HNTT5AND
Qometimes people
Jmoke
ossumplions oboul whol is
toughl in schools without
occurole knowledge. Misconceplions leod
lo emotionol reoclions including onger,
onxiely ond feor. Here ore some focls to
help you beller understond how schools
operole.
clossroom octivities. Jusl os onti-rocism ond multiculturol educotion hove been embroced by educotors
os worthy topics, there is olso o growing o\Moreness
by educotors thot onti-homophobio hos to be oddressed. You do not hove to be o person of colour to
core obout rocism. Similorly, you do nol hove to be
TGBTQ to fight homophobio in schools or society ot
lorge.
MyTH #If: Goy-Stroighl
MyTH # I: Teoching
obout homosexuolity in
lifestyle.
schools condones the
Allionce Clubs (GSAs)
in high schools ore tl woy lo recruil studenls ond
encouroge lhem lo experiment with being goy ol
lesbion.
TACT #I:
FACT orft
Lesbion, goyt bisexuol ond tronsgender
(LGBTO) people hove lives like everyone else. There
is no distinct LGBTQ "lifestyle." Teochers often teoch
obout unfomilior topics to help students develop
respect for other people ond to ocknowledge their
contributions to society. A teocher's iob is to present
occurote, oge-oppropriote informotion to students.
MyTH #2: Teoching
obout homosexuolity in
schools involves tolking obout goy sex.
FACT #Z:
Anti-homophobio educotion con be
done in o voriety of woys. Most involve no discussion of sex or sexuol proctices whotsoever. The only
exception moy be in the heolth segment of Personol
Plonning or Heolth & Coreer Educotion closses. Otherwisg teochers moy tolk obout LGBTQ role models
in history, or reod o story obout some gender fomilies. They moy olso discuss the oppression of LGBTQ
people ond focus on stopping homophobic nomecolling in schools. These ore iust o few exomples of
oge-oppropriote onti-homophobio educotion.
MyTH #3:
LGgfQ teochers hove o goy ogendo
for public schools by introducing IGBTQ topics.
FAET #3:
Teochers ond principols hove o legol
obligotion to respond to oll forms of horossment ond
discriminotion in schools. All students hove the right to
ottend school in o sofe environment - ond expect to
see their lives positively reflected in curriculum ond
No one suddenly chooses to become
LGBTQ simply becouse they heord obout the topic in
school, from friends, or vio their sociol circles. There
is no known "couse" for o person's sexuol orientotion
or gender identity
-
whether thot person identiffes os
homosexuol, heterosexuol, bisexuol or tronsgender.
Sexuol orientotion ond gender identity ore complex
troits, ond hove been undersrood differently by different cultures ond ot different times in history. GSAs
help oll students to come together in o sofe spoce to
tolk obout issues thot ore importont to them. GSAs
help oll students to leorn from one onother ond moke
their school sofe ond more welcoming for students,
stoff ond fomilies. Anyone con be the torget of hoteful slurs, irrespective of their sexuol orientotion or
gender identity.
MyTH #5: Students will become
olly octive ond/or promiscuous if
TGBTQ issues ol school.
lrtore sexuthey heor oboul
TACT #5:
Like it or not, some teenogers ore
sexuolly octive. The decisions they moke obout their
bodies hove little to do with LGBTQ issues or onti-
homophobio educotion. However, lock of informotion
obout sofe sex con hove dromotic ond sometimes
trogic consequences for youth. Promiscuity ond unsofe sexuol behoviours often occur when students do
not hove occess to oge-oppropriotg occurote informotion.