GLSEN Releases Toolkit to Prepare Teachers for Teaching About Respect in Elementary Schools

Evidence-based Curricular Resource, "Ready, Set, Respect!" Builds Teachers' Understanding of Bullying, Gender Nonconformity and LGBT-inclusive Family Diversity

On February 1, join GLSEN for an in-depth look at the study findings from Playgrounds and Prejudice. Participants will also learn more about GLSEN's elementary school toolkit, Ready Set, Respect! Register for this webinar here: http://glsen.us/elementarywebinar

NEW YORK - Jan. 18, 2012 - The Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) today released a new toolkit, Ready, Set, Respect! to help elementary educators ensure that all students feel safe and respected and develop respectful attitudes and behaviors. The GLSEN resource provides a set of tools to help educators prepare themselves for teaching about respect to students at the elementary school level.

"Our latest research on bias-based remarks and bullying in America's elementary schools provides new understanding of the experiences facing our youngest students," said GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard. "Ready, Set, Respect! is a new instructional resource informed by our findings to address homophobia, gender expression and LGBT-inclusive family diversity at the elementary school level."

Ready, Set, Respect! contains suggested lesson plans that focus on name-calling, bullying and bias, LGBT-inclusive family diversity and gender roles and diversity. The templates are designed for teachers to use as either standalone lessons or for integration into existing curriculum content or school-wide anti-bullying programs. The toolkit also contains helpful tips for teaching more inclusively and intervening in bullying and promoting respectful recess playtime and physical education.

The GLSEN toolkit was developed in partnership with the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) that serves elementary and middle school principals in the United States, Canada, and overseas and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children.

"Elementary principals are painfully aware of the impact that name-calling, bullying, and bias have not only on an individual student's development, but also in disrupting a positive school culture that nurtures the whole child" said Gail Connelly, executive director of the National Association of Elementary School Principals. "Principals, who are key instructional leaders, are poised to partner with teachers and to use resources such as Ready, Set, Respect!, ensuring that schools are safe and respectful environments that nurture students' social and emotional development."

The GLSEN toolkit outlines its application within the Common Core States Standards for English Language Arts and the Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) Standards (4th Edition).

The 68-page resource was developed to help educators address issues raised in GLSEN's newest research on elementary schools titled, Playgrounds and Prejudice: Elementary School Climate in the United States. The study, based on national surveys of 1,056 elementary school students in 3rd to 6th grade and 1,099 elementary school teachers of K-6th grade, examines students' and teachers' experiences with biased remarks and bullying, and their attitudes about gender expression and family diversity.

Key findings include:

• The most common form of biased language in elementary schools, heard regularly (i.e., sometimes, often or all the time) by both students and teachers, is the use of the word "gay" in a negative way, such as "that's so gay," (students: 45%, teachers: 49%).
• Gender nonconforming students are less likely than other students to feel very safe at school (42% vs 61%), and are more likely than others to be called names, made fun of or bullied at school (56% vs 33%).
• While an overwhelming majority of elementary school teachers say that they include representations of different families when the topic of families comes up in their classrooms (89%), less than a quarter of teachers report any representation of lesbian, gay or bisexual parents (21%) or transgender parents (8%).
• A majority of teachers (85%) have received professional development on diversity or multicultural issues, but less than half of teachers have ever received specific professional development on gender issues (37%) or on families with LGBT parents (23%).

To access the complete findings of Playgrounds and Prejudice, click here.

"Elementary school teachers presently face extraordinary challenges with ensuring students' educational outcomes and striving to create culturally responsive classrooms that acknowledge the diversity found among all students, families and people a part of the community," said Byard. "Ready, Set, Respect! will equip teachers with tools and resources that not only improve school climate, but also instill a shared sense of responsibility among students that name-calling, bullying and harassment have no place in a school or community."

About GLSEN
GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for all students. Established in 1990, GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. GLSEN seeks to develop school climates where difference is valued for the positive contribution it makes to creating a more vibrant and diverse community. For information on GLSEN's research, educational resources, public policy advocacy, student organizing programs and educator training initiatives, visit www.glsen.org.

About NAESP
Established in 1921, the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) serves elementary and middle school principals in the United States, Canada, and overseas. NAESP leads in the advocacy and support for elementary and middle-level principals and other education leaders in their commitment to all children. The NAESP Foundation, founded in 1982, is the charitable arm of NAESP and is dedicated to securing and stewarding private gifts and grants that benefit the National Association of Elementary School Principals. www.naesp.org

About NAEYC
Founded in 1926, The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) is the world's largest organization working on behalf of young children with nearly 80,000 members, a national network of more than 300 state and local Affiliates, and a growing global alliance of like-minded organizations.

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