The day I learned that learning did not need to be this stressful activity that was tied to my self-worth was also the day I found joy in what learning could be for me. This International Education Day, we need to talk about why affirming education is essential, not optional.

“Education is a powerful tool”; this message has been echoing in all aspects of a person’s life, such as at home, in schools, or even just through a moving TED Talk online. It is the stepping stones to awareness, and then taking that information and making it your own. For example, hearing a powerful poem from Audre Lorde or Rupi Kaur can cause a shift in thought processes and may change the way one views oneself. I know it definitely did for me.

However, the Indian education system that taught me is not neutral. It is designed around cis-heteronormative ideologies, and queer children pay the price. Growing up, queer representation was almost nonexistent, on screen and in real life. When they did appear, they were met with shame, silence, or dismissal. Then it followed in the second home of my life, the schools.  We were taught to be uniform, be “good”, and to never stray from the path, which I later learned was a cis-heteronormative kind of mindset.

According to The Times of India, a survey by Kolkata-based non-profit Bridge, which included over 900 LGBTQ+ individuals, reveals how early discrimination begins. The survey found that 165 closeted young queers feared rejection at home and 164 feared discrimination from friends. These numbers show us that many find it difficult to exist as is, especially if you’re a child who hasn’t found the language to express yourself better. This does have an impact on the way someone will learn because there’s a major difference when someone learns with a free-spirited mind than one who is burdened by a side they must hide.

Queer exclusion in schools is often subtle, but deeply damaging. The curriculum defines “family” exclusively as a mother and father, discusses sexuality only in heterosexual terms, presents gender as fixed, natural, and unquestionable, and teaches rights without engaging critical thinking or lived realities. This kind of learning doesn’t give the child any way to explore intriguing parts of themselves and leaves too much room for what could have been as they age. 

Also read: The Hit And Miss/Educations Of A Queer Indian

What does affirming education look like?

Queer-inclusive curricula, trained and accountable teachers, and a zero-tolerance approach to gendered and sexual policing are essential to creating schools where safety is assumed rather than something students must earn through conformity. When these conditions are absent, silence becomes the implicit lesson, and deep-seated shame is the learning outcome.

For instance, when I was in school, the idea of being in a same-sex relationship was seen as weird. So I tried hard to avoid being seen as different. As a way to survive, I tried to copy the mannerisms of people who were rewarded for being good. But alas, that way of coping slowly went down the drain as my academic performance went from “Wow, you’re so smart” to a horrible 180 of name-calling and demeaning my intelligence and worth as a person. This leads me to my next point!

Being queer was one layer of difference, but for many, having a learning disability as well made navigating the world even harder. Education should be a place where every individual is seen, valued, and affirmed, and where learners with disabilities and neurodivergent minds are genuinely welcomed and supported. When a student hits a roadblock, it should be met with patience and a curious lens, such as “how else can I engage with this information?”, and not with judgment or demeaning remarks, which is honestly not helpful to the student’s learning progress.  

Also read: Educational Institutions Need To Be More Accommodating Of Disabled Students’ Accommodations

So how do we begin to unlearn the shame of being different?

One way I unlearned shame was by actively reclaiming my relationship with learning: by building a space where I could learn freely, on my own terms,  and figure out what kind of learner I am without judgment. Instead of being pressured by others telling me how I should learn, I began asking how I actually learn best.

The 4 different kinds of learners, according to Bay Atlantic University’s article is:

Visual learning style

Auditory learning style

Kinesthetic learning style

Reading/Writing style

After figuring out that I was a visual learner, it became more than just a revelation, but a tool for agency in the way I process knowledge and present my thoughts and ideas to the world. And most of all, learning felt safe again. This was my first experience of co-creating my education rather than merely complying with it. It was a freeing experience and one that affirmed my intelligence instead of measuring it against rigid norms. A feeling I wish I could have had if the adults around me were patient and had a more fluid, student-led approach as I was growing up. This is what affirming education can look like when young people are trusted to know themselves.

Building a stronger foundation for a child’s education cannot rely on instruction alone, but must centre on listening, especially when a child shows signs of being “different” than what they’re expected to be.

This year’s theme for International Education Day 2026, “The power of youth in co-creating education,” directly speaks to this shift from control to collaboration. It celebrates the importance of giving space to queer youth in shaping the future of inclusive learning, recognising them not as passive recipients of an education system, but as knowledge-holders and decision-makers who can reimagine what learning looks like.

When young people are invited to participate in shaping how they learn, what feels safe, accessible, and meaningful, education becomes more humane. Youth-led perspectives can help build more accessible learning environments, which in turn lead to more equitable societies. Empowering children as active collaborators in their own education allows them to influence institutions, challenge exclusionary norms, and turn classrooms into spaces of curiosity, care, and connection rather than compliance.

So, if you had been given the power to co-create your education instead of being instructed on it, how would you have loved to learn growing up? Or perhaps even now!