Queering the Curriculum: An Ethnographic Case Study of a Gay-and-Lesbian-Themed English Literature High School Course

• In Event: Roundtable Session 14
  In Roundtable Session: Let Us In: LGBTQ Issues in the Curriculum

Abstract

Despite the dramatic recent socio-political shifts that significantly increased the visibility and the legal rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people, the pervasive silence concerning LGBT topics in most schools continues to persist. Queering the curriculum and engaging students in meaningful ways with queer issues can contribute to the disruption and transformation of oppressive practices around sexuality and gender in schools.

This qualitative study enlists a critical ethnographic approach to explore the possibilities and challenges of teaching a trimester-long high school English literature curriculum focused on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender themes, using participant observation, interviews, the gathering of material artifacts for data collection. Data analysis occurred through a modified grounded theory approach combined with critical discourse analysis.

Author

• Kirsten Helmer, University of Massachusetts - Amherst