I suppose you could say that I’m a fairly new Feminist, only having recently started self-identifying as one despite having long held the beliefs. I’ve been immersing myself in the literature and devouring blogs like Feministe in order to better educate myself as to the issues. Feministe Feedback has been a wonderful resource for me and after reading your last column I thought it was time I asked for some advice or at least a chance to hear from other Feminists in a situation similar to mine. The subject I’m asking for help with is this: As of September this year I will be a trainee teacher, before I became involved with Feminism I had never really considered the implications of my gender or political beliefs on this course of action. Now I’m seeing things with slightly clearer eyes. There are a myriad of issues to address, from convincing students that despite the fact I am very young the correct way to refer to me is as “Ms” not “Miss” right through to the challenges of teaching sex ed (I’ll be a biology teacher, luckily in the UK so I won’t have to contend with abstinence only programs), but what’s really concerning me is challenging sexism and homophobia in the classroom. I’m aware that teenagers are a tough crowd at the best of times and that I’ll have to not appear to be pushing a certain political agenda but I’m certain that I won’t be able to stay quiet. Especially considering the statistics about homophobia and sexual harassment in schools that are coming to light at the moment. Amongst all that rambling is the following request: are there any Feminist teachers or people who have had experience dealing with teenagers, particularly the older ones, that can give me any advice for how to handle situations in the classroom that I’m uncomfortable with or find flat out offensive?
Any suggestions for teachers (and other adults) who are in positions of authority and have to challenge sexism, homophobia, racism and other issues?
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As a teacher, I make a point of explaining that I will be refered to as “Ms. Daomadan” and not “Mrs.” or “Miss” and might even give them some history on “Ms.” vs. “Miss” and why this is preferable.
As for homophobic, sexist, and racist comments in the classroom…I make that a part of my classroom management and am explicit to tell students on the very first day of class that I will not tolerate such language in my classroom and that use of this language will result in 1. points being docked from their grade 2. a meeting with the principal if it gets out of hand. If students don’t understand why saying that something (or someone) “is gay” I often use the example, “Would you say ‘That’s black/Asian/etc’”? to help them look at what they are saying in a different context.
Outside of my own classroom and depending on the school, I would make a point of letting students know that my classroom is a safe space for diversity. I’m queer, so it is important to me that marginalized groups have a place, and a mentor, whom they can go to if they need help.
Every school is different and it is good to check to see what policies the school or district has in place to deal with these incidents. If your school has an anti-bullying program it might be included under that. The more experience you get as a teacher the better you will be able to handle these situations when they arise. I hope my 2 cents helps a bit.
The important thing to do is to call out inappropriate behavior. If you let it go without commenting that gives the impression of acceptance. I usually go for the “Excuse me, we do not use language like that/treat other people that way in my classroom,” for first offenses.
I attended a posh boy’s school in Scotland that accepted girls for the final two years to do A-Levels, you can imagine the levels of sexism in an all-boy’s traditional school in the late 1990s! My biology teacher was a woman, and she had an absolute zero tolerance policy to sexist crap in the classroom. Nobody was allowed to joke about girls being less-than in any way.
If you are teaching older teenagers I think you could sell this as teaching them professional behaviour, “I am going to teach you how to behave in the working world, as you are all budding scientists”.
Consistency is really important here, but you also have to be prepared to back up anything you say. This is where having very clear school policies can be important–you can point to rules as precise expectations for classroom behavior–but it’s also important that if a student tries to challenge you, your answer is more than “Cause I said so.” Be prepared to talk about the power of language. And steel yourself for some really defiant comebacks. If you call someone on homophobic language, s/he might fire back “What, are you gay or something?”
Happily, most schools have anti-bullying charters which specifically ban sexist, racist, or homophobic driscrimination. You won’t seem like you’re forcing a ‘political agenda’ on the kids (I don’t, personally, believe that anti-sexism, -racism, -homophobia is such a particularly radical or objectionable agenda that people would notice and think ‘look at the crazy lady’), you’ll just be enforcing the rules of the school.
And congrats on starting teaching! I loved it, and I think you’ll find when you start that you might well be worrying over nothing. The great thing about teenagers is they’re often not afraid to be idealistic, and if you lead by example with high standards, they will want to meet them. The ‘trick’, such as it is, is to respect your students, but not care at all if they ‘like’ you. Make your decisions in confidence, knowing that they will call you all sorts of names in anger but it doesn’t matter, they’re immature kids and you don’t need them to like you. The amusing corollary of this is that when they know you respect them but don’t want to be their mate, they DO like you. Be consistent, be confident, and you’ll be a great teacher!
Practice. Have the words ready so that when a situation happens, you will have something to say. One of the best pieces of advice I got about reacting to physical harassment is to verbally describe what just happened. Some kids get caught up and don’t realize how bad the actions are until they hear them repeated back to them out loud- in a calm and unflappable way. Don’t ever be shocked.
Also, separate kids who can’t control themselves in a group. Sometimes all it takes are a few desks between best friends to keep the unacceptable commentary at bay (I’m thinking of the two guys who always sit next to each other and then comment about every girl that walks by).
Also, I agree with the F.Evil above: Instant reaction. When someone says “fag”, don’t let it slide the first two times.
Also, don’t be afraid to pull a student aside for a minute and ask them directly what’s going on. There were three girls in my class who were constantly making fun of people for being “sluts” and not having the right clothes. I pulled the leader aside after class, and she gave me long explanation of the years of competition between the two other girls for “best friend” status and how she was really at the end of her rope because she didn’t know what to do – the namecalling was just a symptom of the ongoing issues between the girls. Once I figured this out, things got much easier to handle.
I’m 41 and have been in the classroom with various populations for 16 years, for the last 12 teaching college freshman and sophomores. I could give you loads of advice, but the truth is much of what you’re asking is going to come from experience.
Don’t sweat the small stuff. If you go into the classroom INSISTING that students call you Ms., not Miss, you are doomed. Kids today don’t know Miss from Ms. from Mrs. from Dr. from Professor. You’ll hear it all in the course of a day. I have female colleagues who bitterly complain that their students refer to them as Ms. rather than Dr. If you can find a way to get teenagers to pay attention to a detail this irrelevent to their lives–more power to you!
You are teaching PEOPLE. If you have the opportunity to become a mentor to young people, this is your very best hope for battling racism, sexism and homophobia. Your best work occurs in small group or one-on-one conversation outside the classroom. Care about your kids and get them to respect you, and they will LISTEN to what you say. They will care about your values. You won’t be able to change every heart and mind, but if you have a stubborn kid whose politics drive you crazy, try to find something positive in him to which you can connect. If he respects you, he might listen to you. And remember….the fruits of your labor may not become apparent for YEARS.
Begin your term with a printed outline of your expectations and rules for civil class discussion, go over it with the class, and have each student sign a copy. File them away. If you have the option of dismissing students from the classroom, make any student who fails to adhere to your clearly stated rules leave class, and mark him absent. When he whines later, show him the piece of paper he signed. I hope your admin. backs you–you need their support.
Dress professionally–make sure that you look distinct from the students, who tend to be very casual.
Enjoy your kids!!!! Sometimes they are super fun and funny and interesting. Find ways to work with students outside of class. I just took a small group of females to the thrift store to find outfits for a fund-raising fashion show. What a great way to spend time with young people and help them learn about sustainability–and explore their own individuality.
As a young female, you face challenges that cannot be overcome except by the passage of time. I hate to break it to you. I HAVE BEEN THERE. As women we face a brutal dichotomy: we are expected to be nurturing but we are also expected to hold students to high standards. When we lower the boom on irresponsible students, often they think we are being “bitches.” My husband–older, tall, deep voice–, also a teacher, is hard and his students thank him for it. Men are expected to be tough, women soft. You’ll have to find a balance.
Be yourself & take care of yourself. Dress well, present your very best self, take care of your health, exercise, spend time with your female friends, get plenty of sleep. Feel physically well so that you can meet the challenges of each new day with energy.
Good luck to you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I thought about using “fag” as an example (since it’s the one I run into the most), but then I saw that the questioner was in the UK and didn’t know what the UK equivalent would be since a fag is a cigarette there.
(woohoo run-on sentence!)
but it’s also important that if a student tries to challenge you, your answer is more than “Cause I said so.” Be prepared to talk about the power of language.
I agree, but also remember that you don’t have to get into any power struggles. You have the power. Full stop. You’re the teacher. You can explain once, and then if the behavior continues, all you have to say is “In my classroom, I require mature behavior.” You are the teacher, and you can use “because I say so.” The kids being bullied, or the closeted kids, will appreciate your firm line.
There’s lots of great advice already. I second not making “Ms.” a big deal. I work with middle school students (11-14 years old) and I pay no attention to whether they call me Ms., Miss, or Mrs. It really doesn’t make any difference to them. I make sure to refer to myself as Ms. and give a brief explanation if they ask (they usually do when they realize I’m married).
I think the most important thing is to cultivate a culture of respect and kindness in your classroom. That way, when a student says something homophobic or sexist, you can not only point it out as offensive to that group of people and explain why, but also remind them that it is generally disrespectful and unkind, which does not fly in your classroom. Don’t be afraid to send them to the principal/head or whatever your school’s procedure is for dealing with more severe or persistent misbehavior. Being firm from the first day of school will make the rest of the year easier. Knowing when to laugh and have fun but also when to reign it in will earn you respect.
The way I respond to a student saying “That’s so gay!” is to calmly ask, “Really? How is it homosexual?” This usually stops them cold. Then I ask if they meant to say it was stupid, or weird, or they didn’t like it. If so, they should use words such as those instead of “gay” and I will not tolerate them using that word in that manner.
Remember that you won’t be able to change the worldview of every student, but you can plant the seeds in their minds. Also – teenagers really are awesome to work with!
Depending on what you’re teaching, I would challenge any sexist and homophobic (not to mention racist and any other hate speech) rather than just telling the kids that it’s not acceptable. That’s a good start, but if you can think of ways (as someone pointed out above, substituting black for fag to see if they’d react the same way) to make them really understand why it’s wrong then maybe you can help change their use of it.
It doesn’t help to just make homophobic or gender-based slurs “bad words” that kids can’t use. I think it tends to turn those words into something they use MORE often when away from those authority figures, or to piss off authority figures.
My two cents. But I’m dealing with college students (I’m a TA) so it might be a bit easier for me.
As far as looking different goes, that you kind of have to make up for with your attitude. The class I teach is a photography lab, so I’m in a darkroom all day messing with chemicals. Hence I don’t really get to do the formal-dress thing to differentiate myself from the students. I just have to make sure that they understand who’s in charge, but still are less terrified of me than of the professor.
I taught a community college class full of high school students a couple of years ago. When one of them started with a string of homophobic comments, I told him he just earned an extra homework assignment: to write a report on the life of Alan Turing.
I ended up letting the kid off the hook for the report, but he got my point. And I never heard homophobia in that class again.
I’m the reader who originally sent in the question and I just wanted to stop in and say thank you so much already given their advice (and wished me luck). There are some really fantastic points for me to think on and I’m sure I’ll be coming back to them repeatedly.
I have to admit to being a little freaked out about the challenge I’m facing but hearing your stories and kind words is making it much better and making me all the more determined.
I’m not sure why you feel like you need to appear “not to be pushing a political agenda.” The entire enterprise of public education pushes a variety of political agendas, some explicit and some implicit. Now, if your administrators don’t want you pursuing a feminist or antihomophobic stance in your classroom, that’s one thing (and it’s a thing that would probably cause me to seek employment elsewhere).
The first step is to make it clear that your classroom is a hate-free zone. Everyone is to respect everyone else. Tell your students that they can believe whatever they want about women’s roles or the sins of sodomy, but if they do anything disrespectful or hateful in your class, there will be consequences. Your primary job is to educate each and every one of your students. You cannot do that if some of them are fearful of others. Try not to speak in terms of what is “wrong” and what is “right,” or even vaguely of what is “acceptable” and “unacceptable.” Use a lot of I statements. “I feel uncomfortable when I hear people say ‘that’s so gay.’ I know that my homosexual friends feel demeaned and afraid when they hear that sort of thing. This is not a place where people are to feel demeaned and afraid. Stop saying that, or you’ll be removed from the class.”
Also, since you’re a science teacher, you need to be hypervigilant about your pedagogy. You can’t singlehandedly erode the ideas about women and science that your students are bringing with them — but make sure you’re challenging them and not reinforcing them. Do you call on boys more than girls? Do you let girls slide on their assignments? Do you let boys assume “natural” roles as classroom leaders? There’s a lot of literature out there about gender-equitable education; make it an ongoing project to seek it out.
*/lurk*
All of what everyone else says, but also make sure your dues are paid with the NUT and that your union rep is on side.
Individual teachers get bullied; the NUT does not.
*lurk*
As a feminist queer high schooler I have to say that homophobia, sexism, and racism are NEVER addressed by teachers in my school – not that they don’t happen, because they most certainly do, but the teachers never seem to feel like they should address it, probably because most of it happens outside the classroom. If you get a chance to address it, please do – Students might not hear it anywhere else. I second what Stacy said, that you’ll do your best work in small group or one-on-one conversations, but make it clear that you’re willing to talk to students outside of class and about things not related to class – I rarely talk to teachers outside of class because the invitations never been extended, even though I’m sure they’d be interesting to talk to. Also, don’t be afraid to go on tangents sometimes – Some of the most interesting things I’ve learned from teachers have been when they get off-topic, and you obviously have cool things to talk about that students probably won’t otherwise learn about!
Good luck!
<3
I would add that, as a science teacher, you are uniquely positioned to tackle issues like racism, sexism, homophobia, etc. from an empirical basis. You can teach about the ways science has been twisted to serve oppressive agendas and the ways it’s commonly misunderstood — “Well, women are just naturally inclined to be mothers, and are weaker than men,” “African-Americans are less intelligent than whites,” “Homosexuality is unnatural,” etc. Make sure you challenge your students to think scientifically — or at least to know when their thinking is based on philosophy (“Fetuses have souls and destroying them is morally wrong”) and not evidence.
I have to applaud catfood. Nice work!
The important thing to do is to call out inappropriate behavior. If you let it go without commenting that gives the impression of acceptance.
Yes, yes, yes to this. I knew people who were bullied and harassed daily in my school and the teachers ‘let it go.’ I think if you set a standard for how people are to behave in your classroom and stick to it, that’s the key– explanations may be appropriate at times, but making it clear that you want people to behave maturely and holding them to that standard is so important.
As a British feminist queer progressive trainee teacher I know this feeling and I’ve run into some difficulties through being on placement in homophobic, racist and misogynist schools. My advice as someone whose been through this is
1. Don’t teach in a faith school. Seriously. There are some very good faith schools, but there’s too much variation on how inclusive the school will be. You’re allowed to tell your training provdier that you will not teach in a faith school, but you can’t get reassigned if they send you somewhere that has prayers in the staffroom every morning and is racist and bigoted. It is too big a risk. You have to teach according to the ethos and ethics of the school you are involved in. Futhermore faith schools can adapt and add to the curriculum to suit their faith. This unfortunately means that, for example, in a Catholic state school the curriculum CAN (and from talking to Biology trainees I know often does) contain teaching abstinance as part of biology.
2. If despite following this precaution you end up in school which is institutionally racist, misogynist, homophobic etc then first inform your link tutor that the atmosphere at the school is making you uncomfortable, do so in a proffessional manner. They should have advice on how best to proceed. They will likely tell you to talk to your mentor, This is difficult as they are effectively your boss and will be writting your report and evaluation. The best way to proceed from this point is softly softly. If you feel your training provider is not giving you enough support contact your Union rep (all trainee teachers are union members). This is the most difficult of the three situations.
3. If you are fortunate enough to be placed in a decent school then you start having to deal with the nitty gritty of how to be a progressive feminist in a school setting. Don’t worry about students thinking your pushing an agenda; you are and they will respect you all the more for admitting it.
a. Talk to your mentor about how to encourage pupils to use the right title. This is no different from them mispronouncing your last name and with practice and correction you will get them to get it right. If they ask you a question as to why you’re a miss and not a ms answer it, honestly and to the best of your ability. If you don’t have time during the lesson tell them they can ask you again after class. Be available for your pupils to address their interest in your beliefs without transgressing the boundaries of teacher.
b. Challenge sexism and homophobia in your students. Don’t let them say “gay” as in insult or call people “slags” etc. ATL is currently conducting a campaign about challenging homophobic language and has lots of helpful information, as does Stonewall. Unfortunatly there is no one trying to address the misogynist culture of British schools, but you can make a HUGE difference. You’re training provider will give you so much guidance on how to deal with challenging behaviour that it’ll be in your dreams and misogyny and homophobia are BULLYING and therefore behaviour that you MUST challenge and put a stop to in your students. If you feel that you need more adivce on how to deal with a particular set of behaviours then talk to your mentor, then your link tutor, then other trainees or tutors, then try the http://www.tes.co.uk forums.
c. As a WOMAN SCIENTIST you are a amazing role model for these children. Live up to that responsibility.
d. Make sure that you teach as a feminist, meaning make sure that soceities ideas about gender don’t influence your expectations of childrens intelligence or behaviour. This is not as easy as it sounds, as often even progressive schools policy gender boundaries strictly, from the talk in the staffroom to the way they question girl and boy pupils.
Most important though; DON’T GIVE UP and if you need help ask. (And I am always happy to provide advice if you want any)
I definitely second the point about the classroom being a space to model adult behavior. Even if you can’t convince individual kids that racism/sexism/homophobia are wrong, they (and their parents!) should all be able to wrap their heads around the idea that some behaviors will get them fired and they need to learn self-control.
Also, let your students know that they can come to you if anything you do or say in the classroom makes them uncomfortable, provided they do so privately and respectfully. I had plenty of teachers who were “old-fashioned” in their ideas about men and women, but only one who asked us on the first day of class to help him by pointed out when he said/did anything sexist. Made a huge difference.
Depending on the personalities of the students you have, it is fine to insist on being called by your preferred title.
One needs to be careful of how one communicates this insistence to adolescents, however, so that one does not come across as an arrogant petty tyrant as one male teacher I had was….or the high school teachers some college classmates had who felt their PhDs entitled them to talk down to their students and browbeat them at every available opportunity.
It is one reason why the first thing that goes through my mind when someone insists on being called “Dr.”, “Professor”, etc…especially in social settings outside of their professional environment is that they are attempting to use their credentialed titles to pretentiously puff up themselves to cover some personal deficiency or feelings of inadequacy.
Rightly or wrongly, the reason why many people are wary of teachers “pushing a political agenda” is precisely because of the perceived power the teacher has in influencing “young impressionable minds”…especially before the university/college years.
There is a huge difference, however, between insisting on civility and kindness in one’s classroom and a teacher insisting on his/her belief as the only correct one to be a petty authoritarian and to silence any dissenting students.
The former IMO should not only be encouraged, but demanded as a prerequisite for a viable educational environment.
The latter, though, should never be tolerated as students should never feel that failure to adapt the teacher’s political beliefs in their assignments/class participation may place them at risk for arbitrary punishments and poor/failing grades. In short, it is educational malpractice and a gross abuse of power.
I taught music at a school in London while in grad school, and it seemed that, there, everyone referred to female teachers as “Miss” regardless of the age or marital status. The male teachers were all called “Sir.” It would seem like insisting on “Ms” would be very hard in that situation. Reason 1 would be because there’s no vowel, it’s harder to say…..
I totally agree with everyone who has said “Be strict and call out any unacceptable behavior immediately.”
Be very strict. Don’t smile till the last day before Christmas hols. Seriously.
I don’t know much about schools in the UK so my questions or suggestions may not be as relevant, but I’d like to offer a young person’s perspective. When I was a student in high school, which was only a few years ago, there were a good number of students who were learning about issues dealing with homophobia, heterosexism, racism, and sexism. There was a gay-straight alliance and a multicultural club among other student clubs that fostered a social consciousness and responsibility. Many students go to school and focus exclusively on classes, but many others are very involved in things like student government, school newspapers, and clubs like GSA and multi-cultural club.
As a student, I remember that one of my frustrations was finding teachers to sponsor clubs like the gay-straight alliance and actively participate. For 4 years, the teacher sponsoring (providing a room and supervision) of GSA just sat in the classroom and worked on grading papers. I knew she was very busy, but we as students missed out on having an adult give us input and resources. We accomplished a lot on our own, but I think we could have gotten much more done if teachers and concerned students worked together on these issues.
My question, I suppose, is whether the school at which you will be teaching has student clubs and activities and opportunities for on-campus events. If a feminist club or a GSA exists, could you find out how teachers can get involved and help these groups develop? Can students be granted an excused absence to attend an on-campus workshop run by students and adults? If so, those are great opportunities to partner with students so that sexism and homophobia isn’t wrong only because “the teacher said so”. All too often, I would hear of teachers who would try to stand up against sexism and homophobia in the classroom, but had no support among students in the classroom. It doesn’t matter how reasonable the teacher is in those cases, if the division is along teacher-student lines, then that difference becomes the most visible thing. Then there would be cases in which students like me would raise objections about derogatory language and bigotry while the teacher remained silent.
Two things that I think are important to remember:
1. The goal doesn’t need to be convincing the kids using the racist/sexist/homophobic language that it is wrong (although if you can, that’s excellent). The most important thing, I think, is to send the message to the kids who are the victims of this language (people of color/girls/LGBTQ) that you are their ally, that there are more where you came from, and that they are worth every bit as much as the next person.
2. Kids (including the ones you’re defending) might not respond to your approach right away, or at any time that you have them as students. But you are planting seeds that will grow in some students’ minds two, five, or ten years later. Your efforts are not futile.
Best of luck, and kudos for your courage.
I’m a student, not a teacher, and come from a fairly progressive community in which homophobia and sexism were never openly tolerated, but here’s my advice from my not-too-terribly-long-ago high school career.
The majority of discrimination takes place outside the classroom. It’s certainly vital, as the above comments indicate, to make your classroom an unquestionably safe environment, but you’ll do more good, I think, by being open to addressing issues that occur outside of it. To do this, you probably won’t have to spend much effort trying to ferret out these incidents. If you just make it clear that you are sensitive to marginalized students’ issues, particularly queer issues, some of those students will actively seek you out. This is, of course, more than you’re being paid to do, but you’ll likely find it rewarding and enlightening, and possibly build longstanding relationships with really great people.
I assume that, like most teachers at the beginning of a school year, you will set some ground rules for your class – raising hands, not interrupting other classmates, etc. If the school you will be teaching at has an anti-discrimination or anti-harassment policy, introduce it alongside your own classroom rules. If there is no formal policy, create your own and share it (with a really big poster perhaps?). Make it clear that homophobic, racist and sexist comments will not be tolerated in your classroom and address them if/when they happen.
Get the kids actively involved in making the classroom discrimination-free. I’ve heard of teachers and schools that require students (and sometimes their parents too) to sign an agreement that they will not violate certain rules – usually in the context of dress codes, etc. Why not have them sign on to an anti-discrimination code of conduct?
Hottramp says, “I’m not sure why you feel like you need to appear “not to be pushing a political agenda.” The entire enterprise of public education pushes a variety of political agendas, some explicit and some implicit.”
Yes! In the immortal words of Neil Postman, ‘”Teaching is a subversive activity.”
When the door to your classroom is closed, take ‘em on!
I’m a substitute teacher, so my experiences tend to be a bit different from the established teachers, but most of what I had to say has already been said.
One of the most important things I have learned about *myself* these last couple years (and something I think it’s important to say) is that it’s perfectly all right to be *myself* and not some cardboard cutout of the perfect teacher or some superior automaton with ‘tough teacher’ tattooed across my head or even friendly and accepting of their attitudes.
I was faced with a situation shortly after I started subbing where I had to choose whether to stand up for my views or to buckle under and let the prevailing wisdom dominate. As a sub, it was a fraught decision, since I could easily loose my job, but as a person and as a woman, I was unwilling to let the opportunity pass by. I chose to speak up and a year and a half later, I’m still subbing in that district and since it is a very (very very) small district, it is becoming widely known that when it comes to queer issues, I’m willing to listen.
*For the curious, I’m pretty sure the teacher goofed and did not mean to leave a substitute the essay “AIDS is god’s punishment” to discuss and debate with a bunch of juniors and seniors. It was amazing how much of their info about AIDS was wrong – really wrong – and the discussion about homosexuality and gay marriage was…interesting.*
As a gay student, I’d like to note that I always feel a lot safer around a teacher when they have a pink triangle sticker on their door, or some other signal that that classroom is a safe space. I’m sure you could easily order a pink triangle or safe space sticker online. My math teacher has a pink triangle on his door so I know that I can go to him if someone uses a homophobic slur against me or my friends.
I’ve enjoyed reading the advice and experiences here, and agree with the advice. I will add simply: any time you can get them to explain themselves or have a conversation is great, and any time you can get them to figure things out for themselves or each other (whether in the form of reports, assignments, or conversations) rather than only be lectured to is also very powerful.
Also, did you see the BITCH magazine article about de-bunking bad science reporting? (They have actually had quite a few articles in the past as well about gender bias in science you might find interesting): http://bitchmagazine.org/article/mad-science
I’m also a sub and I concur with what everyone else has said already. This year I’ve been in the same building pretty much every day, but in different classrooms, so I know a lot of the kids there (which makes life so much easier). Basically, the ones that know me all know that I will not tolerate that kind of language/behavior in a classroom I’m in charge of. And the ones that don’t know me learn very quickly. I’ll give one warning to the class and anyone who does it again is gone. One thing I’ve found that works well (and I teach in a majority black/hispanic district, so this example works for them) is to compare language like ‘fag’ to ‘nigger’. I’m really, really white, so when I ask an African American kid how it would feel to him/her if I called them that, they sometimes get it. But I agree, it isn’t so much about changing the sexist/homophobic kids (although it’s great if you can do it) as making sure the gay/queer/feminine/girls know that at least some people think they are also human and as valuable as everyone else.
I get this a lot too. I usually just ask if it matters or tell them that it’s really none of their business who I’m attracted to. Tends to through some of them for a loop. (And now I have the reputation as the freaky teacher, because some kids think I must be into certain things just because I refuse to say that such things are bad to be into.)
I second what other people have already said about the importance of calling out students, and I think it should be done in front of the rest of the class.
I remember one girl in my choir class senior year of high school who made nasty comments about lesbians (because there were more girls than guys in the classroom and sometimes we had to pair up in same sex pairs for dancing and such). It would make my blood run cold. I was a closeted bisexual who wasn’t even out to myself and her comments would make me feel this terribly ashamed feeling, like I was guilty of something bad just for existing.
One day this girl said something loud enough for the teacher to hear, and she just stopped everything, shouted for everyone to stop and all the singing and piano playing and dancing stopped, and she called her out right there. She told her that everyone, even lesbians deserved respect and that as an adult she would have to work with all people of all sexual orientations and if it was too difficult for her to be an adult and a professional and touch another woman’s hand in a dance practice that she should march down to the office and drop this class because there was no room for homophobia in her choir and she was wasting everyone in the class’ time. She asked her if she was willing to cooperate and behave today or if she would like to leave. The bully just murmured that she would stay, and rehearsal continued.
That moment affected me so profoundly and remains such a strong memory even 8 years later. It didn’t make me come out over night, but after years of having homophobia banded around in my middle and high school, this incident shocked me because it showed that someone in my horrid little heterosexist suburb actually cared about everyone, even queers, and wasn’t afraid to publicly admit to it. It was the public-ness of it that really stuck with me. She wasn’t afraid to for everyone to know she respected homos.
So… if a moment like that comes up for you and you can give that gift to some other introverted queer kid, that would be awesome.
Re: the fear of being a liberal preacher: I think a lot of this is about modeling respect. If teachers lecture about or police appropriate language, kids tend to feel talked down to and shut down. Sometimes you need to allow a discussion in which some problematic things may be said, but you need to bring it back around and say that while a variety of persepctives are welcome, the basic humanity and rights of people in the class are not up for debate. Don’t be afraid to be lighthearted even with serious subjects. Ask questions that draw them out. As others have said, do whatever you can to engage them. Nothing works without that. I’m a community college teacher so it may be a little easier for me, but I think this should apply.
When I was in HS, (not *that* long ago ;) it was teachers making homophobic jokes to get the kids on their side. there has been progress.
I taught middle school for 12 years and I was always amazed that every kid would expect me to know his/her name the first day, but the name I was called most often was Mrs. Ummmm……
Here’s my advice – start real tough – you can always ease up. But if you start easy – it’s real tough to tighten up later…
Good luck!
Dear everyone,
What IS the pronunciation different between Miss and Ms.? I think one of them is “miss” and one is more “miz” but in my area, for a very long time calls to differentiate between Miss and Ms. confused me horribly because I and everyone else I know pronounce them identically (and usually in speech I assume the speaker means “Ms.” unless they don’t follow with a name, i.e. “here you go, miss”).
Love, a young’un.
PS I also wanna be a teacher someday when I am not so young anymore, so thanks for all the advice!
Coming at the question from a student’s angle:
In tenth grade English Lit. my class read 1984. A large part of the class was literary analysis, during which someone would read a portion of the text out loud and then begin a discussion about it/pick out literary devices/give their preliminary reactions/etc. We weren’t allowed to censor the book; we had to read everything in our section, including racial slurs.
I went to a school with a large percentage of black students, so racial slurs were generally not tolerated by either the teachers or the students. I remember during those classes sitting in a classroom full of students (myself included) with their mouths open, looking absolutely disgusted. To hear one of your classmates say n***** out loud, seriously, and in front of a large group of people, was horrifying. Afterwards our teacher told us that she was proud that we were so disgusted with it, that we should always be so shocked and horrified by language that aims to dehumanize.
My point is this: sometimes high school and middle school students don’t realize that people do use slurs seriously to completely demean others. Especially with things like “that’s so gay” where they intend it as just a negative description of something rather than as an expression they would ever use on an actual gay person. Sometimes, making them acknowledge that it is a violently hateful thing to say, and giving them some context as to why, can do a world of good.
You’ve gotten much good advice. I used to teach at the college level and saw and heard quite a bit of sexist and homophobic speech. It took me a while to come up with a response that I was comfortable with since my gut response was to want to grab them by the neck and say “Shut up, you miserable cretin!” You absolutely need to respond. As others have said, you may be the only one. The response needs to be personal, “It makes me angry/uncomfortable to hear you say that.” Most kids desperately want a good relationship with their teachers – they understand that power dynamic – and so making it clear that their behavior is disrupting that relationship is very important.
I also think it is very important to establish norms ahead of time, before someone says something. It can be very helpful to have students play a major role is setting the norms themselves. Then the rules are “their” rules, rather that the rules imposed by the teacher. My experience is that most students support the sort of norms I would hope for and it can be very helpful for the racist/homophobe/sexist to see that they are actually in the minority.
Finally, I did not see anyone mention GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network, but they are a great resource for creating safe schools and responding to homophobia. http://www.glsen.org Poetry mentioned stickers to identify you or your classroom as a safe space. GLSEN has a safe space kit, including stickers, available at http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/all/library/record/1641.html. I used to have their sticker on my office door at the college and this thread has reminded me to order another set so I can put one on my new office.
Congratulations. I’m almost done the process that you’re starting on (one month to go!) and it’s the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done so far. I hope you enjoy it as much as I’ve been.
Most overt examples of sexism and homophobia are going to happen outside your classroom. You might encounter a kid saying “that’s so gay,” but the real nasty stuff is going to go on when you’re not around. I don’t know about your area, but in my city, there are all sorts of organizations that will come into schools and give workshops, and that’s one way of addressing the problem proactively instead of just responding to individual incidents.
After my first week of practice teaching, I gave up on being called anything other than “Miss.” It’s easier for the kids to call out and someone seems to be training them to call all female teachers that. It’s a small thing for me, but at least they aren’t calling me “Mrs.” or, even worse, “Ma’am.” I don’t concede to other issues of language, though—kids don’t get away with saying “fag” or “bitch” in my classroom.
Be prepared for a ridiculous amount of crap from your fellow teachers. Despite the fearsome reputation of the teachers’ unions, teachers themselves statistically hold the same political opinions as the general public. They can be as sexist, racist, homophobic, and classist as any of the students—maybe even more so. Expect offensive comments, and also expect a fair amount of individualist worldviews and an assertion that “anyone can make it, and if you don’t make it, you’re just not trying hard enough” in response to any sort of systemic critique you make. Many male teachers will not look favourably on a female teacher they perceive as feminist or “PC.” That was one of the most disappointing discoveries I made this year.
Good luck!
I just want to second the fact that since you are a science teacher you have a splendid chance to demonstrate the bias in sexist and homophobic and racist and ageist (etc) language. Some preparation on how to do that might help you feel more ready to deal with it.
That’s not a political agenda –that’s getting your facts right. If someone says girls are bad at science, you don’t just have to point to yourself (although you’re a great example), you have a great chance to demonstrate how you look for evidence about that stuff in a serious, scientific way.
Languagelog had a great article debunking the pop science “men and women are hardwired” articles. Unfortunately they just switched servers and the search function is wonky. I hope it comes back.
(Thanks for the props, BWrites.)
As Stacy said up in #7, and a few others confirmed,
This reminded me of another teaching incident. This other class, all high school students, mostly boys, liked to make homophobic cracks every now and then. I was pretty consistent about smacking them down–usually with sarcasm or by directing attention to the insecurity underlying homophobia.
After class was over one day, one of the students talked to me for a little while alone–and uncloseted himself.
I am so so so glad I’d let the class know I didn’t agree with the gaybashing talk. What a relief it must have been for that one student. But on the other hand I wished I’d been more direct instead of volleying back at the offending students.
Huh. Stuff to think about.
I agree with all of the advce you’ve gotten so far. I try to challenge all of the racist, sexist, and homophobic slurs that happen around me in school, using whatever means come to hand or mind at the time, whether they’re used in my classroom or in the halls outside it.
On the other hand, teaching is emotionally demanding work, and you will not be able to change a homophobe’s behavior in one easy application of any technique in the known universe. If you’re at the end of your rope and find yourself with the choice of saying nothing in response to a casual slur and exploding at the student who used it outside your classroom, choose to say nothing. There will be other chances to reach those students, and you have olleagues who (hopefully) will help pick up where you can’t. You’ll help a lot more young people if you’re imperfect for 20 years than if you’re perfect for one.:-)
(Obviously, if it happens in your classroom or if it looks like a student could be in danger, you need to do something.)
Different responses serve different purposes. Setting clear limits – having a “zero tolerance” policy – will keep homophobic and racist and sexist speech out of your classroom, and there’s a lot of value in that. I don’t think it does much to change underlying attitudes, though. One of the hardest things for me to do is remain engaged and in relationship with someone who expresses views I find repugnant – but if I can do it, it’s amazingly rewarding.
If we treat the speakers of offensive speech as people worth our engagement, we are modeling the behavior we want to see from them. I think shutting down the comments is far preferable to letting them stand, and in some ways safer – engaging requires a lot of skill, especially if you’re engaging in a group setting, to make sure it’s a safe space.
Another resource: The National Coalition-Building Institute, which will also come into schools and also sponsors training workshops to help build those skills.
I just let a friend guest-post over at my blog on this very topic, so you can read how she handled the situation by going to . It’s her first time, be nice, okay?
Or you know, teachers could have expectations that students will do their own learning. Both of the students that I’ve read on this thread have talked about what the teachers are missing. And? You’re not missing it, so what are you doing to set an example with your peers? School isn’t about spoon-feeding. If you’re in high school you need to step to the plate.
I remember one teacher from my middle school days who would handle homophobic slurs in the following way:
Kid: “John, your shirt is so gay!’
Teacher: “Do you mean gay as in happy, or gay as in homosexual?”
Kid turns red and stammers something, very embarassed.
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