GLBTQ Studies – More than sex, HIV and bullying

Ask most school administrators or teachers where in the curriculum they discuss glbtq issues and, if their school is fairly progressive, they’ll likely answer that their health class and their anti-bullying efforts include some information for and about glbtq youth. In not-so-progressive schools, the answer would more likely be a swift kick out the door.

I do not wish to criticize the excellent and difficult work done to get the needs of glbtq youth represented in those schools where such needs are indeed represented. It has taken many years and much dedication by lots of people to get just this far. Furthermore, the focus of these efforts on health and safety makes perfect sense considering Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. However, there is much more to understanding the people, issues, and cultures of the glbtq population.

With Kelly Huegel, author of GLBTQ: The Survival Guide for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning Youth, I wrote the GLBTQ Studies for GLBTQ Online High School. Researching and writing this course was a great learning experience for me, and I was struck by just how invisible the glbtq community is in the typical high school curriculum. [This course is now available for both teachers and students nationwide. For teachers, Hamline University in St. Paul is providing graduate credits from their education department. Register now at http://www.glbtqonlinehighschool.com/glbtq-studies)%5D

If we understand the glbtq population as a minority culture that always has been and always will be part of the human experience, we can focus on identities rather than behaviors. In doing so, we can increase understanding, reduce fear, and ultimately improve the atmosphere in schools and the workplace for all glbtq people.

So where should glbtq issues be included in the curriculum? Everywhere.

English class: High school literature classes often discuss the married lives of writers like Shakespeare and the affairs of William Faulkner. Such discussions are designed to create a better understanding of what motivates and influences the literature. An even more direct connection between literature and the authors who create it would be the relationship between Gertrude Stein and her lesbian partner. Studying Stein’s “Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas,” recently identified by Time magazine as one of the most important memoirs of the 20^th century, would certainly require the discussion of GLBTQ issues. There are countless such examples throughout the literary world.

Science class: At this point in our knowledge development, science doesn’t provide clear answers about how or why different sexual identities or gender identities develop. We only know that it’s likely a complex interaction between genes, hormones and the environment. The study of biology, chemistry and environmental science can all be enhanced by the inclusion of GLBTQ issues, right down to a discussion of the fetal development of intersex (hermaphroditic) variations to the age-old question, “Is it a boy or a girl?”

Math class: Many math teachers recognize that including notable mathematicians is one way to engage students in what is too often a dry topic. How about a mathematician that became a war hero? Alan Turing came up with the concept of a computer (The Turing Machine) and was responsible for cracking the Enigma code, a mathematical accomplishment that was a key to defeating the Nazis. He was also chemically castrated for the crime of homosexual behavior. His public and private lives ruined by the punishments for his “crime,” Turing committed suicide in 1954. Only recently did the Queen of England pardon him and honor him for his contributions, and 2012 has been declared Alan Turing Year.

Social studies: Too easy. I’ll just mention a few topics: Privacy rights and the Fourth Amendment. The role of government in private lives. Kinsey Reports. Lavender Scare and McCarthyism. The Stonewall riots. Equal protection under the law and the Fourteenth Amendment. Marriage equality, Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell and other modern issues. And that’s just the last century.

Many people insist that it is critical that all glbtq people “come out” to reduce the social invisibility of the glbtq community. Much research has shown that the more people are aware of all of the glbtq people around them, the more comfortable and accepting they become. Besides coming out, including topics such as those above in the school curriculum can provide another way to reduce social invisibility. Unfortunately, most teachers are victims of the same system that kept glbtq issues invisible for so long. Most simply don’t have the content background they need, and even the most dedicated have difficulty finding appropriate materials. (Hint, hint: GLBTQ Studies for Teachers, register now at http://www.glbtqonlinehighschool.com/glbtq-studies)

Of course, some people are concerned that including GLBTQ issues in schools would “normalize” variations in sexuality and gender identities. That’s probably true. And since glbtq people have always been part of our communities, what’s wrong with that?