CHILD DEVELOPMENT PEDAGOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -And as predicted in this space last month, the winner is a lowly pronoun: they used as a gender-neutral alternative to he and she, with special attention paid to its use as an expression of “non-binary” gender identity.

Detailed explanation-2: -They and them are always used in place of plural nouns or noun groups in the third person. However the fundamental difference between the two in grammatical terms, is that they is a subject pronoun, and them is an object pronoun. They is used to refer to the subject of a clause.

Detailed explanation-3: -She, her, hers and he, him, his are common and more familiar pronouns. Some people call these “female/feminine” and “male/masculine” pronouns, but many avoid these labels because, for example, not everyone who uses he feels like a “male” or “masculine”.

Detailed explanation-4: -Associated Press Stylebook. The Associated Press Stylebook, as of 2017, recommends: “They/them/their is acceptable in limited cases as a singular and-or gender-neutral pronoun, when alternative wording is overly awkward or clumsy. However, rewording usually is possible and always is preferable."