HYPERLINKS:
This article was an evaluation of a LGBT Training Program. GLSEN took surveys and evaluated the effectiveness of the educator training programs that are meant to reduce anti-LGBT bias and behavior in school. These training programs seemed to be successful but they realize that additional efforts to develop skills may be necessary to sustain higher staff intervention levels. This article showed good statistical feed back such as more that 9 in 10 educators (92.2%) said the training had caused them to do something differently in their educational practices. The participants seemed to overall think the training was great to the point that it should be mandatory for all teachers, administrators and basically anyone who comes into contact with children in the school. The GLSEN report focused on the effects of the training on educators' knowledge, awareness, beliefs and behaviors; six weeks after the participants increased in many areas but they were also able to pinpoint the areas that did not increase. This finding was helpful towards future training so they can know what areas to work on.
This article discusses briefly how these training programs give educators tools to feel more comfortable addressing anti-LGBT bias and behavior in the classroom. This immediately made me think of our class discussions. This was brought up when one of my classmates (I think Danielle?) said that during her service learning project a student said "Justin Beiber is so gay". She instinctively addressed the issue and said not to say that because it could hurt someones feelings. After that Dr. Bogad made the point that it was great that she felt compelled to say something but that by addressing it in that manner may still relate the word gay with something that is bad. Dr. Bogad continued to explain that if you prepare for these situations as best that you can you will be more likely to handle it in the most productive way. The training programs that the article discusses seem to be just the thing that would help an educator do just that.
GLSEN-EducatorsGuide
This link to the Educators guide was very interesting and helpful to me. It goes more in depth on LGBT issues, statistics, and ways an educator can work on overcoming them. It discusses how to create a safe space for discussion with some sample ground rules, how to respond to resistance, and addressing things such as language and bias in the media. It goes into much more and I highly recommend looking it over!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59bIDDsUTNg
This is a short youtube clip that is sad a bit disturbing but I feel it really addresses the importance of stopping the LGBT bias and behavior at schools. This video, by Heather Ike, films a high school football game where students repeated an anti-gay chant. The video was first posted on youtube just showing that chant and it received many comments that tried to justify that chant. The video we see include this feedback. The comments all seem to defend the chant and make it out to be no big deal and even go to the extent of calling the girl who created the video names. Her video then shows short stories and photos of young people who have committed suicide after anti-gay bullying and harassment. It ends in some things that we can do right now in order to join the fight against this prejudice. I feel that, just like the training programs provide, the more aware we are of an issue and its severity to more we will be able to prepare to properly address it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyECqKjhOfE
This video is longer and actually has a part 2 that should come up on your right hand side when you are watching this part 1. Oct 5, 2010: Anderson Cooper explores the national epidemic with bullied students, parents of suicide victims, Rosalind Wiseman author of Queen Bees & Wannabees, conservative Tom Prichard of MN Family Council, and Ellen Degeneres. This video seems to address all of the issues of bullying, not just LGBT. I think this video had great examples and brought up excellent points. Anderson Cooper talks to parents, students, celebrities, etc. I don't even know how to sum it up exactly but its great! Hope you watch it!
Adding to blog:
This video is about the "pregnant man" named Thomas Beatie. It is really good, I recommend watching it. This is the first out of 5 videos. I have referenced this story before on someone's blog when we talked about the King and King childrens book. I thought of this story because this couple said they read a kids book about a daddy seahorse that gives birth. This also helped me understand a lot about transgendered people.
Wow! Those videos really are sad. That anti-gay chant is horrible, and so were the comments that people left. the second video was really depressing. We lost a 15 year old kid in 2003 in my town, due to bullying, just as Justin in the video. Very sad. I really liked how you did this post and the videos that you included worked very well with this.
ReplyDeletePeople can be so horrible.
ReplyDeleteI like how you also included the comment about Justin Bieber. I had forgotten about it, actually.
There was one video I found that was horrible. It was about a bunch of people who had been murdered because they were transgender.
The video's that you posted were really sad, but they really went well in your post. It seems like you did a lot of research for this post and really got into it.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't believe how people were chanting like that at a football game. I can't believe a whole mass of people could publicly scream something like that. (Mob mentality maybe?) But I'm even more shocked that no one stopped them. I'm very sure that if something like that happened at my high school the principal (who was easy going enough, but took a strict line about this kind of stuff) would have walked onto the field and just stopped the game. I know that sounds extreme, but what those kids were doing was extreme.
ReplyDeleteI saw the pregnant man on Oprah a while back and I remember that there was a lot of talk about it because he was transgender. Many people said that it actually isn't a man being pregnant, it's a woman who looks like a man that is pregnant, so it does not count as a pregnant man.
ReplyDelete