Interview with Dr. Awneet Sivia

Question: How do you discuss sexual orientation and gender identity in your classroom?

00:00:05

I think I've always discussed diversity as an overarching kind of vision for classrooms, particularly today, in today's classrooms, both at post-secondary and in K to 12. And so, gender diversity is just another form of diversity that exists along the spectrum of diverse languages, identities, religions, cultural backgrounds and so on. And so, for me it's, it's just a natural part of the diversity matrix that we use to think about the way that we want to see our students and see our classrooms.

Question: What do parents need to know about how SOGI is addressed in school?

00:00:46

I think it's really important for parents to know that this is part of the curriculum. It's part of the BC-mandated curriculum. It is also part of the curriculum for a public education system. And when I say public, I think that it’s really important to remember that the Charter for Public Education that was developed back in 2003 really positioned public education as the vehicle to be able to be the voice of all identities, all backgrounds, all cultures, and all ways of being. And for students and the public education system, they really should be exposed to all of that because they may not be in other parts of their own lives or their own communities. And so, it's an important goal of public education to make sure that students that are coming out of our system in K to 12 really are comfortable with diverse identities, diverse backgrounds, and do more than tolerate, but really accept and celebrate and lift up each other. And so, I think parents need to know that it's not about teaching one particular way, but it's teaching about the diversity of all the different ways of being that students can and need to have the freedom to exhibit.

Question: What are some of the fears about SOGI-focused education that you have heard?

00:02:03

I think the fears need to be acknowledged and they are real for many people: fear of the unknown always is, you know, one of the underlying factors of pushback. So, it's important for public schools and public educators to really do a good job of articulating why SOGI is important in schools, why teaching of diverse ways of being and gender identities is so important in schools. And I think part of the fear is that because parents may not know how the language is around SOGI, how teachers are using the content or language or resources that are associated with SOGI, how they're being shared with students, and what the underlying learning messages are behind that. That needs to be made a bit more clear and if parents don't understand this as a learning process and think of it in ways where they think their students or their children might be converted or that there's fear being placed in students who don't identify with a particular gender identity, I think those fears need to be addressed very explicitly by public educators and educational leaders in schools today.

Question: What is the purpose of teaching about SOGI, as you see it?

00:03:23

I’ll come back to, I think the common underlying thread, and that is that we do live in a multilingual, multicultural, diverse society. It's increasingly diverse with global migration at a peak and a continuing to change the dynamic and demographics of our schools. So, the purpose of SOGI is again to teach the very many different ways that diversity manifests in human populations. And we are seeing it in all cultures and in all communities around the world. And so, when the world shows up at your door you need to teach about the world. And I think that that's a big part of the message behind SOGI is, you know, just as we acknowledge diverse learning abilities, diverse languages, diverse cultural backgrounds, diverse religious backgrounds, we also understand and recognize and celebrate diverse gender identities; and that we need to do that in schools if we really are teaching the world.

Question: How have your personal experiences informed your view of SOGI?

00:04:30

I think as a past K to 12 educator and certainly as a longtime teacher educator, my views have always been one of pushing the boundaries of what public education can do to prepare future generations of young people. And the future that we are preparing them for changes faster sometimes than when we can keep up with it. And so, my role, I've always seen it, as thinking about how I can peek around the corner of what kinds of societies and communities my young students or future educators will be entering into. So how to prepare them in a way that recognizes that what is today may not be tomorrow, and to be prepared for that kind of level of complexity and change, and somewhat to for the uncertainty as well. But having said that, I think it's important that we recognize, you know, my own experience as someone who did not grow up learning about diverse genders, or even the understanding of gender identities as being fluid has really had to do some unlearning myself and relearning. And I think that's an important recognition that I can share with future teachers, future educators, is that you do need to do your own work; and it's a process, but it's so rewarding because you can see people and acknowledge them and include them in ways that maybe your own biases might have prevented you from doing so.

Question: Is there anything else you would like to share?

00:06:06

Well, I think I'd just like to share with future teachers that are perhaps listening to this message that you play a very important role in setting the standard and the model for how to create inclusive, welcoming, and courageous societies, which we need in the future. And I think SOGI and teaching SOGI in a courageous, respectful, and honouring way is one part of the diversity education that I think all of us need to be teaching really well.