle’ and ‘they billow like sails during a fart’." www.rollingforinitiative.com/blog/well-i-...

We wrote a letter to the Education Secretary, signed by over 200 members of our profession, the wardens of belonging, expressing concern about the Cass review. A reassurance to trans children and young people who find themselves marginalised that you are not alone www.thepinknews.com/2024/11/12/e...

Classroom Psychology hit #17 in Great Britain for social sciences podcasts today. If you enjoy the pod and would like to help support us please do leave us a rating or review and share episodes with friends. Thanks to all who join us in helping make a world where everyone can find a place to belong.

'If I was wearing a wig and lipstick would I have been banned from schools...?' Some forms of masculinity can be a positive force in the world, and some not so much. Thankfully we have Dr Ffion Davies to help ponder the difference in Classroom Psychology! podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/cor...

I made a mistake and have been ghosted by my Urologist. I'm still sore after my eye doctor discharged me. I'll miss him, he was nice, he touched my face, he made my pupils dilate, he told me I had a cute neuritis... www.rollingforinitiative.com/blog/my-urol...