1)
Advertise that you are a Safe Space for all
identities, expressions and orientations.
2) Have courageous conversations with staff, students and community to confront inequalities, offensive materials, misconceptions and meta-messages.
2) Have courageous conversations with staff, students and community to confront inequalities, offensive materials, misconceptions and meta-messages.
3)
Find ways to feed in materials and ideas to
directly confront and disrupt power, heteronomativity and gender roles.
4)
Listen to and directly involve students in
confronting and disrupting. Use their passion for equity to your advantage.
5)
Have courage knowing that the law, your role as
an educator and advocacy for students gives you more power than you think. We
have a legal obligation to respond to harassment and discrimination in our
schools.
6)
Call incidences for what they are: sexism,
homophobia, heteronormativity… not bullying.
7)
Consciously choose language that is
non-gendered.
8)
Consciously invite students to participate in
non-dominant activities.
9)
Support students every time they confront the
norm, irrationally and with passion!
10)
Emphasize the need to build allies. Everyone can be an ally for a friend. Never
focus on outing anyone or making orientation an exclusive club to LGBTI
students.
11)
Build community connections to other youth
supports who can be your school’s ally. Reach out to leaders in the youth and
young adult community. High school GSAs, URPride etc.
12)
Reflect on your own bias and how bias affects
your teaching.
13)
De-gender the binary of boys vs girls in your
school: Gender neutral washrooms, Gender neutral sports teams, Gender neutral
resources, Gender neutral opportunities, Gender neutral rewards, Gender neutral
code of conduct and dress code
14)
Focus on curriculum that builds acceptance and
understanding – shift away from educating exclusively about reproductive
organs, sexual practice and labeling the spectrum of sexual diversity.
15)
Begin anti-discriminatory campaigns against the
use of words like gay, fag, dyke etc.
16)
Begin a Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) with
the support of Division leadership, parent council, staff and students.
17)
Encourage administrators to not support ‘opting
out’ for students. Education opportunities that are up to date, accurate, age
appropriate and respectful are for all students.
18)
Join supportive circles #LGBTeach @GLAAD @GLSEN @huffpostgay
@ItGetsBetter
19)
Advocate for inclusive curricula.
20)
Celebrate publicly (websites, assemblies,
community presentations) the diversity of your student population and efforts
students make to create inclusive environments.
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