Queer Teachers Discuss Return to Classroom
Educators say COVID-19 has changed their approach to teaching
BY TAT BELLAMY-WALKER
As millions of students
resume in-person
learning this fall, some
LGBTQ teachers have
mixed reactions about returning
to the classroom during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Matthew Reid, a fi fth-grade
teacher at William B. Ward Elementary
School and member of
New York State United Teachers
(NYSUT) in New Rochelle, New
York, described being back in the
classroom as a “little unnerving”
due to changing COVID-19 restrictions.
“In my building, there’s no gymnasium
anymore because they had
to turn it into another cafeteria so
that they have enough space for all
the children to be able to eat,” Reid
said, referring to social distancing
mandates. “That means that if it’s
not a nice day, the physical education
teachers have to push into our
classrooms.”
While Reid says it’s a “blessing”
to teach lessons in person
rather than remotely, it has not
come without challenges. Teachers
have to be careful about how
close students are to one another
during recess and other activities,
he said. Recently, he said offi cials
discovered a student traveling on a
school bus had COVID-19.
“They had to quarantine the
whole bus until they were able to
view the tape and know exactly
where people were sitting and how
close people were to this student,”
Reid said.
Reid’s husband, Aleksey Vodyanitskiy,
who teaches math at Rye
Middle School in Westchester,
said returning to the classroom
boosted his mental health. Vodyanitskiy
missed seeing students
understand or get excited by new
courses.
“It kind of keeps you moving,” he
said. “During the pandemic, that
part was completely wiped out.”
Vodyanitskiy likened the experience
of virtual teaching to being a
performer without an audience.
“That’s how sometimes it felt,
and it could be a very defeating
process,” Vodyanitskiy said.
Natasha Homa, a high school
Spanish teacher at the New
Hartford Central School District
just outside of Utica in upstate
New York, told Gay City News
she feels more connected to students
now than when she worked
remotely.
“It brought joy back to me to have
all the kids there in the classroom,”
Homa said. “When they’re at home
on their computer, you’re looking
at an avatar, and engaging kids in
both modalities is a big challenge.
The kids were challenged.”
Homa, who also leads the school’s
LGBTQ group, said queer and allied
students are eager to restart
the program. They are in need of
support, she said, rather than being
overwhelmed with computer
screens all day.
“I asked ‘How are y’all doing?
is there anything you want to talk
about?’ And they were dead quiet;
it broke my heart. You can say
I’m here for you, but when you’re
remote, it’s just not the same
thing.”
Since returning to school, she
has noticed more students are
coming out as LGBTQ and are
questioning their sexual orientation
or gender identity. The school
has LGBTQ-inclusive intake forms
and some students have responded
to those forms by saying they
are asexual, for example.
A couple of weeks into the school
year, Reid has largely resumed his
pre-COVID-19 set up: A framed
picture of his husband remains
on his desk and a Pride Flag is
proudly fl ying in his classroom.
While his fi fth-graders appeared to
bounce back from the pandemic,
he still worries for the kindergarteners,
unaware of school life prepandemic.
“For younger kids, sadly, this is
their normal, which is very sad for
me because this shouldn’t be their
normal,” he added. “It’ll be a great
day when we are able to be maskfree
and not worry about social
distancing. But, we all know that’s
still a ways away.”
EDUCATION
ALEKSEY VODYANITSKIY
Out math teacher Aleksey Vodyanitskiy said he missed being in the classroom with students.
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