Welcome to the first blog post of 2019! For new staff, this blog is a place for our staff to share thoughts, opinions, wonderings, tips, resources, links, and more, about any topic they think is relevant to their colleagues' work and lives. Kris Claman is getting us off to a thought-provoking start with the following post... Holiday Knitting & Other Thoughts![]() I hope everyone relaxed over the holidays. As you might expect I did a fair bit of knitting over the holidays. I belong to an international online knitting community. In the last couple of weeks a lot of discussion has taken place about racism in the knitting and fibre arts community. Much of this is in USA where African – American and Latino women have experienced being harassed and belittled in wool shops and knitting groups. But this also takes place internationally which people in other parts of the world have been quick to point out, even though it may be more subtle.
In acknowledging “white privilege” we must ask what we (the collective we) should do to end or mitigate this. Here is a list of a few things that Peggy McIntosh (Wellesley College Center for Research on Women) felt she had through white privilege. How many of our colleagues and students don’t have these advantages?
I’m writing this to generate reflection and discussion of how we function both on a personal and institutional basis. As a result of reflection and/or discussion will you make any personal changes? I’m not saying we are racist or promote racist practices. Although these points are written from a USA point of view, do any apply here? I have a short version of the essay if you would like to read it. ~Kris Claman
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A few weeks ago when I was on a course in Wellington, one of the presentations involved questions around gender and some common terms. We were discussing the challenges students and schools face when catering for the diverse needs of our LGBTQI community. Some of the terms I was very familiar with, (I know that I am a cisgender female), but others, I wasn’t so confident with, for example, what it means to be bigender. So I thought I’d do some research, and also share with you a wonderfully simple diagram which helps to explain, or map out, gender. I thought I knew "the basics", but this diagram and the explanations really helped me solidify my understanding, and my confidence in explaining some of these terms and concepts to students (and my son) who may ask. The Genderbread PersonGender identity, gender expression, biological sex, and sexual orientation exist independent of one another. The schema used below to map out gender (the “-ness” model) allows individuals to plot where they identify along both continua to represent varying degrees of alignment with the traditional binary elements of each aspect of gender, resulting in infinite possibilities of “gender” for a person. Gender Identity: Who you think you areOn the left of both continua there is an empty set symbol, which is meant to represent a lack of what’s on the right, and on the right we have “woman-ness” (the quality to which you identify as a “woman”) and “man-ness” (ditto, but with “man”). Gender identity is all about how you think about yourself. It’s about how you internally interpret the chemistry that composes you (e.g., hormone levels). It has been accepted that we form our gender identities around the age of three and that after that age, it is incredibly difficult to change them. Formation of identity is affected by hormones and environment just as much as it is by biological sex. Gender Expression: How You Demonstrate Who You AreOn the left of both continua there is an empty set symbol, which, you guessed it, represents a lack of what’s on the right. On the right sides we have “feminine” and “masculine.” Examples of different gender expressions and possible labels are to the right. Gender expression is all about how you demonstrate gender through the ways you act, dress, behave, and interact—whether that is intentional or unintended. Gender expression is interpret- ed by others based on traditional gender norms (e.g., men wear pants; women wear dresses). Gender expression is something that often changes from day to day, outfit to outfit, and event or setting to event or setting. Biological Sex: The Equipment Under The HoodOn the left of both continua there is an empty set symbol, representing a lack of what’s on the right, and on the right we have “female-ness” and “male-ness” (both representing the degree to which you possess those characteristics). In the examples to the right, you see a term, “intersex,” which is a label for someone who has both male and female characteristics. You also see two “self ID” (self-identification) labels, which represent people who possess both male and female characteristics but identify with one of the binary sexes. Biological sex refers to the objectively measurable organs, hormones, and chromosomes you possess. Let’s consider biological sex in the ultra-reductive way society does: being female means having a vagina, ovaries, two X chromosomes, predominant oestrogen, and the ability to grow a baby in your abdominal area; being male means having testes, a penis, an XY chromosome configuration, predominant testosterone, and the ability to put a baby in a female’s abdominal area; and being intersex can be any combination of what was just described. Attraction: Who You're Romantically & Sexually IntoWe have two related ideas here. On the left of each we have “nobody,” meaning no feelings of attraction. On the right we have “men/males/ masculinity” and “women/females/femininity.” Sexual attraction can be thought of as the want, need, or desire for physical sexual contact and relationships. Romantic attraction is an affinity and love for others and the desire for emotional relationships. Some folks have both, some folks have neither, many experience more of one than the other. Gender identity, gender expression, biological sex, and sexual orientation are independent of one another (i.e., they are not connected). People’s sexual orientation doesn’t determine their gender expression. And their gender expression isn’t determined by their gender identity. And their gender identity isn’t determined by their biological sex. If someone is born with male reproductive organs and genitalia, he is very likely to be raised as a boy, identify as a man, and express himself masculinely. We call this identity “cisgender” (when your biological sex aligns with how you identify), and it grants a lot of privilege. It’s something most of us who have it don’t appreciate nearly as much as we should. The video below illustrates this idea beautifully, I think... I feel like I've learnt a lot during my research, and hope this might support anyone with questions to access some great resources.
I am so proud to work in a school community which is so inclusive and backs all our students and community members as beautiful, unique individuals who all belong here. I'm particularly proud of our QSA group, who really embody our school's core values in every way by being champions for equity in our school community. I've included some resources below if anyone has further questions / interest: http://inclusive.tki.org.nz/guides/lgbtiqa/ Inclusive education guide for schools http://insideout.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Making-Schools-Safer-For-Trans-and-Gender-Diverse-Youth-web.pdf (a comprehensive guide with a great glossary of terms at the end) https://insideout.ry.org.nz/ A friendly and accessible learning resource to help increase understanding and support of sex, gender and sexuality diversity, so we can all belong Content credit: Breaking Through The Binary - SamKillermann ~Rowan Taigel |
AuthorsWe'll have a variety of authors from OGHS over the year sharing their thoughts and experiences about education, teaching and learning Archives
June 2019
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