GLSEN releases first national study on homophobia, gender nonconformity in elementary schools
Most teachers unprepared to address LGBT issues
Staff Reports
http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2012/01/glsen-releases-first-national-study-on-homophobia-gender-nonconformity-in-elementary-schools/ (http://www.lgbtqnation.com/2012/01/glsen-releases-first-national-study-on-homophobia-gender-nonconformity-in-elementary-schools/)
Gender non-conforming students are at particular risk for bullying, and many teachers are unprepared to address issues relating to gender expression and LGBT families, according to a groundbreaking new study of bias, bullying and homophobia in grades kindergarten through sixth grade.
The report by the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLSEN) — Playgrounds and Prejudice: Elementary School Climate in the United States — examines students' and teachers' experiences with biased remarks and bullying, and their attitudes about gender expression and family diversity.
"School climate and victimization can affect students' educational outcomes and personal development at every grade level," said GLSEN Executive Director Eliza Byard.
Study Shows Anti-LGBT Slurs Still Used for Harm
Tuesday, January 24, 2012 - 2:19pm
by Danny Heffernan, GLAAD's Advertising & Campaigns Fellow
http://www.glaad.org/blog/study-shows-anti-lgbt-slurs-still-used-harm (http://www.glaad.org/blog/study-shows-anti-lgbt-slurs-still-used-harm)
Celebrities, both LGBT-identified and not, have been rightly called out for using slurs or terms that perpetuate dangerous stereotypes about LGBT people. And while some have defended this usage, claiming that words such as "F*g" or "tra**y" do not spur hate and harm, a new study is proving otherwise.
Playgrounds and Prejudice is the latest study conducted by the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), to uncover the effect of slurs on youth. The study reveals that 45 percent of teachers and 49 percent of students in elementary schools hear the term 'gay' used in a negative way by other students, making it one of the most commonly heard examples of biased language. Additionally, 26 percent of students and teachers report hearing students use outright homophobic slurs. Name calling overall is rampant, with 75 percent of students saying that at their school, students are called names, made fun of, or bullied with regularity. It is hard to deny the likely outcome of such language use when gender non-conforming students are more than twice as likely as other students to indicate not wanting to go to school because they are afraid for their safety, and are called names and bullied more often as well (56 percent versus 33 percent).