Abstract
Drawing on interviews, ethnographic observations, and survey data, the author examines the ways teachers, administrators, and policy makers conceptualize and influence school environments for students of all genders. This article engages queer studies in education and disability theory to analyze the inclusion of trans* students in schools. Looking at the implementation of the New York City Department of Education’s Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Student Guidelines in K-12 schools, the author questions how we can understand and address the gap between educational practice and policy to create schools that are inclusive of trans* students. How does the denial that transgender and gender non-binary students exist act as a barrier to implementation of the New York City Department of Education’s policy? Administrators’ and teachers’ beliefs that trans* students did not exist in their schools structured ways in which such students were not seen, advocated for, or imagined.
Recommended Citation
Woolley, Susan W.. "“When You Don't Believe Something Is Real, You Can't Actually Advocate For or Support It”: Trans* Inclusion in K-12 Schools." Intersections: Critical Issues in Education 3, 1 (2019). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/intersections/vol3/iss1/5
Follow ICIE on Facebook
Follow ICIE on Instagram