Peeping into closets : conversing with Maltese homosexual teachers

Abstract

The main goal of our research is to gain an insight into the main difficulties, experiences and perception of a minority group in the teaching profession, i.e. homosexual teachers. This is achieved through a number of encounters with seven homosexual teachers working in local schools. By means of interviews, we explored the kind of interactions these teachers have with their students, the students' parents, their colleagues as well as the administration of the schools they teach in. The dissertation reviews literature on homosexuality in general as well as on homosexual teachers, especially on teachers working in the United Kingdom and the United States of America. We focused on the degree of openness of these teachers, their satisfaction and fears at work, as well as their aspirations for the future. Our research indicates that Maltese teachers work in more favourable conditions than teachers in other countries, mainly due to the fact that they cannot be dismissed from work on the basis of their sexual orientation. However, it is also true that some teachers who wish to be more open cannot do so for a number of fears that are explored in detail in this dissertation. This work indicates that there is a need to educate more the general public, as well as parents and teachers, about homosexuality. There is also a need to focus more on the topic of homosexuality in the National Curriculum. By means of our dissertation we hope to encourage people to be more accepting towards different lifestyles, including different sexual identities and to be more sensitive to teachers' personal lives.