- [Deepening the Discussion]: How might we begin to address the ways in which the systems that we teach our curriculum in are intrinsically homophonic, transphobic, biphobic, and oppressive towards queer and trans people?
- [Queering Classrooms, Curricula, and Care: Stories From Those Who Dare]: Which rule/discourse should the teacher follow: providing the duty of care for all students, or maintaining a classroom free from any notion of sexuality?
- [Queering Curriculum Studies]: What does integrating queerness into curriculum studies mean to you? What will it look like, sound like, feel like in your classroom?
Deepening the Discussion:
There are many ways educators can go about addressing the ways in which the systems that we teach our curriculum in are intrinsically homophobic, transphobic, biphobic, and oppressive towards queer and trans people. It is important for educators to keep in mind that they bring their own ideas into classrooms. In order to address the issues that this will cause, educators need to be taught how their assumptions can affect their students. According to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Education educators can do many things to avoid being oppressive towards queer and trans students such as:
“Focus[ing] on issues, not opinions…If students state broad opinions, require them to support those opinions with evidence rather than speculation or personal experience. Use secondary sources to initiate investigations of issues to allow students to see how others have talked about the issues. Honour a student’s preferred pronoun and name. Ensure that students are welcome and safe to wear clothes, hairstyles and accessories that are congruent to their affirmed gender. Avoid situations that force students to make gendered choices. Do not divide classes or ask students to line up according to gender. Rather than referring to the class as “boys” and “girls”, use gender neutral terms such as “students”, “children” or “folks”. Provide opportunities for journaling or informal writing so students have a chance to sort through their feelings and organize their thoughts before jumping into a discussion.” (“Deepening the Discussion,” 2015, p. 18).
Educators must stop assuming everyone is straight and must find a way to teach students that heterosexuality is not superior. Educators must not listen to “common-sense” and must start to become open-minded. A teacher who is closed-minded will teach their student’s to be closed-minded whereas an open-minded teacher will teach opened-minded students. Educators can also address the system in which the curriculum is taught by providing material that includes same-sex marriages, transgender characters, etc. It would be beneficial to provide more diverse reading material for students instead of just the typical stories about straight people with minimal diversity.
Queering Classrooms, Curricula, and Care: Stories from Those Who Dare:
Teachers should provide the duty of care for all students because every student deserves to be cared for. A person’s sexuality should not determine the level of care they get from their teacher. Celebrating and teaching sexuality can be both healing and educational for all students no matter their sexuality or gender (Jiménez, 2009, p. 172). Creating a classroom free from any notion of sexuality creates stigma around it and can have harmful affects on students. Students who do not fit the ‘norm’ may wonder what is wrong with them instead of embracing who they are. According to Karleen Jiménez (2009) it is a teacher’s responsibility to deconstruct sexual and gender binaries (p. 173). It is beneficial to bring discussion of sexuality into the classroom to help educate students allowing for more understanding around sexuality and gender. If teachers believe it is their job to care for students apart of the LGBTQ+ community they will be able to provide better care for their students (Jiménez, 2009, p. 178). If teachers fear providing support for LGBTQ+ students they are forcing them to become targets (Jiménez, 2009, p. 176). Teachers should seek to provide care for all of their students equally. This allows for a better understanding from students towards the LGBTQ+ community and less hate. Students learn from their teachers so teachers should be teaching understanding and acceptance.
Queering Curriculum Studies:
Integrating queerness into curriculum studies is important to me because I want every student that enters my classroom to feel safe and accepted for who they are. I plan to celebrate sexuality and gender within my classroom by celebrating pride and explaining why we are celebrating it. I plan to use the student’s preferred pronouns and respect their gender identity. I also plan to teach other students the importance of respecting their classmate’s pronouns and gender identity. I plan to provide open discussions that are respectful and educational. In my classroom, I plan to provide a little library with readings that include LGBTQ+ characters. For mandatory readings, I hope to provide a diverse selection allowing students to read about characters like themselves. I want everyone to feel at home and comfortable. I want students to walk in and be able to express themselves without judgment. I want to be able to educate students on privilege and what it means to be privileged. I want to create an environment where no student is above another and understanding is the main goal. Integrating queerness into curriculum studies in my classroom sounds like students explaining different situations to one another, support, and acceptance. I plan to have diverse representations of the LGBTQ+ community to help students erase the idea of the white heteronormative imagery that is present in many student’s lives. I want my students to feel cared for and safe to be themselves.
References
(2015). Deepening the Discussion: Gender and Sexual Diversity. Saskatchewan Ministry of Education. Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/84995-Deepening_the_Discussion_Saskatchewan_Ministry_of_Education_Oct_2015_FINAL%20(2).pdf
Heather Sykes (2011) Queering Curriculum Studies, Journal of Curriculum and
Pedagogy, 8:1, 29-31, DOI: 10.1080/15505170.2011.572517
Karleen Pendleton Jiménez (2009) Queering classrooms, curricula, and care:
stories from those who dare, Sex Education, 9:2, 169-179, DOI: 10.1080/14681810902829638
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