One group of students whose voices are often stifled are those who are, “oppressed by gender identity or sexual orientation” (Happel-Parkins & Esposito, 2015, p. 13). Students who identify as LGBT are often targeted as lesser of a person than their heterosexual peers. In fact, what is even more shocking is that teachers, trusted adults, are more likely to take on a racist or sexist comment over a homophobic remark. I think providing more education for pre-service teachers and providing professional development for in-service teachers is needed on the topic of gender transgressions and bullying. This will hopefully open the eyes of educators to the seriousness of this issue to, “recognize [the] injustices surrounding sexuality” (Happel-Parkins & Esposito, 2015, p 7).
One quote in the Happel-Parkins & Esposito (2015) article that struck accord with me was, “Fighting for the rights of those who are not heterosexual is a human rights issue, and it is our ethical responsibility to include these issues when teaching about and for diversity” (p. 4). I think that this quote reiterates what I have said above about me entering the teaching profession. The roll assigned to a teacher goes far beyond the provincial curriculum we are mandated to teach. As a Catholic Educator, I am charged to teach the whole student: body, mind and spirit. It is the teacher’s duty to champion the cause of all students ensuring their voices are heard and shared in the larger community.
Alison Happel-Parkins and Jennifer Esposito. “Using Popular Culture Texts in the Classroom to Interrogate Issues of Gender Transgression Related Bullying.” Educational Studies 51(1) (2015). Pp. 3–16.