Chapter 7: Beyond The Binary In Elementary School

This chapter discusses queered professional development (PD) for elementary school teachers. Engaging in the professional development resulted in increasing teachers’ capacity to use LGBTQ inclusive instruction, to begin and continue to develop the practice of de-centering heteronormativity, and to normalize the presence of LGBTQ people through curriculum and instruction. Drawing on results from a student perception bullying survey, which highlighted pervasive experiences of homophobic and gender-biased bullying in schools, this study describes the creation and implementation of professional learning to increase staff and student knowledge about non-binary pluralities of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identification/Expression (SOGIE). The PD was informed by elements of culturally sustaining pedagogies and queer theory for explanations of heteronormativity, heterosexism and the limitation of binary identity categories. Such learning enabled professional contexts for integrating LGBTQ-inclusive practices in teachers’ pedagogies. Ultimately, each school discussed in this study initiated and sustained school wide implementation of queered curriculum and instruction that continues to evolve to present day.