Purpose

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded!”

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

*****

As a mathematics education student about to embark on the journey of student teaching, there are many, many thoughts that run through my mind: Will my students like me? How am I going to make mathematics both enjoyable and applicable to them? Will my host teacher force me to conform to his teaching style or will he let me experiment with my own? What happens if the students, parents, or staff learn that I am gay?

The most pressing of these concerns is definitely the latter. To be a queer educator, especially in many parts of the South, means that you probably experience many negative incidents surrounding homosexuality. Students, or even staff and parents, may make homophobic remarks; if you are queer, then you might be pressured to hide it; or perhaps you may even be the victim of homophobic ridicule or violence.

In this blog, I intend to document my experiences concerning this issue in the high school at which I will intern during the Spring 2011 semester. I will record how I (or those involved) responded to the situation and reflect on it. To protect the identities of my students and colleagues, as well as my own, I will keep the details contained in this blog anonymous (with the exception of the following paragraph). All names that are used are fake and are there solely to protect the identities of all involved.

I will be teaching in a very rural high school in North Carolina. The population of the town where the school is located is just over 4,000. Almost 96% of the town’s inhabitants are white and roughly 13% of the entire population lies below the poverty line. The school itself has approximately 1,000 students. I will be teaching three geometry courses this Spring.

I have spoken to many people about this particular school (which we will call Mountain Brook High School or MBHS), and most have expressed concerns over the students’ general stance on homosexuality and other issues. Many of the people I spoke with seemed to be under the impression that many individuals involved with MBHS are close minded and very homophobic. My host teacher (whom we shall call Michael Warren aka Mr. Warren), in fact, said, “They’re all rednecks.” I, however, have not had much experience with MBHS.

Currently, I am nervous, doubtful, stressed… terrified… but I am also excited about what this new stage of my life has in store for me. I begin observing at Mountain Brook in just a few days, and then I start teaching sometime in mid-January. Wish me luck!!