Sexual orientation and its impact on school climate is the most challenging diversity issue I have experienced. For many years, I operated under assumption that sexuality shouldn’t be an issue in the classroom – what people choose to do in their personal lives should not affect how subjects are taught and how the curriculum is approached. That viewpoint was obviously a result of my upbringing and personal experiences; it wasn’t necessarily wrong, but it was naïve and closed-minded.
I soon realized that my viewpoint was acceptable as a student, when I wasn’t in control of the classroom atmosphere, but not so much when I was in the teacher’s role and was responsible for the climate of my room. That’s not to say that I did a 180 and suddenly took interest in and focused on the sexual orientation of my peers and students … instead, I realized that when you are responsible for providing an atmosphere of understanding and comfort and safety for your students, you need to understand their backgrounds, interests, and skill levels. This understanding, of course, includes their home lives, circle of friends, and triggers that impact the classroom. Eventually I came to realize that a GLBT student experiencing bullying because of his/her sexual orientation has the same impact on my classroom as an LD student experiencing bullying because of his/her special education placement. I was a mother bear when protecting my students when they were mistreated, and I had to change my viewpoint on the importance of sexual orientation when it became apparent that this issue was as prevalent as other common classroom issues.
In all, by not burying my head in the sand and approaching sexual orientation as just another facet in my students’ myriad of issues, I feel as though I was more able to give them the freedom to be themselves in my classroom and be a sounding board for their problems.
My question for the class is: as an educator who has not been in a classroom for nearly three years, I would like to know how my peers are telling their students why it’s not okay to say “that’s gay” or “you’re retarded” ….
"That viewpoint was obviously a result of my upbringing and personal experiences; it wasn’t necessarily wrong, but it was naïve and closed-minded. " Wow, it sounded like you were describing me! To answer your question (and this if for first graders): If what you say or do is hurtful then it's not OK.
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