An Inclusive Curriculum with Ari and Dante by Travis Reyes

Travis Reyes is a public-school teacher in Arlington with 22 years of experience.  His students are amazing human spirits in 6th-12th grade at HB Woodlawn Secondary Program. He is certified in Spanish, ESOL, and Administration and Supervision; Travis uses all his skills to support learners in and out of the classroom.  Part of teaching involves working with a group of students in a program known as a Teacher Advisor or TA.  His students in the program have gone on to win Posse scholarships for college.  He is currently a trustee at his Quaker meeting and serves on several educational and scholarship committees for Friends schools and the Baltimore Yearly Meeting.   This summer, Travis will be presenting an LGBTQ book talk to young people at the Kennedy Center under the auspices of Fred Eychaner, a gay American businessman, and a prominent philanthropist.  Travis is married to his husband Reggie, and they have three chihuahuas, Maní, Adobo, and Lumpia. 

An Inclusive Curriculum with Ari and Dante by Travis Reyes

“The world according to Ari and Dante. Dante and me walked through a world, a world nobody had ever seen, mapping out all the rivers and valleys and creating paths so that the journeys of all of those who came after us through the wilderness wouldn't be scary. No one who came after us would ever get lost because of the maps we'd made.”

― Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World

A close look at the quote asserts that these pioneering gay characters are not so much crossing actual physical mountains and wide rivers but social barriers and hardships.  Both Ari and Dante come out of the other side of complicated adolescence in the 1980s doing rather well for two gay boys at the time.  These two characters have vibrant and full lives as young gay people and they experience positive friendships, find self-acceptance, and wider community support during a trying and very challenging time in American history.  The 1980s were not a time not known for open support of LGBTQ people and one almost needs to pinch themselves to read all about Ari and Dante just being themselves and true to themselves with all the support they received.  Much of what Ari and Dante achieved links to the work of sociologists and psychologists (Cass, 1979; Colemann 1981; Lipkin, 1999; Troiden, 1989).  These theorists explored what it means to be LGBTQ as a young person and how there is a need to grow up authentically normal, even when society is homophobic and hostile.  Their theories are a calling to instill within regular and mainstream society more structural support for those who identify as LGBTQ people in the hope that fewer will struggle and find more resources.  LGBTQ books in the classroom are one such approach and structural adjustment for the betterment of the experiences and lives of young LGBTQ people. ​

The Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network (GLSEN), an important organization recognized for supporting LGB rights for young people, shares that the experiences of LGBT youth are far from supportive.  GLSEN shares that because of the lack of support, many LGBTQ youths tend to want to avoid school and skip school.  In their climate survey, GLSEN mentions that “98% of LGBTQ students heard ‘gay’ in a negative way and that LGBTQ youth were nearly three times more likely than straight students to have missed school in the past month (44.1% vs. 16.4%).”  While the data is revolutionary in describing the lives of LGBTQ youth and their experiences, the survey arguably can also be a case for inclusion and responsive instruction.  This is because GLSEN also writes about how LGBTQ content is included within the schools and that this is potentially why LGBTQ youth struggle.  GLSEN writes “…only 9.4% of LGB students are taught positive representations of LGB people, history, or events in their schools, and 17% had been taught negative content” (p. 8). 

What this means is that teachers need to consider focusing more on the damaging impacts of including only negative information and content on their learners who are LGBTQ.  What this also means is that teachers can work on adding positive expressions of LGBTQ life and diverse ranges of experiences into the curriculum. 

​GLSEN states that an inclusive curriculum takes down negative and anti-LGBTQ language and students are more inclined to feel safe.  In fact, “[LGB youth] were less likely to hear ‘gay’ used in a negative way… (59.2% vs. 79.8%), they were less likely to hear homophobic remarks such as “fag” or “dyke” and, they were less likely to feel unsafe because of their sexual orientation (44.4% vs. 62.7%).  ​

Growing up I cannot think of even one book that helped me learn more about finding friends who supported LGBTQ people, let alone any responsive teaching or approach that helped all of us to feel comfortable with ourselves as young LGBTQ people.  Quite possibly, teachers at the time did not even know that there were LGBTQ experiences out there in society that could speak to my needs as a young learner.  Today, fortunately, there is critical research by GLSEN to help teachers understand more about the importance of being inclusive, responsive, and working to build positive experiences in the curriculum in a responsive way.  Within this conceptualization and emergent understanding of LGBTQ inclusive curriculum comes an important place for LGBTQ books like Ari and Dante and a call to action.  Keep in mind that GLSEN’s survey was from all 50 states' student experiences.  What this means is that an inclusive curriculum is neither a northern or southern issue, east coast, or west coast issue, but an American educational issue. Growing up is difficult and an inclusive curriculum grounded in books that have empowered characters can play a role to transform education and how students see themselves within the world.  It is of paramount importance that future research and discussion in education focus on these topics for our students. ​