I'm a high school teacher at a small (800 students), rural (yes you can see & smell cows & cheese from my classroom), high school in Wisconsin. Being the theater teacher, I have always been one of the "gay friendly" teachers; I willingly accept that role. I have struggled for years with the best way to teach tolerance for LGBTQ students in a high school setting. Adolescents are naturally uncertain about all aspects of sexuality -- their own and others' -- and they don't often know how to act "straight" if they're straight and "gay" if they're gay let alone trying to deal with the 'other guys & girls'. (I am not suggesting that there is a particular way to behave, straight or gay or otherwise, but you know high school kids do think this way).
Simply, I have always been extra-supportive of my out students, silently supportive of my non-out gay students, and completely intolerant of any negative language about gays within my sphere of influence: the classroom, hallways, and extra-curricular programs. But recent events have led me to determine that I have not been doing, have not done enough.
At the beginning of this school year, I heard a news story about three gay teens who took their lives in a Minnesota High School. This week Tyler Clementi, took his life after being outed in the most public way by his dormmates. Here is the body count from September & October: Indiana, Rhode Island, Texas and I'm sure there are many more that aren't being reported in the major news outlets.
This didn't happen at my school, but it could. Last week, I stopped a kid in the hall for calling a kid a "freshman faggot". He was a new student so I told him, "We don't use that kind of derogatory language here," in my most helpful, cheery but stern teacher-y voice. But was that enough? Should I have talked to the counselor about him (it would be pointless now as the student has already transferred schools). Should I have some sort of curriculum or protocol to deal with kids who use derogatory language? In our school, unbelievably, the kids get anti-bullying curriculum in the grade school, but teachers do not go through any teacher training on the subject.
Sadly, I can't find one quote from a teacher in any of the above news stories. Maybe I'm missing something? Shouldn't the teachers be part of the solution? I know that typically the reporters go to the front office, talk to the administrators and never go any further (I'm not blaming the reporters – they have enough on their plates these days).
And where is the teacher training we should have gotten about this issue? Where is the gay friendly curriculum? Where is the Gay History month? Where are the helpful hints for teachers to make the classroom more friendly to LGBTQ youth? Where is the teacher training on this subject – are our teacher colleges teaching this? I have to sit through the "Blood Born Pathogens" seminar EVERY year so no child dies of exposure. Why aren't we doing a mandatory seminar on bullying and derogatory language which is killing kids, too?
I know that teachers have a lot on their plates. And let me tell you I have many papers I could be grading right now, but I can't be silent any longer. I am going to try new things in my classroom, I have requested to be on the committee to help write a LGTBQ curriculum in my state, I have ordered videos, searched the internet, printed signs and have been collecting classroom materials. And I have started this blog. I'm going to let you know how it goes, how I navigate a fairly conservative school district, and how kids, parents, administrators, teachers, counselors and other teachers react.
And I want advice. Are you a gay teen? Were you one? What do you want or need from your teachers? Teachers: What do you do? What do you consider your successes and failures? Gay teachers: What problems and successes have you had? Where do you go for curriculum? Support? Straight teachers: What do you think is your role in this situation? Counselors & administrators: What do you consider the classroom teacher's role to be?
Ms. L
No comments:
Post a Comment