Teaching Queer: Problems in Education – Part IV

In my last post, I spoke about how I don’t share my private life (and thus my sexuality) with my students. My reason being, even as a teacher, I am entitled to privacy and in order to maintain good relationships with my pupils, a line needs to be drawn in the sand of the playground. A line that defines neatly and firmly what students can ask about me and what they can’t. Consequently, whilst I don’t actively state my queer credentials, I ensure that the queer or non-heteronormative is very much propagated (for want of a better word!) positively at my school.

But what about in other areas? Maybe from the other staff? The Senior Leadership Team? The Local Council? Government? It is the last of these that I want to take issue with here. I have to admit that on this front, the government is getting it wrong. Offensively so.

Let’s take a look at the National Teachers’ Standards, specifically to Part II. This section relates to matters which are more tangential, yet still fundamentally involved, with the classroom. One such standard is the following:

“Teachers uphold public trust in the profession and maintain high standards of ethics and behaviour, within and outside school, by… not undermining fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.”

This particular standard was included after the Trojan Horse scandal and, to a point, I understand its inclusion. What it basically outlines is how the government wishes for teachers to make pupils good citizens. However, the standard enters into a rather complex dialogue here, so allow me to go (briefly) in to a few of them before coming to the main crux of the post.

Teaching Queer: Problems in Education – Part III

“Have you got a girlfriend sir?”

Such a question is faced by many male teachers and for the vast majority, it would probably be simple to answer. A quick ‘Yes’ would undoubtedly send a class spiralling into innumerable questions about what the girlfriend was like, when the wedding would be, when the first child would be, how they would fit four children and a dog into a car on a holiday to Scunthorpe etc etc.

Yet, what if the answer was ‘No’. They see a ring on my finger.

“Are you married sir?”

“No,” I reply, as the ring is on my right hand. A young, male teacher who hasn’t got a girlfriend or isn’t married? The pupils now need to tread a little more carefully. They are aware that something is “amiss”.

“Are you a lad then sir?”

“If you mean am I bachelor, then yes I am.”

Oh thank goodness. We can put a label on him. But bachelor… what does that even mean?

Well folks, if you must know I’m gay. I thought I was asexual for a time, but then realised I’m still into men, so I believe that places me as homoromantic. And now let’s get back to Don Pedro in Much Ado About Nothing.

Teaching Queer: Problems in Education – Part II (or rather “That’s So Gay”)

The word ‘gay’ is one of many semantically age-gradated words in the English language. Different generations will take it to mean different things. Those born pre-World War Two will define the word, in its first sense, as ‘happy’. Those born post-World War Two and up to the nineties will probably take it to mean ‘homosexual’, whereas the last two generations or so would probably define the word ‘gay’ as ‘something bad or loathsome’.

So when faced with what can only be expressed as language expressing homophobic sentiment on the playground, where do I stand? Do I let it pass me by? Do I say “Well done Jimmy for using a more modern sense of a word – atta boy!”? Or do I give a long lecture on the necessity of respecting people and their sexuality? This is also complicated by the fact that I am gay (or rather, homoromantic) myself.*

And, of course, ‘gay’ is not the only word used in the playground. Other words and phrases such as ‘batty boy’ or, sadly, ‘queer’ (usually prefixed with a profanity of the ‘f’ variety) form part of the common parlance for many students. Does this form part of the banter of adolescence or should it be treated as more serious?

Teaching Queer: Problems in Education – Part 1

Speaking as a teacher, I prize education over a good many things in this world and as so much value is put on it, we have to get it right and whilst this is not always possible, we always try our best. Now, there are a great deal of important subjects out there, but there is always one lesson in the education system which was and is viewed as a ‘doss’ (as I am reliably informed) by many students.

PSHE. Or PSHCE. Or PSHEE. Or whatever you want to call it. Basically, that lesson (or, as I have heard at some schools – that time in form time) where points are discussed that bear some relevance on real life – a novelty in an educational establishment some may argue. Reformed criminals are brought in to tell pupils of their story and how they realised the error of their ways; former drug addicts are brought in to counsel against taking drugs; bank managers are brought in to discuss the finer points of mortgages and fitness coaches are brought in to rhapsodise about leading a healthy lifestyle.