On John Naples-Campbell’s first day as a teacher, a student asked him if he was gay.
He recalled: “I had a choice at that point: Do I stay in the closet or do I come out?
“I came out at that point and I’ve never looked back.”
That was in 2004. Fast-forward to 2021, and Mr Naples-Campbell has just been named Educator of the Year at the National Proud Scotland Awards.
Up against him in the same category was influential screenwriter and producer – and one of Mr Naples-Campbell’s earliest role models – Russell T Davies.
But Mr Naples-Campbell showed that he has plenty of star power of his own.
He was recently an instrumental campaigner for adding LGBT Inclusive education to Scotland’s curriculum, and he has shown throughout his career that truly inclusive education needs action from brave teachers and leaders.
‘Surreal’ night at Proud Scotland Awards
The Proud Scotland Awards celebrate the LGBTQI+ community by recognising the outstanding work and commitment of individuals and organisations towards inclusivity in Scotland.
When Mr Naples-Campbell saw his name alongside Russell T Davies on the list of nominees, the Glen Urquhart High School depute head quickly abandoned hopes of success and committed to just having a good time at the awards ceremony.
But then he won.
“I was totally shocked. It was just a really surreal moment. Because he really changed my life when I was 16.”
Mr Davies, through his late 1990s television series “Queer as Folk”, had a fundamental impact on Mr Naples-Campbell’s life.
I wanted to become a teacher to make sure young people never went through what I went through.”
-John Naples-Campbell
“For me, growing up, I had no visual role models on TV or in the school curriculum. And it really wasn’t until Queer as Folk came out that actually made me realise: I can have a really positive life.
“It’s not going to be this horrible life that my parents thought it would be, because that’s what the government had been telling people.”
Learning and teaching in the shadow of Section 28
In 2003, the UK government repealed Section 28, a law passed in 1988 that prevented schools from “promoting the teaching of the acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship”.
Mr Naples-Campbell grew up under Section 28 and it shaped his school years. And even though he began teaching after its repeal, he has seen vestiges of it all around the classroom.
“I started teaching in 2005, but it was very clear at that point that Section 28 was still in our classrooms. The Scottish Government never actually trained staff on how to deal with LGBT education after it had been banned for almost two decades.
“You don’t need to like me and you don’t need to agree with what you think is right or wrong regarding LGBT issues. But you need to respect me because I’m a human being.”
-John Naples-Campbell
“From 2005 I’ve been battling different mindsets about what LGBT education actually is. A lot of people still think it has to do with sex education. And it’s nothing like that at all.
“It’s about making sure that we’ve got a visual representation of the impact that LGBT people have had in the world.
“There are these massive, amazing people who have contributed to our world, who are not being recognized within our curriculum for being their authentic selves.”
Small changes to build respect
Scotland recently became the first country in the world to embed LGBT inclusive education across the school curriculum.
Mr Naples-Campbell worked alongside the campaign group Time for Inclusive Education to push for this development and to help shape what inclusive education will look like.
Mr Naples-Campbell said that something as simple as changing the phrasing of a word problem in maths can show children that not all families look that same. It’s not even about teaching right or wrong, he said.
“You don’t need to like me and you don’t need to agree with what you think is right or wrong regarding LGBT issues. But you need to respect me because I’m a human being.”
Hope for a brighter future
Mr Naples-Campbell wasn’t the only local leader recognised for championing inclusivity at the weekend’s ceremony.
Karen Adam, MSP for Banffshire & Buchan Coast, took home the award for Political Leadership. The award recognises anyone who has used their office to actively support and advance the cause of LGBTQ+ people.
Actress and Aberdeen native Annie Wallace won a special judges award for outstanding trans activism. The award recognised her more than 25 years of activism, including her role as Sally St Claire on Hollyoaks – in which she became the first trans person to play a regular trans character in British soap history.
Mr Naples-Campbell said that changing the perception of LGBT in schools needs more people in political, educational and entertainment roles to take action. But luckily, there are signs of promise.
“Now we’re at a stage where teachers really want to make a change, they want to see a difference. We’ve got so many teachers now who want to be trained on how to make their classrooms inclusive.
“I wanted to become a teacher to make sure young people never went through what I went through.
“We’ve got a long, long way to go, but the future looks bright.”
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