Opinion Blog

Classroom Q&A

With Larry Ferlazzo

In this EdWeek blog, an experiment in knowledge-gathering, Ferlazzo will address readers’ questions on classroom management, ELL instruction, lesson planning, and other issues facing teachers. Send your questions to lferlazzo@epe.org. Read more from this blog.

Equity & Diversity Opinion

Q&A Collections: Challenging Normative Gender Culture in Education

By Larry Ferlazzo — July 23, 2021 1 min read
Images shows colorful speech bubbles that say "Q," "&," and "A."
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

During the summer, I am sharing thematic posts bringing together responses on similar topics from the past 10 years. You can see all those collections from the first nine years here.

Here are the ones I’ve published so far:

The 11 Most Popular Classroom Q&A Posts of the Year

Race & Racism in Schools

School Closures & the Coronavirus Crisis

Classroom-Management Advice

Best Ways to Begin the School Year

Best Ways to End the School Year

Student Motivation & Social-Emotional Learning

Implementing the Common Core

Today’s theme is on Challenging Normative Gender Culture in Education. You can see the list of posts following this excerpt from one of them:

supportive

*'We All Have LGBTQ Students, Whether We Know It or Not’

Three educators provide suggestions to support LGBTQ students, including respecting pronouns and having LGBTQ authors in classroom libraries.

* Strategies for Supporting LGBTQ Students

Three educators share ways to help LGBTQ students.

* Six Ways Educators Can Support LGBTQ Students During COVID-19

Two educators share suggestions on how to support LGBTQ students in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, including “using appropriate names and pronouns.”

* Sexual Harassment & Assault in Schools

Six educators share stories of sexual harassment at school and offer recommendations on how teachers can respond to it, including through educating themselves and students alike.

* Challenges Faced by Women Teachers & Ways to Respond to Them

Educators Megan M. Allen, Rusul Alrubail, Pernille Ripp, Amy Williams, and Patricia (Tish) Jennings contribute commentaries in this post.

* Wondering ‘How Gender Influences a Teacher’s Struggles & Successes’

This post features educator Ray Salazar, who, in addition to sharing his personal experiences and thoughts, interviewed other teachers.

* Male Teachers ‘Walking a Tight Rope’

New York City teacher José Vilson and Sacramento, Calif., educator Alice Mercer share their ideas. In addition, I’ve included many reader comments

Related Tags:

The opinions expressed in Classroom Q&A With Larry Ferlazzo are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.

Events

School & District Management Webinar Squeeze More Learning Time Out of the School Day
Learn how to increase learning time for your students by identifying and minimizing classroom disruptions.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
Improve Reading Comprehension: Three Tools for Working Memory Challenges
Discover three working memory workarounds to help your students improve reading comprehension and empower them on their reading journey.
Content provided by Solution Tree
Recruitment & Retention Webinar EdRecruiter 2026 Survey Results: How School Districts are Finding and Keeping Talent
Discover the latest K-12 hiring trends from EdWeek’s nationwide survey of job seekers and district HR professionals.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Equity & Diversity Trump Admin. Accuses Minneapolis Schools of Racism in Protecting Minority Teachers
The Justice Department has filed its latest suit alleging racism for efforts to boost teacher diversity.
Anthony Lonetree, Star Tribune
2 min read
The U.S. Department of Justice is suing Minneapolis Public Schools for discrimination in its efforts to shield teachers of color from layoffs and reassignments.
The U.S. Department of Justice is suing Minneapolis Public Schools for discrimination in its efforts to shield teachers of color from layoffs and reassignments.
Carlos Gonzalez/The Minnesota Star Tribune via TNS
Equity & Diversity Opinion How to Help More Women Advance to the Superintendency
Despite ambition and talent, not enough female teachers break the glass ceiling as district leaders.
Krista Parent
4 min read
businesswoman building steps. Symbol of success, achievement, ambition, upskills and self development strategy concept
iStock/Getty Images
Equity & Diversity Opinion Scrubbing Critical Conversations About Racism Isn't Helping Your Students
Five ways to create "brave spaces" for your classroom while also embracing humanity.
4 min read
Conceptual illustration of classroom conversations and fragmented education elements coming together to form a cohesive picture of a book of classroom knowledge.
Sonia Pulido for Education Week
Equity & Diversity Trump Admin. Effort to End 1960s School Desegregation Cases Faces a Hurdle
The case offers an early test of the government’s attempt to quickly end long-running cases.
2 min read
A school bus is seen behind a fence with barbed wire outside Ferriday High School in Ferriday, La., May 22, 2025.
A school bus is seen behind a fence with barbed wire outside Ferriday High School in Ferriday, La., May 22, 2025. Dozens of 1960s school desegregation cases remain in place across Louisiana and the South. The Trump administration has said it intends to end these cases.
Gerald Herbert/AP