A new report exploring homophobia, biphobia and transphobia in schools gives some stark insights into LGBTQI education
BY SOPHIE GRIFFITHS, IMAGE VIA BROADLY GENDER SPECTRUM COLLECTION
To mark Anti-Bullying Week, Diversity Role Models have today released the results of a brand new report. It provides an important message for this Anti-Bullying Week, with figures showing how far we still have to go until schools are a completely safe space for LGBTQI communities, with suitable education and resources available.
Between January 2019 and March 2020 Diversity Role Models (DRM) worked with 94 primary and secondary schools to support improved education about LGBTQI issues and tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic (HBT) bullying.
The Pathways To LGBT+ Inclusion Report has offered some stark insights into LGBTQI education and the severity of homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bulling in schools today.
Some of the key findings from the report showed that:
- 71% of teachers witness homophobic bullying and 35% witness it at least once a month.
- 86% of pupils regularly hear phrases such as “that’s so gay” and around half of LGBTQI students hear other homophobic and transphobic slurs frequently or often in their schools.
- Governors were 30% more likely to say their school was safe for LGBTQI students than staff, and 65% less likely to say their school was unsafe.
- Only 27% of secondary school students say their school would be safe for LGBTQI individuals to come out as LGBTQI.
- 54% of secondary school students reported that HBT language was common at their school.
- Only 20% of secondary school students report learning about LGBTQI identities at school.
This report is crucial in finding a way forward because the answer to preventing bullying lies in education. School settings so often provide learners with their first taste of what community is all about, and we must focus on bringing these issues to the forefront of our teachings.
Moving forward schools will need to focus on curriculum, policies, training and support as well as values and visibility. If these results shown us anything, it’s that in order to embed inclusion and empathy into the next generation, we have a lot of work to do to make schools more inclusive.
In addition to the report, Diversity Role Models will also be launching digital student workshops and later this week will launch new video teacher resources.
For more information or for the full report, head over to the Diversity Role Models website.