Researcher Positionality
An approach that has influenced all of these strategies is that of Researcher Positionality. Milner (2007) describes the importance of making oneself conscious of their positionality in a classroom as a teacher-researcher, especially when students are of a different racial or cultural group; it is also important to make the identities of students explicit. To help teacher-researchers locate themselves within a classroom community, Milner provides a list of questions that allows one to bring to the forefront of consciousness their position and how it may relate to others in the classroom (p. 375). These questions, focused on racial and cultural identity, can be easily adapted to center on gender and sexual identity. As a white, queer teacher it is important to recognize that my identity has a direct influence on the questions and conversations that take place in my classroom. It is also important to acknowledge that most of my students are Latino and/or Black, which has likely influenced the ways they’ve been taught to perform their genders, as well as the opinions they may hold of certain queer identities. I also would like to remain conscious of any assumptions I’ve made about their views of queerness, as it is a common misconception that communities of color are more homophobic than their white counterparts.
Researching the Self: Race & CultureWhat is my racial and cultural heritage? How do I know?
I am a white woman. I was raised Catholic, mostly in the Irish-American tradition. My whiteness is obvious in the school setting since it is unique (although most teaching staff are white), but in the rest of the world my whiteness and Judeo-Christian upbringing are reflective of cultural norms. In what ways do my racial and cultural backgrounds influence how I experience the world, what I emphasize in my research, and how I evaluate and interpret others and their experiences? How do I know? As a white woman, I experience the world with a great deal of privilege. My race separates me visibly from most of my students. Although I try to emphasize a culturally responsive model of teaching, my students are still quite aware of our differences and have used them as a wedge in our relationship. I also acknowledge that although I work to overcome them, I have racial biases that affect how I perceive my students. This comes into play when I make assumptions about how my students view gender and sexuality. I have assumed that my students would have more traditional, binary views of gender and sexuality based on their racial and cultural identities. What do I believe about race and culture in society and education, and how do I attend to my own convictions and beliefs about race and culture in my research? I believe that it is my responsibility as a teacher to provide my students with “mirrors and windows” in my teaching, so that their identities are affirmed and they are provided with a view of the world at large. Education should be used to empower students and give them the tools to critique their society. A classroom should be a space that is used to explore present and possible selves as it relates to all aspects of identity. This belief has affected how I have decided to queer the classroom. (Milner, 2007, p. 395) |
Researching the Self: Gender & SexualityWhat is my gender and sexual identity? How do I know?
I am a queer woman who does not have traditional gender presentation. Throughout my life I have been told that I am interested in things that are “for boys,” and I prefer to wear masculine clothing and keep my hair short. Occasionally, a student will call me “Mister” by accident. In what ways do my gender and sexual identity influence how I experience the world, what I emphasize in my research, and how I evaluate and interpret others and their experiences? How do I know? Being a queer woman has lead me to focus on how I can use my teaching to create a more tolerant environment for queer people in general. I’ve focused on how my students speak about queerness specifically or how they use anti-queer speech to police each other’s behavior. I am incredibly attentive to how people in the world speak about gender and sexuality, and this attention has lead to my focus in teaching and inquiry. What do I believe about gender and sexuality in society and education, and how do I attend to my own convictions and beliefs about gender and sexuality in my research? Why? How do I know? I believe that education can play a role in providing students with the resources they need for healthy identity development in all areas, but especially in their gender and sexuality development. This belief has led to my question and areas of focus as a teacher, even when I have felt reluctant to engage with these ideas with students. I was not provided a safe academic environment to explore my gender and sexuality when I was in high school, which I believe has affected my development. I also believe that speaking about gender and sexuality in an educational setting can be tricky due to ideas that a teacher should keep their personal life and beliefs separate from their teaching. Personally, I think it is impossible to keep oneself removed from one’s teaching. However, queer teachers have often risked their careers by being out or outed. |