Removing the Masks: Considerations by Gay and Lesbian Teachers When Negotiating the Closet Door

ABSTRACT

In this study, I asked: “How do contextual factors promote or prohibit the construction of identities as gay teachers?” To answer this question, I interviewed nine K-12 gay and lesbian teachers four times each using semi-structured interviews including a stimulated recall session, collected teaching artifacts, and conducted a focus group. Constructivist grounded theory approaches guided data collection, analysis, and theory building. I found that contextual factors facilitated and inhibited integration of gay and lesbian identities with teacher identities, what I call the gay teacher identity development process. These factors interacted with each other in complex ways to inform classroom practice.

KEYWORDS:

• Education
• teaching
• sexual orientation
• gay
• lesbian
• homosexuality
• identity
• teacher
• queer