Equality and Diversity in the Classroom: A Comparison of Students’ and Teachers’ Attitudes in Six European Countries

Globalisation and increased mobility of people within the EU have led to increased immigration and greater diversity within many EU countries, which have affected the composition of workplaces and classrooms. This includes diversity in terms of nationality, as well as ethnic, racial and religious diversity. This article expands awareness of diversity issues in the workplace to classrooms. It is based on a crosscultural comparative study of the attitudes of secondary school students and their teachers in six European countries: Ireland, the UK, France, Latvia, Italy and Spain. The sample included 320 students and 208 teachers for a total of 528 respondents. The article compares and contrasts attitudes towards non-national students, ethnic and religious minorities and disabled students, as well as gender issues, bullying and general perceptions of equality and diversity. The findings demonstrate generally positive attitudes among young people towards the increasing diversity in their classrooms. Moreover, the study revealed that in countries where there is greater diversity, the perception of difficulties is lower than in countries with less experience of diversity, suggesting that greater diversity and intergroup contact is resulting in more inclusive attitudes in schools. However, results comparing students with teachers identified consistent gaps in perceptions, with teachers having greater estimates of difficulties posed by diversity, together with smaller estimates of bullying behaviour. The study demonstrated that there is a need for teachers to have enhanced skills and competencies to deal effectively with this new environment in order to facilitate a more inclusive classroom.     

Young People’s Perception Of Being Safe – Globally &; Locally

Giddens explores, in Modernity and Self-Identity, our preoccupation with risks in modern social life and the disparity between perceived risks and actual prevalence of life-threatening dangers [Giddens, A.: 1991, Modern and Self-Identity. Self and Society in Late Modern Age (Polity Press, Cambridge), p. 115]. Modern technologies have made global information accessible around the world; real time news communiqués about unfolding situations are displayed directly into the home environment through television and the internet. Global issues and local events intermix, blurring worldwide issues and threats with local realities. This research explored the everyday life of young people in two Australian rural communities, their community affiliation, sense of belonging and feeling safe in the local rural community. The research was exploratory in nature and based on a survey of 751 young people aged between 14 and 21 years, all being students at local secondary high schools. Feeling safe was of concern for both female and male young people: females indicated a higher tolerance towards strangers and cultural diversity, but at the same time, they felt less safe in the local community. These findings are discussed in relation to a 1989–1990 study of 13- to 21-year-old urban Australian and Swedish young people. The study explored young people’s experiences of scary events in mass media, in their home environment and among themselves. The findings signify the need for a holistic approach to identify social indicators to describe the grounds for young people feeling unsafe and the need to take into consideration local community circumstances, the global milieu and conflicts as portrayed in news, documentary and entertainment mass media.     

Cyberbullying,conflict management or just messing? Teenage girls’ understandings and experiences of gender,friendship, and conflict on Facebook in an Irish second-level school

In recent years, there have been growing concerns worldwide about young people’s safety online, much of which focuses on social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram. Moral panics about sexting and cyberbullying have constructed public discourses about social media as dangerous to adolescents’ safety and relationships. In the academic literature, there are conflicting perspectives on the nature of online relationships, behaviour, and risks, and on the causes and nature of cyberbullying. Less attention is paid—in both public and academic debates—to the role played by gender in online aggression, in spite of the fact that existing scholarship demonstrates that it is an important factor in the dynamics of young people’s online friendships and conflicts. This article presents the findings of an empirical, qualitative and quantitative study of teenage girls’ experiences and understandings of online friendship, conflict, and bullying in an Irish, single-sex secondary school. Questionnaires (n=116), individual in-depth interviews with students (n=26), and a focus group with teachers were used. Our study indicates that significant communicative phenomena within girls’ everyday lives remain unreported and frequently misunderstood.     

Labeling Same-Sex Sexuality in a Tolerant Society That Values Normality: The Dutch Case

Studies have pointed to a trend in Western societies toward the normalization of homosexuality and emerging “post-gayness” among young people, who no longer consider their sexual identity meaningful in defining themselves. This article takes a closer look at the Dutch case where tolerance is regarded as a national virtue, while society remains heteronormative. In 38 interviews with Dutch same-sex-attracted young people, we investigated the labels they used to describe their sexual orientation to reveal what they can tell us about normalization, tolerance, and heteronormativity. In their labeling strategies, participants de-emphasized their sexual identity, othered, and reinforced the hetero/homo binary. They preferred labels without connotations to gender expression. While post-gay rhetoric was ideologically appealing, its use was not an outcome of their sexual orientation having become insignificant; it rather enabled them to produce normality. We discuss the findings against the backdrop of “Dutch tolerance,” which rests on an ideology of normality.     

Status Homophily,Sexual Identity,and Lesbian Social Ties

The literature on friendship and social networks finds that individuals form social ties with people who are like them—a much studied concept called homophily. However, few studies have explicitly examined sexual identity as a point of homophily. Scholars from multiple disciplines have long argued that sexuality influences the organization of our social worlds, yet most studies of friendship and social networks under-examine or overlook the influence of sexual identity. This study addresses that gap by looking at status homophily among lesbian social ties to examine the influence of sexual identity, as well as gender, race, class, and family, on their personal networks. Using survey data from 544 U.S. lesbian respondents, the findings make visible some of the factors and forces that shape social ties for lesbians. The results point to the importance of sexuality as an organizing element of social life, and suggest that studies that examine social networks or friendships more often make sexual identity, gender, and intersecting social locations a central focus.     

“We Don’t Get Into All That”: An Analysis of How Teachers Uphold Heteronormative Sex and Relationship Education

Legislation that applies to UK SRE currently advocates inclusive provision. Given the nonstatutory status of SRE, however, it is unclear how teachers incorporate sexual inclusivity, especially as research has shown that teachers’ discursive practices can promote a heteronormative SRE climate (Renn, 2010). Using a discursive psychological approach to analyze interview data, this study examined how teachers account for their provision as inclusive. It was revealed that even when promoting their inclusivity, teachers’ SRE provision upholds heteronormativity. In doing this, they positioned LGB and same-sex practices outside of the classroom, potentially leaving these young people without a sufficient sex education.     

Walking a well-being tightrope: young people in Australia

The economic and social contribution young people make to society is increasingly important as the population ages. Yet a substantial number of young people face economic and social challenges that have an impact on their current and future well-being. Independent indicators are often used to describe what we know about how young people are faring, but these fail to show how young people are doing holistically, across their whole life. If we are to better understand and improve young people??s well-being and their lives more generally, it is critical that research establishes the connections and interactions between life domains. This paper uses a well-being framework and secondary analysis of national statistics to begin to understand how young people are faring when we cross economic outcomes with other social indicators. It argues that some Australian young people fare poorly across a large number of other social indicators and thus may be walking a tightrope in regard to their well-being and well-becoming. This paper also aims to generate a dialogue about using a well-being framework for future research with and about young people.     

Power and negotiation: Young women’s choices about sex and contraception

This paper explores issues of power and negotiation for two decisions affecting young women’s sexual lives: die decision to have sexual intercourse and the decision to contracept. Using data from two recent Australian surveys the paper explores the complexity of these decisions and the way in which gender relations between young people can influence dieir reproductive outcomes; young women experience a high rate of sexual coercion and violence and current data collections do not allow analysis of their cause.     

How diversity gets lost: Age and gender in design practices of information and communication technologies

ABSTRACT

This article adopts an intersectional approach to investigate how age, gender, and diversity are represented, silenced, or prioritized in design. Based on a comparative study of design practices of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for young girls and older people, this article describes differences and similarities in the ways in which designers tried to cope with diversity. Ultimately diversity was neglected, and the developers relied on hegemonic views of gender and age, constructed older people and young girls as an “other,” and consequently their input was neglected. These views were thus materialized in design and reinforce such views in powerful yet unobtrusive ways.     

Seeking safer sexual spaces: queer and trans young people labeled with intellectual disabilities and the paradoxical risks of restriction

Young lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people labeled with intellectual disabilities have unique sexual health needs that are not being met. Denial by others of their right to pleasure and the exercise of heightened external control over their sexuality are commonplace. Current research indicates that these youth are at heightened risk for compromised sexual health. This study aimed to explore the ways in which social and environmental conditions influence vulnerability to adverse sexual health outcomes for this population. We used a community-based research approach to conduct qualitative interviews and focus groups with 10 young LGBT people (aged 17-26) labeled with intellectual disabilities. Participants reported multiple limitations on their autonomy that resulted in having sex in places where they did not feel comfortable and were unlikely to practice safer sex. Attempts by authority figures to protect youth through limits on their autonomy may be unintentionally leading to negative sexual health outcomes.     

Navigating Identities: Subtle and Public Agency of Bicultural Gay Youth

Young people who discover their sexual attraction to people of the same sex often go through a period of ambivalence or distress, especially when they grow up in an environment that condemns homosexuality. The Dutch sociopolitical context makes the expression of same-sex desires among those with non-Dutch roots even more complicated and risky, as prevailing schemes of interpretation render the two identities incompatible. This study explores the expressions of same-sex desires and identities as well as the different forms of agency of bicultural gay youth. In-depth interviews with 14 young adults reveal how young people negotiate bicultural identities in Dutch society that brings to the fore complexities in managing diverse sexual identities and strong religious and cultural affiliations in tandem. Their strategies have the effect of questioning dominant discourses and transcend the oppositional dichotomy between sexual and ethnic forms of sociocultural otherness.     

Emigration from the british isles to the u.s.a. In 1831

Abstract This is a first attempt to use the original passenger manifests from immigrant ships entering U.S. ports to see what can be learned about emigration from the British Isles during the period of most rapid industrialization and urbanization between the Napoleonic Wars and the beginning of mass emigration in the late 1840s. Based on lists compiled during the years 1827 to 1831, the article demonstrates that these original lists contain more social and demographic information about migrants than was ever published by the U.S. government and also that the official statistics that were published were incomplete and exaggerated the fish share in the immigration through U.S ports. The English immigration is shown to have been predominantly a family movement in 1831, but most migrants chose to emigrate at favourable moments in the life cycle. Occupations and countries with low incomes were not well represented among English migrants through U.S. ports. As early as 1831, the majority of men among the English immigrants were industrial workers, though farmers (as distinct from farm labourers) were over-represented.     

The influence of the family on premarital sexual attitudes and behavior

This research has expanded our understanding of the determinants of adolescent sexuality in several directions. We have used a study of mothers and children to construct and estimate a model of the intergenerational transmission of sexual attitudes and behavior. With data collected from both mothers and children, we were able to proceed further than most past research and to consider both the attitudes and behaviors of mothers as reported by the mothers themselves. These data permitted an investigation of the determinants of maternal attitudes concerning adolescent sexuality as well as an examination of the influences of the attitudes and experiences of mothers on the attitudes, perceptions, and behavior of children. Obviously, limiting the study to white families prevents generalization of our findings to other subgroups of the population. The findings demonstrate the importance and relevance of parental and adolescent attitudes in understanding adolescent sexuality. Premarital sexuality is a salient issue to both young people and their parents. There are, however, very important and substantial differences in the attitudes of parents and children. On average, the attitudes of young people today are much less restrictive than those of their parents, reflecting either life cycle differences or the impact of social change. The intergenerational difference is recognized by young people themselves and probably affects the ability of parents to assist their maturing children in adjusting to and dealing with their sexuality--a difficulty likely to be reflected in the relative lack of success sexually active young people have in preventing pregnancy. Our findings also add to the research literature in demonstrating that although children, on average, have more permissive attitudes than their parents, the attitudes of individual parents tend to be reflected in the attitudes of individual children. Children whose mothers have less restrictive attitudes have, on average, less restrictive attitudes themselves. Further, the attitudes of mothers are also reflected in the behavior of their children, so on average, mothers with more permissive attitudes have children who are more sexually active. The influence of maternal attitudes, however, is stronger for children's attitudes than for their behavior. Of course, variability in children's attitudes and behavior--and even their perceptions of maternal attitudes--can only be partially explained by the attitudes of their mothers; but presumably, if the attitudes of other important family members, including fathers and siblings, were known, the prediction of adolescent attitudes would improve.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)     

Sexual identity distress, social support, and the health of gay, lesbian, and bisexual youth

Sex researchers and mental health clinicians have long recognized that the stigma surrounding homosexuality plays an important role in shaping the social psychological adjustment of gay, lesbian, and bisexual (g/l/b) people. In recent years, researchers have suggested that sexual identity- related distress may influence the physical health status of g/l/b people, primarily because of the ways these self-related feelings and beliefs impact patterns of health-related behavior. This study examines the influence of sexual identity distress and social support on g/l/b youth's drug and alcohol use, psychological distress, and risky sexual behavior. The data come from a services research demonstration program conducted at the Indiana Youth Group, Inc., a g/l/b youth development agency based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Results indicate that sexual identity distress is strongly associated with psychological distress, less frequent use of alcohol, and using fewer types of illegal drugs. Being out to more people in one's support network, however, attenuates the severity of youth's sexual identity-related distress. Youth who report more support ties to g/l/b people indicate engaging in more frequent risky sexual behavior. The implications of these findings for theories of g/l/b youth's sexual identity development are discussed.     

“Gay Guys are Shit-Lovers” and “Lesbians are Obsessed With Fingers”: The (Mis)Representation of LGBTIQ People in Thai News Media

ABSTRACT

This article presents an analysis of news reports containing information or opinions about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer (LGBTIQ) people taken from six Thai media outlets over a period of one year. The aim was to explore how LGBTIQ people are portrayed in news media narratives. LGBTIQ identities were found to be vastly underrepresented and, when represented, were often represented inaccurately, stereotypically, harmfully, or without a clear understanding of the diversity of sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions. (Hetero-)sexist narratives, negative portrayals, harmful stereotypes, and discriminatory speech were also widely found, fueling a climate of stigmatization and discrimination of LGBTIQ people in Thai society. This article suggests that key stakeholders in Thai news media should be sensitized on the human rights of LGBTIQ people and on basic professional ethics in journalism.     

Financial capital and premarital sexual activity in Africa: The case of Zambia

This paper examines two theoretical perspectives on sexual behavior in Africa using the 1992 Zambia Demographic and Health Survey data on never-married adolescent females. The results offer more support to the rational adaption hypothesis which assumes that many young women may be entering into sexual relationships to obtain money and material goods they cannot get within the financial capital of their families. There are, however, indications that some adolescents are sexually active before marriage as a result of the breakdown of traditional social controls that elders had over the younger people. The way in which this assumption of the social disorganization theory can be further explained is examined under the conceptual model of social capital.     

Preparing adolescents for adulthood

Pregnancy-related school dropouts have become a matter of public concern throughout sub-Saharan Africa. In most cases, schoolgirls who become pregnant either have to resort to unsafe illegal abortions, or they face official school expulsion. Because girls who drop out of school due to pregnancy usually do not return to school to complete their education after the birth of their child, their opportunities for socioeconomic advancement are limited. Many African governments have included family life education programs in the school curriculum in an attempt to educate adolescents about the consequences and responsibilities associated with sexual activity. The high rates of schoolgirl pregnancies suggest that these programs have their shortcomings, and indicate that educational policies should attempt not only to reduce the incidence of schoolgirl pregnancies, but also to assist pregnant schoolgirls to complete their education. In this paper, we use data from a sample of 154 Kenyan primary and secondary schools to study differentials in the extent to which various types of schools are affected by pregnancy-related school dropouts, and to examine the opinions of the head teachers regarding teaching about contraceptive methods and readmittance of pregnancy-related dropouts.     

The Invisible Rainbow in Diversity: Factors Influencing Sexual Prejudice Among College Students

While colleges may reflect sexual prejudices of the societal culture at large, they also have the capacity to resist or even transform these troubling viewpoints. Based on longitudinal data collected from 13,881 students nationwide, this study investigates the impact of college experiences on sexually prejudicial attitudes. Results indicate that individuals are more accepting of lesbian, gay, and bisexual relationships after four years of college and that experiential components of racial diversity in the college environment are associated with a decrease in sexual prejudice. Interpretations of findings include the possibility that the observed trends are indicative of sexual prejudice becoming less socially acceptable, as more insidious forms of heterosexism maintain the dominance of the privileged group.     

LGBTQ+ Young Adults on the Street and on Campus: Identity as a Product of Social Context

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) young adults face unique identity-related experiences based on their immersion in distinctive social contexts. The predominant framework of performing separate analyses on samples of LGBTQ+ young people by their primary social status obfuscates more holistic understandings of the role of social context. Using 46 in-depth interviews with LGBTQ+ college students and LGBTQ+ homeless young adults, we ask: How are LGBTQ+ young adults’ capacities for “doing” their gender and sexual identities shaped by their distinctive social contexts? In developing their identities, both groups of LGBTQ+ young adults navigated their social environments to seek out resources and support. Most college students described their educational contexts as conducive to helping them develop their identities, or “undo” rigid norms of gender and sexuality. Homeless young adults’ social environments, meanwhile, imposed complex barriers to self-expression that reinforced more normative expectations of “doing” gender and sexual identities.     

"It ain't all as bad as it may seem": young Black lesbians' responses to sexual prejudice

This article explores the ways in which young, Black lesbians manage their sexual minority identity when experiencing sexual prejudice. Fourteen Black lesbians between the ages of 16 and 24 participated in semistructured interviews. Instances of sexual prejudice and the young women's responses were thematically analyzed using open and axial qualitative coding techniques. Results indicated that participants experienced sexual prejudice frequently and even within the lesbian community. Responses to sexual prejudice included: cognitive reframing of heterosexist messages, passing, gaining support from self-created gay families, and fighting back (physically and verbally) in the event of isolated instances of sexual prejudice. Analysis focuses on how gender identity relates to experiences of sexual prejudice and identity management strategies. Findings suggest that there are parallels between the management strategies of these women and young, Black gay and bisexual males and between these women and Black women who are coping with sexism and racism.