Cultural Contexts and Students

Transgender Dealing with Transgender Children Many children who are transgender identify themselves as such at a young age. Thanks to increasing awareness of the issue in the media, parents of transgender children are becoming more supportive of their child's choice to live as the gender the child believes is correct, whether the child regards him or herself as a boy or a girl. But although awareness is increasing amongst the general public, there is still profound resistance in many quarters to the concept.

In this instance, a first grade child is identifying as male, even though he was originally registered in the school as a girl and under a female name. The teacher must find a way to support the child while still tackling the resistance of other parents who might not view the child's self-image in as positive a fashion and children who have adopted their parents' attitudes. Further complicating the matter is the diversity within the school.

When a large percentage of the students speak English as a second language (as do their parents) and their parents come from different cultural contexts, understanding concepts such as transgenderism can be difficult. Even something as simple as asking children and parents to refer to the child's chosen name, versus a female birth name, can cause friction.

As noted by George (2014): "It's important to honour students' choices of name -- for trans students, this sends the important message that you accept their identities unfailingly." To effectively create a harmonious classroom environment, teachers must also be aware of their own biases. For example, insisting upon boy-girl seating or asking children to line up in gendered lines can cause unnecessary attention to be drawn to gender. Making reference to toys or books as inherently male or female can similarly make a transgender child feel uncomfortable.

Simple solutions include to "ask students to sit next to someone they don't know, by birthday or in alphabetical order" (George 2014). If parents express uncomfortable feelings about having a transgender child in the classroom, it is the teacher's responsibility to act as an educator about the issue, after listening to the parents' point-of-view. Even if the teacher does not validate their views, sometimes having the opportunity to express themselves about an issue of which they have little knowledge can at least begin to build a bridge of understanding.

Discomfort about transgenderism may be commonly expressed by the parents expressing concern about what bathroom the child is using; teachers can use this as an opportunity to stress the need for acceptance, toleration, and try to make parents feel less stressful about their child attending school. If necessary, teachers may also need to be in dialogue with administrators so that the child can be allowed to use the restroom that is appropriate for his self-identified gender. Bullying in bathrooms is often a concern for transgender children of all ages (George 2014).

Particularly for a young child, having a sense of security is important. If issues do occur, asking a male teacher to police the bathrooms until appropriate decorum is established may be necessary. When necessary, teachers must feel comfortable reaching out to administrators to ensure that students are not bullied or harassed. Although a teacher may feel uncomfortable imposing her views regarding acceptance on parents, it may be equally problematic to not defend the child given the teacher's responsibility to ensure that the child receives a high-quality education.

Transgender children have a higher likelihood of having early, negative experiences in school which can have long-lasting effects on their education and employment prospects. According to the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN)" "[S]tudents who experienced higher levels of victimization based on gender expression were twice as likely to report that they did not plan to pursue post-secondary education" (Oswald 2016). Acting as an advocate for transgender children can enhance the student's academic future.

Teachers can also foster a positive environment within the classroom, beginning with anti-bullying policies and a zero tolerance policy for negative and biased language. "First and foremost, a teacher can foster a culture of respect and acceptance in the classroom by creating a nurturing atmosphere" (Oswald 2016). Respect should be accorded to all students, regardless of race, religion, or sexual orientation/identification. Fostering tolerance is not something which is solely a transgender issue, of course; tolerance is a value that should be embraced by all students.

Furthermore, by emphasizing tolerance in a broad-based way, students.