Scenario: That’s so gay, retarded, etc.

When a student uses a term that creates discomfort, how do we turn the discomfort into productive discomfort and create a learning experience? Often, certain words are triggers for class members. Some class examples could be:

“That’s so gay”

“That’s retarded!”

“She’s a femi-Nazi”

“You people always complain about whites.”

“Are you off your meds?”

“What an emo!”

These are things that have been said in the classrooms members of the Productive Discomfort cohort. The group discussed possible responses, including:

• Ask student “Help me understand what you mean by that sentence?” or “What do you really want to say?”
  • If student replies “I mean that it sucks,” ask them to say that instead of “that’s so gay”
  • If student replies “I guess that’s not very PC,” relate PC back to the mission statement by reframing PC as practicing consciousness and discussing how the classroom is a place for attention and attitude.
• Rather than leaving it open-ended, ask student to use more precise language and give the student a choice. “Do you mean this is homosexual or not what you expected?” This gives the student the opportunity to make a good choice and you don’t wind up with “this sucks.”
• Deal with it in class (if you can) so students know you care.
• Craft a statement to put in your syllabus about being mindful of the words we use. Frame it to be positive, not a list of words that cannot be used.

Other Terminology

What about a student (or instructor) using a term that is acceptable but causes discomfort. Our example here was the word “queer.” What if a student made reference to the “queer community” and students tittered or looked shocked?

Possible Responses:

• Go from a positive standpoint of “this gives us the chance to talk about how language evolves” or discuss how the professor has seen the world evolve in the professor’s lifetime.
• Acknowledge the discomfort and laughter. Maybe even admit to some of it yourself.