Safe Spaces

By: Annemarie Vaccaro, Gerri August, and Megan S Kennedy

1. "Classrooms lay the foundations for an inclusive and safe society: a just community where common interests and individual differences coexist".

There are so many parts to this that are important. The "key words" that stick out are:

• lay the foundation
• inclusive
• safe society
• community
• individual
• coexist

How is all of that so important in one sentence?! As teachers, it is our job to lay that foundation for a classroom where students can come everyday and actually want to be there. It's our job to make sure the space is inclusive for everyone no matter their ability, race, gender, sexuality, you name it. It is our job to make every student feel safe and a part of the classroom community. We need to meet each child where they are are on an individual level, not where a textbook says they should be, and all members of the class need to coexist. I get it, we are all in this class and this is not news to us, but it really just stood out to me how powerful one sentence could be. 

2. "Maria's lived reality as a young lesbian was erased by the teacher's red pen".

Wow...yet again all I can say is wow. It is wild for me, as a straight person who never had to even think about my sexuality being questioned, to think that in a second your entire identity could be erased by a single person. I can't even begin to imagine the hurt she must have felt in those moments of processing "Should I tell her she's wrong? Will it even matter? Does she even care?" Now, imagine the impact that teacher could have had by simply giving her credit for that answer and moving on. Maria would have been validated in herself, not by a flashing light saying "I ACCEPT YOU!!", but just a subtle checkmark to say "Excellent, I'm happy for you". As I'm writing this response, all I can hear is this song in my head, and for all of us Musical Theater fans, enjoy! 😀

(picture from here)

3. "One reason educators take the path of least resistance is their fear of negative repercussions from parents or administrators". 

We talked about this a lot when talking about power and privilege and how to pick and choose what you want to teach and how you are going to teach it to make it the most effective and impactful while not going against administration. However, the phrase "the path of least resistance" really resonated with me. It really seems.... honestly lazy. I know that I can confidently say that I am in a school that backs 99% of things I want to do... but I'm sorry, we all need a little resistance, am I right? I mean, even like I brought up last class about teaching in Central Falls and the principal asking me if I was going to do anything about the kids in my room who needed to stand. That is one of those times where a little resistance if not a bad thing. Is she going to fire me for letting a kid stand? No. Is he getting his needs met, feeling respected and heard in my classroom? Yes. Then that's all that matters. Same goes for discussions around LGBT topics.

*This author argues that simply, as a teacher, it is our job to make our classroom a safe environment for all students regardless of their sexuality. No student should enter our classroom and feel less, or erased, or not thought of. *