No abstract

Schools tend to be unsafe, unsupportive places for LGBTQ youth. Generally, teachers and administrators are provided little professional development (professional development) focused on gender and sexual diversity. Efforts to provide educators with gender and sexual diversity-focused professional development are slowly expanding, but still too focused on individuals. To navigate those challenges the authors have designed a “Teacher Institute” for local teachers, preservice teachers, educational leaders, and teacher educators to participate. The institute focuses on knowledge building, critical self-reflection, dialogue, action, and practice in two, 2.5 hour segments.

Studying educators’ processes of learning to queer their practice has prompted us to think differently about our own praxis as teacher educators. Thinking differently has meant bringing the assumptions of queer theory and pedagogy to bear on our understanding of what is involved for teachers as they engage with difficult knowledge surrounding gender and sexual diversity in schools. In other words, it has meant organizing our approach to professional development around the assumption that learning, like pedagogy, is a “pretty queer thing.” In this article, we present a conceptual argument for bringing a queer pedagogical lens to bear on teachers’ professional learning in and beyond gender and sexual diversity–focused contexts.

Background/Context A significant body of research on gender and sexual diversity in education has called on teachers to “move beyond inclusion” of LGBTQ+ voices in curriculum by queering their practice and “disrupting cis-heteronormativity.” Few studies have focused on the ways that disrupting cis-heteronormativity is challenging work for teachers to engage. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study In this case study, we focus on patterned moves that Laura, a first-grade teacher, made to disrupt cis-heteronormativity by supporting her students in cultivating what we call a “queer mindset”—a way of thinking, feeling, and doing that “rattles” her students’ common sense. Research Design The qualitative study reflects a nested case study design in which Laura represents an individual case within the broader case. Specifically, we use instrumental case study methodology. Conclusions/Recommendations To make good on the goal of disrupting cis-heteronormativity, we encourage educators to cultivate in their students ways of thinking, feeling, and doing that upend common sense and that challenge the status quo. We encourage educators to support their students in developing queer mindsets. This way, not only can educators support individual students, but they can also propel the kind of social transformation we want to see.