Timothy Bedford

Towards Glbtq Equity in Schools: Teachers As Counter-heteronormative Agents Timothy Bedford

This book is a doctoral dissertation based on groundbreaking research on the possibilities and limitations to foster teacher empowerment and promote Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer (GLBTQ) educational equity in schools. The context of the research was the GLBTQ Educational Equity(GLEE) Project funded by European Union. Using an action research approach the project developed a Leadership Training Course (LTC) with the aim of empowering teachers to develop action plans for their schools to promote GLBTQ equity. The book describes the process of developing the principles of an empowering counter-heteronormative pedagogy for the Leadership Training Course. The pedagogy is based on critical pedagogical theories, queer theory and the results of Leadership Training Courses. There is also a focus on evaluating the empowerment of course participants to engage in actions to promote GLBTQ equity in their schools. This includes the development of a new tool for conceptualising empowerment for transformation. Overall the book gives insights into an empowering pedagogy and methodology to promote GLBTQ equity in schools, and the role of teachers as counter-heteronormative agents.