The LGBTQ+ Experience in Public Schools: Recommendations for Decentralization of Secondary Education History Curriculum
Open Access
Author:
Gordon, Margaret
Area of Honors:
Secondary Education
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Hil Malatino, Thesis Supervisor Scott Alan Metzger, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Pennsylvania secondary education LGBTQ+ pedagogy
Abstract:
History textbooks and curricula in the United States repeatedly center history in a manner that espouses a narrow understanding of the past. Specifically, this history centers the experiences of majority or historically dominant groups. This qualitative investigation examines the lived experiences of queer people concentrated around their educational sojourn in Pennsylvania’s secondary schools and how these may be used to better inform a decentered history curriculum. To decenter a curriculum entails examining the emphasis placed on the narratives of specific groups and reconstructing a history that better integrates accounts of lesser prevalence in the currently addressed history. Using a semi-structured interview format, participants were asked to describe both about their experiences in and outside of the classroom and ways in which the history education they received could have been restructured to better nourish them academically. The results support previous findings that illuminate the deficiency of queer figures and issues in history curriculum across Pennsylvania, as well as teacher unfamiliarity with how to address these histories and serve LGBTQ+ identifying students. The narratives shared by participants informed curriculum recommendations and lesson plans included at the conclusion of this work.
