Queer Representation in Schools and Music Education - Tatyana C. Louis-Jacques

As music educators, we have the unique opportunity to work with our students in a variety of formal and informal learning environments. We also have the responsibility of ensuring that our spaces are open and inclusive for all but creating these safe spaces can be incredibly challenging and many people are unsure of where to start. My goal in writing this article is to bring light to some of the struggles faced by people who identify as members of the LGBTQIA+ community in the realm of public education and encourage my fellow music educators to explore ways of better supporting the students in their care.

In 2011, California passed the FAIR Education Act which required “the roles and contributions of LGBTQ+ people and people with disabilities” to be included in history and social sciences curriculum along with other ethnic and cultural groups (Equity California, 2017). In doing so California became the first state in the United State to mandate any level of LGBTQ+ education. Unfortunately, it took the state board of education six years to finally approve LGBTQ-inclusive textbooks.

In 2019, New Jersey became the second state in the United States to require LGBTQ-inclusive education. The bill mandated that every school in the state teach students about "the political, economic, and social contributions" of LGBTQ+ people and people with disabilities (Knox, 2020). It also specifically required that all boards of education for middle and high schools ensure that instructional materials, such as textbooks, include accurate portrayals of the contributions made by LGBTQ+ people and those with disabilities.

Advocates in New Jersey were determined to learn from California’s mistakes and one year later, 12 school districts began a pilot program designed by Garden State Equality and Make It Better for Youth, two nonprofit organizations (Knox, 2020). Some celebrated this move, such as Christian Fuscarino, the executive director of Garden State Equality who said, “it’s critical that our classrooms highlight the achievements of LGBTQ+ people throughout history,” and that “our youth deserve to see how diverse American history truly is — and how they can be a part of it one day, too” (Knox, 2020). Some people, however, were displeased with this new legislation. The mayor of Barnegat, a town on the Jersey Shore, called the bill “an affront to god” and the Family Policy Alliance of New Jersey, a Cchristian organization, sponsored a petition to prevent what they see as “radical LGBT sexual indoctrination” (Family Policy Alliance, 2020).

What these anti-LGBTQ+ parties do not acknowledge is that a failure to recognize and validate a portion of our school population, nearly 15% according to the Center for Disease Control, may have lasting negative effects on students and teachers alike (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). From the student perspective, GLSEN (formally the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) reports that more than half of respondents who participated in the 2019 School Climate survey reported feeling unsafe at school due to their sexual orientation (GLSEN, 2019). One-third of those surveyed had chosen to miss class rather than risk harm and nearly one-fifth had changed schools because they were experiencing harassment. In addition, those who did attend school still avoided school functions and participating in extracurricular activities.

These students may be dealing with homophobic slurs, experiencing verbal, physical, and sexual harassment, and yet schools provide uneven support. 72.7% of students who reported experiencing harassment did not think that their school would do anything about it. 48.4% expressed concern that they would be blamed or punished for reporting an incident and 27.7% stated that their school staff was openly homophobic and transphobic. How can we as educators expect our students to learn if they are worried about their safety?

In a similar way, how can we expect educators to successfully do their jobs if they do not feel safe and supported in their work environment? Bergonzi (2009) describes several inherent privileges that heterosexual members of the school community have that queer members do not, including: (1) Being able to speak openly about relationship status and significant others; (2) Not worrying about dress codes and formal attire for school functions; (3) Using stories from your personal experiences in the classroom; (4) Having your world view supported by the majority of media presented in school; (5) Not being stereotyped based on personal preferences and interests. For queer educators however, being themselves and opening up at work can have serious consequences. In interviews with six queer teachers, Mayo (2020) reports that there are frequent feelings of discomfort and intimidation around their administrators, coworkers, and adults due to the possibility of being judged, stereotyped, or even fired due to their sexuality. Like students, queer educators battle the desire to be themselves, and fear potential backlash. The strain of working in potentially hostile environments and need to compartmentalize their identities drives many queer educators to leave the profession (Taylor, 2018).

In their efforts to improve the quality of education being provided in their districts, administrators should first be committed to providing a safe and equitable learning environment. Once the school leadership has addressed the basic inequalities present in their buildings, they can then focus on including LGBTQ+-inclusive materials at all grade levels. The 2019 GLSEN report shows that barely a fifth of students experienced any LGBTQ related topics in their textbooks and assigned readings and those who went searching were only able to access LGBTQ+ materials, either in the school library or on school devices, about 50% of the time.

To make such tasks easier, a number of organizations have already done the work of collecting resources and writing curriculum. The Human Rights Campaign has compiled lists of picture and middle grade books that primary school teachers can draw from. GLSEN, the Illinois Civics Club and even the California Department of Education all have resources for schools looking to include LGBTQ+ voices in their curriculum.

From the music educator’s perspective, the desire to provide an inclusive environment for their queer students provides unique difficulties. Broadly speaking, music educators can start by committing to teaching from a gender-complex perspective. Rands (2009) describes this perspective as “constantly [questioning] the ways in which gender is operating and what the consequences are”, taking into consideration the “complex sets of privilege and oppression that students and teachers experience based on their gender categories, gender expressions, and the gender attributions others make of them” and being aware of how the “gender oppression matrix and heterosexism work in tandem to privilege certain groups of people and oppress others and take action to challenge the gender oppression matrix and heterosexism”. In order to successfully implement gender-complex pedagogy, educators must first examine how they see gender and what types of gender education have shaped that view. From there they can begin to observe the ways gender plays a role in their classrooms and if any students are being harmed by the gender roles present.

In the ensemble classroom, steps must be taken that do not apply in the general music classroom. The most impactful issue is likely what voice types to include in vocal ensembles. Fortunately, this topic has been heavily discussed and the consensus seems to be that students should be placed in alignment with their gender identity. On a purely instructional level, respecting a student means they are more likely to trust you and engage in the instruction you are providing (Graham, 2018). When looking through the lens of being a good teacher, “a student's emotional and mental health is paramount”, not what voice part they are singing in the honor choir (Sauerland, 2018, p.99).

And while progress is certainly being made in some areas, other issues have yet to be decided. When traveling, rooms are often assigned by gender. What does that mean for trans or non-binary members of the ensemble? Does the repertoire being performed enforce harmful gender stereotypes? What do you put in the program, a student's birth name or their chosen name? What are your concert attire options and are they too based on gender? These questions and more must all be addressed in order to provide the best learning opportunity for our students.

I readily admit that I do not yet have all the answers to making music education a safe and equitable learning environment for queer educators and students, nor do I think I ever will. I have shared this information and posed these questions in the hopes that they give readers a place to start on their journey to better supporting their queer identifying students and colleagues. We have an incredible privilege as music educators, and it would be a shame to waste it by not working towards the fulfillment of all in our care. The American LGBTQ+ Museum. (n.d.). Our Plan. The American LGBTQ+ Museum. https://thelgbtqplusmuseum.org/our-vision/.

Bergonzi, L. (2009). Sexual Orientation and Music Education. Music Educators Journal, 96(2), 21–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0027432109350929

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2020, August 20). 2019 Number and percentage of students, by sexual identity. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/ data/yrbs/2019_tables/students_by_sexual_identity.htm.

Equality California. (2017, November 14). California State Board of Education Approves LGBTQ Inclusive Textbooks. Equality California. https://www.eqca.org/sbelgbtqtextbooks/.

Family Policy Alliance. (2020, January 10). Sign the LGBT Curriculum Petition to Protect Students in NJ. Family Policy Alliance. https://familypolicyalliance.com/issues/2019/10/25/the-governor and-legislature-have-gone-too-far/.

GLSEN. (n.d.). School Climate Survey. GLSEN. https://www.glsen.org/school-climate-survey.

Graham, F. (n.d.). He Said, She Said, THEY SAID: Making the Case for a Gender-Neutral Pedagogy. Journal of the New York Singing Teachers' Association, 15(5), 87–91.

Knox, L. (2020, February 12). 12 New Jersey schools roll out LGBTQ curriculum pilot program. NBCNews.com. https://www.nbcnews. com/feature/nbc-out/12-new-jersey-schools-roll-out-lgbtq-curricu lum-pilot-program-n1134436.

Mayo, J. B. (2020). Queer teacher to queer teacher: reflections, questions, and hopes from current and aspiring educators. Teaching Education, 31(1), 32–44. https://doi.org/10.1080/10476210.2019.1709813

Rands, K. E. (2009). Considering Transgender People Educa tion. Journal of Teacher Education, 60(4), 419–431. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487109341475

Sauerland, W. (2018). Trans Singers Matter: Gender Inclusive Considerations for Choirs. Journal of the New York Singing Teachers' Association, 15(5), 95`-105.

Taylor, D. M. (2018). LGBTQ Music Educators: External Mentoring Between Student Teachers and In-Service Teachers. Bulletin of the Council for Research in Music Education, (216), 65–86. https://doi.org/10.5406/bulcouresmusedu.216.0065