students’ opinions on mixed toilets, implemented in certain establishments

Some establishments have chosen to offer mixed toilets for children. So they abandoned the old toilets. This is particularly the case at the Albert Camus college in Rosny-sous-Bois, in the Paris region. This establishment has decided to test a new system: mixed toilets, installed in a prefabricated building in the heart of the playground. There is therefore no longer a separation between girls and boys, but by level. For the moment, the change remains a little fresh for some children: “Girls and boys are mixed together, it’s a bit awkward, but we’ll get used to it!”explained a middle school student.

The principal started from the observation that students were avoiding the school toilets. It was therefore important to find a suitable solution. “It has medical consequences, such as urinary infections. And then also direct consequences on learning: a student who refrains from going to the toilet, what availability will he have for the math test that will follow?, declared Julien Dagneaux, principal to Franceinfo.

The principal surveyed the middle school students

To find out what was best for the children, the principal asked the students what was stopping them from going to the toilet. “There were groups of fourth graders in front of the toilets before… So I wasn’t very comfortable going in or out. It was intimidating!”, said one of them. “For example, the last time I passed here, some fourth and third graders looked at us strangely, they made dog noises just because we’re so little…”, said another. Now the toilets are separated by level. This is a system more suitable for students: “and then the thing that I like is that the doors cover the entire cabin: there is no space underneath”concluded a college student.

A journalist for several years, Léa specializes in the web. Versatile, she likes to decipher daily news. His favorite subjects are: health, well-being, lifestyle and…