LGBT+ bullying dismissed as gulfs exist between culture and climate of secondary school tolerance

Concerns by LGBT+ students are being ignored as teachers are unaware of the discrimination faced in secondary schools, new research shows.

The findings are taken from surveys of teachers, staff and students in secondary schools in the UK and reveal a wide disparity between the climate and culture that exists in schools regarding LGBT+ issues.

Among the six secondary schools that participated in the research, students from five of the schools said that they felt teachers were unaware of the extent of a climate of verbal abuse and bullying that took place, even though the schools actively promoted tolerant culture.

One student who took part in the study said:

“I despise school . . . for the past two years of school [teachers] would roll it over their shoulders or just dismiss it and nothing would happen, and it’s only got worse.”

The views of teachers, staff and students are published in Intercultural Education, and show how in some cases, teachers and staff in the most problematic schools were the least aware of bullying of LGBT+ students taking place.

In another example, students acknowledged the positive effect of a school which took a zero-tolerance policy to bullying, but that bullying where it occurred was less obvious to teachers and often took place on social media.

Richard Harris, Professor of Education at the University of Reading who led the study said:

“Our research reveals the sad reality of the school experience for many LGBT+ students. While school staff are supportive of a culture of respect, there is a gulf between that ideal and what is really going on in classrooms and corridors.

“Teachers and staff are by and large making a real effort to promote a tolerant and safe culture for LGBT+ students, but the gap between the culture that’s promoted and a climate that is experienced is wide and seems to be worse where schools believe there isn’t a problem.”

“Students also reveal a concerning issue that attending peer support network which are designed to offer a safe space are outing students and leading to increased bullying later. Paired with an isolation that students feel in school due to a feeling that outing themselves will paint a target on their back for bullying, we see a miserable time for LGBT+ students as they seek to negotiate their sexuality and gender identity at school.”

While the majority of school context suggest that LGBT+ students are having a negative experience, the paper also reveals some positive influences.

Teachers who openly identify as LGBT+ in a school made a significant positive difference to students, providing a role model. However, in two of the five schools, teachers themselves were not willing to be open about their sexual or gender identity.

Other findings include that only 40% of teachers and staff said that they had received any training on LGBT+ topics, and among the five schools that took part only one had specialist team to input into LGBT+ issues in the curriculum.

Full citation:

Richard Harris, Ann E. Wilson-Daily & Georgina Fuller (2021): Exploring the secondary school experience of LGBT+ youth: an examination of school culture and school climate as understood by teachers and experienced by LGBT+ students, Intercultural Education, DOI: 10.1080/14675986.2021.1889987