Kids would constantly make comments, obviously trying to wind me up or demean me.'ĭealing with the disruption this caused made it much more difficult for him to manage behaviour in the classroom. I had to challenge homophobic language in each and every lesson.
'While management said all the right things, they didn't really understand some of the issues. What made it worse was the lack of support from colleagues and senior leaders. But the homophobic language continued – some of which was directed at him personally. About a year into his time at the school, a group of female pupils asked if he was gay and he said 'yes'.Īt first things were fine, and Jonathan felt he was able to help pupils who were questioning their own sexuality.
'I went through a bit of a dilemma … how could I be a role model for kids who were finding it difficult to come out, if I wasn't brave enough to come out in the classroom myself?' he says. W hen Jonathan became a teacher, he wanted to be open about his sexuality, but in a school where casual use of the word 'gay' as a put-down was common, he wasn't sure if it was a good idea.
