Adolescent Development
In their work Understanding Youth, Nakkula and Toshalis (2006) synthesize several prevailing approaches to understanding adolescent identity development and emphasize the importance of a student’s ability to explore diverse options before settling on an identity that best fits. If students are not exposed to enough options through their educational experiences or adult role models, they may settle on a foreclosed identity, which leads to strict, dogmatic thinking related to that identity and in response to difference (Nakkula & Toshalis, 2006, p. 29). This theory of identity development seems to match the ways I’ve seen gender and sexual identity performed by ninth graders at River Wards Health Tech. Students seem to have had little to no exposure to queer identities in a neutral or positive context and so their performances of gender and sexuality, which can sometimes be aggressive or outwardly homophobic, are likely connected to this lack of exposure. Therefore, exposure to queer themes in a controlled classroom environment that encourages appropriate risk can allow students to explore the different ways of being as it relates to their gender and sexuality. This not only will help students who may identify as queer but will also allow all students to develop an empathetic view of identities that are traditionally othered in our society.
Mirrors & Windows
Providing students the opportunity to embrace their present and possible selves can happen in diverse ways, but in an English classroom, a teacher should use their curricular materials as tools to promote this process of healthy development. Sleeter (2008) describes the process of providing to students sources for affirmation as well as inspiration and empathy as giving students mirrors and windows (p. 150). A mirror is a source in which a student can see themselves reflected, through racial, ethnic, or cultural identity, geographical origin, gender, or any other identity marker. A window is a source where a student can connect with identities that differ from their own, both providing opportunities to build empathy as well as a chance for students to experience how that identity may fit. In queering the English curriculum, a teacher should use both mirrors and windows when selecting materials. The inclusion of queer authors, characters, or historical figures is a window into a different way of life for many students. However, an educator should bridge the gap between a student’s context and queer identities by including authors and materials that are also reflective of a student’s community or experiences, or may relate to a topic they are familiar with already.