Sexual Identities in ESL: Queer Theory and Classroom Inquiry

Within ESL, interest has been growing in the pedagogical implications of poststructuralist theories of identity and in the need for gay-friendly teaching practices. However, research on identity has largely neglected the domain of sexual identity, and efforts to develop gay-friendly pedagogies have not yet engaged with poststructuralism. This article introduces some of the key concepts of queer theory, which draws on poststructuralism, and suggests implications for teaching. The central argument is that a queer theoretical framework may be more useful pedagogically than a lesbian and gay one because it shifts the focus from inclusion to inquiry, that is, from including minority sexual identities to examining how language and culture work with regard to all sexual identities. This article then comments on an ESL class discussion in the United States that focused on lesbian and gay identities. Speculations and Conclusions Directions: For each situation below, think of 3 or 4 different possibilities to explain what is occurring. Example: Those boys are hitting each other! They must befighting. Or, they could be playing around. They might be pretending to hit each other 3. Those two women are walking arm in arm. ["They could be loving "They can be very friendly." each other." "They could be mother "They could be lovers." and daughter." "They could be lesbians. " "They could be sisters."]' From a worksheet with seven scenarios, including "When Judy comes to my house for dinner, she never finishes her food " and "I told my student that her necklace was beautiful, and she gave it to me! " Sentences in brackets are oral responses from the students. SEXUAL IDENTITIES IN ESL 371W ithin English language education, there has been a growing interest in poststructuralist theories of identity and what they imply for teaching and learning (see the special-topic issue of TESOL Quarterly