We are parents and educators committed to a just and equitable society. This blog is a forum to share ideas and resources to help us teach our children and ourselves about social equity issues.

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Welcoming the new year

Happy New Year to everyone!


Before the school break, we held a screening of It's Elementary:Talking about Gay Issues in School, with a great discussion afterwards. One of the points noted was that "diversity education" is often perceived as of use and of interest to only a small, subset group of individuals. While an important part of this work is providing safety for those who are socially vulnerable, in actuality, diversity education is about building life-long skills to negotiate community and conflict for everyone. Diversity education helps a child successfully answer the question, "How can I meet my needs without hurting other people?" To be successful adults, (and I define successful in the sense of full psychological and spiritual emancipation) our children need to be able to respect, communicate and work with people of different skin colors, different languages, and different economic backgrounds. The more information and skills we can encourage to help our children move beyond the constraints of their own viewpoint, the more successful they can be.


To continue the conversation, here is a link to an online booklet, Queer Youth Advice for Educators. You can read it online, print a PDF or order a hard copy. It is a collection of insights from LGBTQ youth about their educational experiences, and ways in which they felt supported or abandoned in the process. A compelling read.