“I Would Want to Support Children but I Will Not Encourage Such Behavior”: A Critical Examination of Heteronormativity in Early Childhood Programs

• In Event: Roundtable Session 58
  In Roundtable Session: Sexuality, Gender, and Questioning the Normative in School and Curricular Contexts

Abstract

Early Childhood programs function in a heteronormative manner, implying heterosexuality as the proper way to be a sexually being and not creating a space for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, and Intersex (LGBTI) children. The purposes of this project are to understand the early childhood experiences of LGBTI adults through the use of narrative inquiry and the development of a documentary; and to evoke disruption and rethinking of early childhood practices based in heteronormativity through viewing and discussing the documentary and creation of short documentaries of teachers’ practices.

Authors

• Jeanne Marie Iorio, Victoria University - Melbourne

• Andrew Reilly, University of Hawaii

• Richard T. Johnson, University of Hawaii

• Allison Sterling Henward, University of Hawaii at Manoa

• John Patrick Onesta, University of Hawaii