Friday, June 12, 2015
Ch. 11 Post
Some of the information in this chapter really shocked me. I could not believe the statistic on pg. 223 that said 3/4 students say their schools have negative attitudes towards students who are LGBT. How painful would it be to go to a school and be LGBT? Considering this and then reading the risk factors of p. 224 really makes sense. Feeling like you are without any support would make it very difficult to imagine succeeding in school. I never realized how important it is to reach out specifically to this community of students, and now I see the great need.
I really liked the "That's So Gay: Think Before You Speak Campaign." I think these would be really great videos to play in the classroom to open discussion with students about the things they say nonchalantly being hurtful to others. I think the "R Word Campaign" would also be a good one to tie in here as well.
One of the hardest pieces of this whole subject for me is when I see men who perhaps act a little more feminine or woman who act masculine and other students accuse them of being gay/lesbian. I have had friends who have suffered from this form of bullying, and it was a struggle as long as they were in school that caused them to doubt their sexual orientation when before they were confident in being heterosexual. What a distraction and terrible association with school for these kids. It's no wonder they tend to avoid school and social events within.
My question is: How do you instruct students in a class-wide format to accept and show love towards others who are LGBT without making them feel pointed out or uncomfortable? Do we teach in general terms (eg. "bully-free zone") or do we address it directly? What are some of your ideas?
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That is a good question which I wish I had the answer to. I would think that the school districts should have health classes that all students must take that make them aware of (I would hope) their policy of no bullying for GLBT students as well as any of the other groups who might fall under the no bullying policy. I am not sure if my district addresses that issue. I know that we used to go to Hult Center for Health Education that approached different subject including bullying at the level that your students were able to comprehend. However, these were one day trips which really would not lead to the older children understanding how unacceptable it is. I think it should be addressed in something like a Health class setting that is mandatory for all. That way children can discuss it intelligently in a no bias setting. However, just as with sex education, many people think it should be left to the family. Not really a solution.
ReplyDeleteLeaving things to the family rarely results in accomplishing anything. This is why kids are uninformed about puberty, sex, sexuality, religion, etc. Parents either ignore it, OR they push their agenda. :( Bullying is bullying, and policies shouldn't be limited to protecting one group or another. I think that bullying policies should be general policies, leaving out language that designates to a particular group.
DeleteI, too, compared the use of "gay" to "the R word." Isn't it unfortunate that we have to have "campaigns" to stop this negative behavior? I would love to show those videos in class, but as I mentioned in my (rambling) post, I am almost afraid to. My questions are the same as yours. HOW do we accomplish this??? I think "Bully-free" is so generic and overdone. There is no impact to that any more. Students know they're not supposed to bully, yet they continue to do so. There needs to be stricter consequences for bullying, no matter what. I wish I had the answer.
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