In their second survey, the authors found that the majority of students felt that PROJECT 10 had been positive and beneficial - not merely for LGBT students, but for the overall educational environment.
This resonates with one of the conclusions reached by Sedgwick (1993) when she offered her first class in gay and lesbian studies at Amherst College in 1986. While she initially designed the course for the five to six students she believed would show up, she was quite shocked when, on the first day of class, sixty-five students showed up, most of whom identified as straight. While Sedgwick is writing as a literary scholar, rather than a social scientist, her comments on pedagogy, as one of the most important proponents of queer theory since its emergence in the academy in the 1980s, are pertinent here. Sedgwick notes that it is fairly common in the United States for teachers to be fired for even inferring that LGBT people have a right to existence and equality, thus cementing the institutionalized silence that serves a homophobic and heterosexist agenda. She also points to statistics that state that twenty-six percent of all gay men have to leave home as students as a result of their sexuality. She also notes that nearly a quarter of all homeless youth in the United States are LGBT. In addition to the systematic homophobia mentioned above, Sedgwick also points out that LGBT students are kept isolated from LGBT adults who may be able to serve as mentors and role models, were it not for the homophobic idea that such adults may have a negative influence or even prey sexually on LGBT youth. Finally, Sedgwick criticizes the rampant denial found in the world of education as well as government, which surfaces in the form of defunding research on adolescent sexual behavior and refusing to fund programs in schools that might provide students with information on LGBT identity, as well as HIV prevention. What is more, many academics that are involved in research that may be of beneficial use to both educators and LGBT students find their work to be stigmatized as a result of the attack on "political correctness" by both the right wing and anti-intellectual leftists.
More recent research has shown that, while some states have taken steps to instill legislation to protect LGBT students from harassment and bullying on the basis of their gender or sexual orientation, school systems across the nation continue to take steps to insure that LGBT-related issues are banned from the curriculum (Kosciw and Diaz 2005). What is more, homophobic language continues to resonate through American school hallways as a means of insulting LGBT students; unfortunately, teacher and staff members are a lot less likely intervene in such scenarios than they are when racist or sexist language is used. What is more, nearly a fifth of the LGBT youth surveyed in Kosciw and Diaz (2005) reported hearing teachers and school staff members make homophobic remarks themselves. Over a third of all students surveyed had been physically harassed in the previous year owing to their sexual orientation, while over a quarter had experienced harassment as the result of their gender expression. What is more, such harassment and stigmatization has a visible affect on students' academic performance; many of the students surveyed reported having skipped at least one day of school in the previous month out of fear for their safety. LGBT students are twice as likely to drop out of high school or not go on to college after graduation. The severity of LGBT students' harassment inevitably corresponds with their level of academic achievement. The vast majority of students - over 80% - reported that they had never been taught about LGBT history, people, and events. What is more, the presence of LGBT clubs in the school tended to reduce the amount of absentees among the LGBT student body, while fostering a sense of belonging to the school community.
Smith (2007) notes the importance of fostering a sense of belonging in schools, largely owing to the fact that LGBT students have traditionally been excluded from the broader gay subculture, which is adult-oriented and thus afraid of promoting the image of seducing young people into a lifestyle that has been by and large condemned by society at large throughout its history. Critics often accuse LGBT supportive teachers of filling "advocacy" roles; Smith suggests that teachers find ways of being supportive in a way that is informationally and emotionally fulfilling, rather than "advocating" for any one position. Smith suggests a five-fold solution in addressing the problems posed by the current educational system. First, he suggests that teachers familiarize themselves...
In other words, World War II produced an important shift in both mentality and reality. Although many of the women who had been employed during the war returned to being homemakers, there was also a significant percentage which managed to reconcile being a mother and a wife with work. Also, despite the fact that their wages were far from being equal to those of men, their contribution to the
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Lesson Plan Amp; Reflection I didn't know what state you are in so was unable to do state/district standards! Lesson Plan Age/Grade Range; Developmental Level(s): 7-8/2nd Grade; Below grade level Anticipated Lesson Duration: 45 Minutes Lesson Foundations Pre-assessment (including cognitive and noncognitive measures): All students are reading below grade level (5-7 months) as measured by standardized assessments and teacher observation Curricular Focus, Theme, or Subject Area: Reading: Fluency, word recognition, and comprehension State/District Standards: Learning Objectives: Students will develop
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