NBSC NAVIGATES NUANCES OF GENDER FAIR LANGUAGE IN ONLINE WEBINAR
Northern Bukidnon State College (NBSC) conducted a webinar via Zoom titled “Words Matter: A Guide to Gender Fair Language” on February 18, 2026, in connection with Administrative Order No. 01-006, s. 2026, or the “Adoption and Integration of Gender-Fair and Non-Sexist Language in all Official Documents, Issuances, and Communications of NBSC.” The activity provided a focused platform for examining how institutional language practices can be reviewed, refined, and aligned with evolving standards of professional communication.
The program began with preliminaries, followed by the opening remarks and statement of purpose from Dr. Jovelyn G. Delosa, Vice-President for Academic Affairs, who emphasized the timeliness of the initiative and its relevance to academic and administrative writing. The address framed the session as both a learning opportunity and a shared responsibility within NBSC.
Serving as resource person, Reynan S. Salo, MAPsy, TSM, Teaching, Learning, and Professional Development Coordinator, opened with an interactive exercise titled “The Mental Image Game.” Participants were invited to visualize specific professional roles, an activity that surfaced unconscious gender associations and set the stage for deeper analysis. The lecture that followed defined sexism in language and examined how habitual expressions can subtly perpetuate inequality.
Module 1, “The ‘Invisible’ Problem,” discussed the generic use of “man” in terms such as mankind and manpower, explaining how these constructions may unintentionally exclude. Inclusive alternatives like humanity and human resources were introduced as practical substitutions. The session also addressed the “Pronoun Trap,” presenting strategies such as pluralization and sentence restructuring to avoid reliance on the generic he/his while maintaining clarity and precision.
Module 2, “The Translation Game,” shifted to an interactive workshop format. Through the chat feature, participants actively converted gendered or biased expressions into gender-fair equivalents. In “Stop the Suffix,” terms like stewardess and authoress were replaced with standard professional titles such as flight attendant and author. The “Occupational Swap” encouraged the use of updated job titles, including chairperson instead of chairman and firefighter in place of fireman, underscoring how language modernization can occur seamlessly in formal documents.
Module 3, “Real World Application,” focused on parallelism and context. Discussions highlighted balanced constructions, discouraging pairings such as man and wife in favor of husband and wife. A group challenge followed, where participants revised a paragraph containing subtle bias, including phrases like lady doctor and contrasting descriptors such as hysterical versus outraged. The exercise reinforced critical attention to tone, framing, and consistency.
The session concluded with a brief five-item post-test to measure learning retention, followed by closing remarks from Zandra Shellee Y. Ordinan, MAEd, Head of the Gender and Development Office (GADO), who reiterated the importance of sustained engagement with inclusive communication practices.
As demonstrated by the session’s structured discussions and practical exercises, engaging with gender-fair language extends beyond theoretical understanding into deliberate application. By equipping participants with concrete strategies and shared reference points, NBSC advances a more consistent and thoughtful approach to official correspondence. Such efforts contribute to a communication culture that is measured, inclusive, and reflective of the standards the institution seeks to uphold.
