5 ways to make schools safer for lgbtq students
5 Ways Educators Can Aid Support LGBTQ+ Students
At least 20 states have introduced their versions of a “Don’t Say Gay” bill, limiting the discussion of gender and sexual orientation in classrooms, with Flordia and Alabama signing bills into law earlier this year. A national version of these laws now looms in Congress, and trans students deal with additional limits related to athletics in more than fifteen states.
But as Queer students and schools linger trapped in the crosshairs of political battles across the country, educators — whether able to be upright up against policy or empowered by a more inclusive climate — can make a meaningful difference in supporting students and preventing bias. Here’s how:
Create space for sharing pronouns.
This allows individuals to “self-identify instead of assuming someone’s identity based on their appearance”, explains TC’s Oren Pizmony-Levy, who as the Principal Investigator at the College’s Global Observatory and Support on LGBTQ+ Education leads efforts to research and assemble LGBTQ+ school climate indicators and educational initiatives.
“The more we normalize sharing pronouns, the more it will help people ‘come out’ wit
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Classnotes Podcast (January 15, 2019). Most parents and caregivers would agree that all students should be provided with the similar opportunity to learn, develop and succeed at institution. As adults and leaders in our communities, we can work together with our classroom teachers and school administrators to secure our students can study free from fear and are protected from discrimination, harassment and bullying. LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, genderqueer, and queer or questioning) students face particular challenges in our classrooms 85 percent report facing verbal harassment, more than one in four are physically harassed at school, and half are threatened by their classmates.
Michelle Martínez Vega, IDRA technology coordinator, and Aurelio M. Montemayor, M.Ed., director of IDRA’s Texas Education CAFE Network proposal funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, discuss how parents can work with their schools to back LGBTQ students and their safety along the way. The IDRA EAC-South provides technical assistance and practice to build capacity of local educators to help their diverse student populations.
Show length: 12:11 min.
Send comments to podcast@idra.org.
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Last week, the Obama administration told every school district in the country that all students should be allowed to use the bathroom that matches their gender identity. Attorney General Loretta Lynch assured trans students that, “We notice you. We stay with you.” And the U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. said, “We must ensure that our young people realize that whoever they are or wherever they come from, they have the opportunity to become a great learning in an environment free from discrimination, harassment and violence.”
Setting aside political opinions, the fact that the federal government felt compelled to weigh in on students’ rights to use the bathroom that reflects their gender identity—considering the many issues the Department of Teaching stays out of when it comes to how states run their college systems—speaks to a broader issue: the very real and widespread discrimination and bullying faced by LGBTQ students (and educators) in schools. It is this bullying that prompted President Obama to release an “It Gets Better” video in which he assured our LGBTQ students that they are not alone, that they possess done noth
5 tips for creating sound spaces for LGBTQ+ students
As of June, 16 states had passed laws restricting LGBTQ+ students’ rights in schools, colleges and universities. With book bans across the country targeting content related to minority experiences; bans on gender-affirming nurture for minors; and mandates requiring schools to out trans students to their parents, making students notice unsafe; and a slew of unhelpful and bigoted new requirements for classroom teachers in states love Florida, being an educator in America has get highly politicized.
These conversations fast lose sight of why most of us became teachers in the first place: our students. Supporting and protecting our Queer students is not a political issue, but a mandate of our profession. When students don’t sense safe and supported, they can’t learn. It’s as simple as that.
How to help LGBTQ+ students
Here are five ways that you can create safety for queer students, even amid a culture war that finds educators in the crosshairs.
Give visible cues that show you are a safe person. It can often be difficult for students to discern which adults are trustworthy. Posting a pride flag or poster in your class
My Five Top Tips for Making Your School LGBT-friendly
LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) Pride month seems like a very appropriate moment to give extra attention to making sure your college is an inclusive, diverse and harmless place for your families, students and workforce who recognize as LGBT+. The month of June honours the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots, where LGBT people and allies fought against police brutality and harassment that many were and endure to be subjected to today.
Schools are well-known for their openness and celebration of diversity when it comes to students, but some LGBT teachers still feel isolated and uncomfortable to speak openly about their sexuality. Schools are heteronormative workplaces and being a person who is not ‘straight’ requires some careful navigation. Headteachers and school leaders have a responsibility to sustain a school environment that welcomes diversity, supports equality, and defend all staff, including those who distinguish as LGBT. If you are a school leader who identifies as heterosexual, or is not part of a minority group, you are less likely to notice the exclusion or the discrimination that may be happening in yo