Puberty is definitely one of the major issues of middle school education.  Changes in the human body will override anything else that will go on in the classroom.  When a student has a puberty issue, learning is usually the last thing on their mind.  And nothing will make a class stop more than when a student has a accident.  Diversity in this issue is important to allow every student to go through these changes as semlessly as possible.  As important as puberal diversity is, I think it is a more cultural issue and I don't know the way this issue is dealt with is so diverse that it may upset the classroom learning experience.  Even if it is celebrated by their families, all it may mean is a day or two off of school.  We need to create a secure environment for all students, so they can handle these change or celebrate them in whatever way they wish.

Toward a theory of anti-oppressive education blog

For the most part, I agree with the the solution that researches have developed to make schools helpful spaces for students labelled others.  But I have a little bit of a problem with the second solution to develop helpful spaces within the schools for others to go to for support and help succeding in a world where they are intentionally and unintentionally discriminated against.  The problem I have is, at least I think, not a popular issue, but needs to be, I think, addressed.  That problem is when do these helpful spaces within school help others so much that they actually are given an advantage over students who don't have access to these resources.  I know the idea is to bring others up to a level equal to students not labelled others,  but I believe there has to be a way to check how much change these helpful spaces are creating and there should also be system to check how much, if any, advantage these spaces are giving students allowed to access them over students who aren't allowed to use these resources.  I believe in giving every student an equal opportunity to achieve and I understand this is not the case.  But, should there be a system of checks and measures to see if students who access these spaces ultimately end up with an advantage over students who can't?