"What messages did you receive about the LGBT community when you were in school? Which messages were explicit, which were implied?"
When I was in elementary and middle school, I really don't remember any discussion or messages about the LGBT community. Personally, I don't think that my school was deliberately mind-washing me towards heterosexism. I believe that my teachers were well intentioned, but maybe just not educated in this subject. Also, they could have included curriculum on the LGBT community that I just don't remember. However, in high school, I was taught, implicitly, to respect all those with differences, whether it was difference in race, ethnic background, socioeconomic class, or sexual orientation. I think that RIC, and this class especially, has, explicitly, educated me on the LGBT community. I know that there are a lot of organizations dedicated to LGBT acceptance and inclusion on campus.
"What do you know about the gay civil rights movement, Stonewall, for example?"
I really don't know a lot about the gay civil rights movement. I never had this historical event covered in one of my history classes or in school. I feel like this is a really important topic that needs much more awareness and should be covered in more classes.
"As an educator, can you identify opportunities to incorporate LGBT voices into your curriculum? What support would you need to take this step?"
As a future educator, I know that I need to find opportunities to incorporate LGBT voices into my curriculum. Using some of the action steps given in this article, along with the stories given about teachers differing approaches, I believe that I will be able to find creative ways to engage my students in these important topics. It would be very helpful if I had the support from the school leaders and teachers.
Also, I really liked the story about Patrick and how he handled the anti-LGBT language in his fifth-grade classroom. I liked how he took the opportunity not to yell, ignore, or agree with the negative use of words like "gay" and "lesbian," but instead took a humorous, matter-of-fact approach with his students. By using this tactic, I think that he connected with the students much more than if he had used a different approach. I think this was an excellent way of dealing with this controversial topic, which helped his students to actually learn why their language was harmful and alternatives to their actions. His approach reminded me of the Delpit and the "culture of power."All five of the aspects are represented in this article:
1. Issues of power are enacted in classrooms.
The inclusion and acceptance of the LGBT community needs to be instructed in classrooms, which should be safe spaces for LGBT students.
2. There are codes or rules for participating in power; that is there is a culture of power.
The culture of power is silence on LGBT rights. The rule is to ignore dealing with or speaking about those in the LGBT community.
3. The rules of the culture of power are a reflection of the rules of the culture of those who have power.
Those in power, those not in the LGBT community, set the rules. They claim that it is abnormal to be a part of this community.
4. If you are not already a participant in the culture of power, being told explicitly the rules of that culture makes acquiring power easier.
Learning the rules of power makes acquiring power for those in the LGBT community easier. By understanding how our society works, they will be able to acquire power better than if they did not know the rules of the codes of power.
5. Those with power are frequently least aware of - or least willing to acknowledge - its existence. Those with less power are often most aware of its existence.
Personally, I have power in this situation and I was least aware of its existence. Those in the LGBT community are most aware of its existence because they experience the ignorance and pain everyday.
Overall, I enjoyed this article and for my talking point, I want to know if anyone does have any memories of curriculum that included LGBT inclusion or acceptance in their schooling?
I also answered some of the reflection point questions in my blog too. :) I remember in my history classes we never discussed gay civil rights, which is very unfortunate. I also enjoyed reading about Patrick and his fifth grade class and how he used humor to educate his students. I loved how you connected the LGBT community to Delpit's culture of power. It is really sad that many people ignore and refuse to accept the fact that LGBT exists. In my schools we were taught to accept others but LGBT inclusion was rarely mentioned. Overall, great post and I can't wait to discuss this in class.
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you related this to Delpit! And step by step how it connects, really smart idea! Nice job :)
ReplyDeleteI answered the reflection point questions in my blog too! In my own history classes, we vaguely went over the gay civil rights movement, but there was obviously tension for the teachers because they didn't want to offend any of the students that were part of the LGBT community. You did a great job relating to Delpit and showing how everything connects. Great work! :)
ReplyDeleteI also had no idea about the gay civil rights movement and now that I have read up about it I am shocked that it was never covered in any of my history classes.
ReplyDeleteGreat use of the reflection questions and Delpit. I love seeing you make these connections so explicitly.
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you used the reflection questions in your post. I also liked how you used Patrick as an example, the way he handled his students using "gay" and "lesbian" was very smart. Lastly, It was really interesting how you connected this article to Delpit and explained each aspect. Great post!
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