A top-performing London sixth-form has told pupils to stop referring to teachers as ‘sir’ and ‘miss’ in a bid to challenge “cultural misogyny”.
In an assembly yesterday, Harris Westminster‘s executive principal James Handscombe told students that the terms were “deeply unequal”.
He added that while ‘sir’ invoked gallant knights such as Sir Lancelot or Sir Galahad, ‘miss’ was “how you refer to a small girl, or an Edwardian shop assistant”.
Instead, students will be asked to refer to teachers by their honorific and last name, such as Mr Handscombe.
