Should LGBTQ+ Topics Be Taught in Schools?

Teaching LGBTQ+ topics in school is important because they encourage and promote a more tolerant society in which LGBTQ+ people feel safe and free to be themselves. Ensuring future generations respect the community is key to reducing prejudice and bigotry.

Tolerance - Learning about the different lives that people live allows for an increased acceptance of non-traditional lifestyles. In the long-term, this can lead to lower rates of homophobia and transphobia as children are being taught about LGBTQ+ lifestyles as normal and legitimate. Learning about these topics from a young age makes people much more accepting of people who have different relationships or family lives, ensuring they are not seen as outsiders but rather as people living ordinary lives, just like heterosexual people.

Teaching LGBTQ+ topics in school encourages those who are part of the community to feel accepted and seen, rather than outcast

Radicalisation - Some people point to the teaching of LGBTQ+ topics in schools as a form of radicalisation that will ‘turn their kids queer.’ However, there is very little evidence to suggest that this is the reality. Teaching these topics simply raises awareness of the community rather than encouraging children to change their sexual orientation or gender. Ultimately, while teaching may make children feel more comfortable identifying as LGBTQ+ in the future, it is very unlikely that they will feel pressured into identifying as something they are not.

Self-Acceptance - Teaching LGBTQ+ topics in school encourages those who are part of the community to feel accepted and seen, rather than outcast. It can allow students to better navigate personal feelings around questioning their own identity and sexual orientation thanks to being more informed. Young people, regardless of who they are, deserve to be seen within an educational curriculum and have an equal chance to be taught how to have healthy and safe relationships.

While teaching LGBTQ+ topics in schools should, in theory, have a number of positive effects, there are also issues with teaching these topics. Not everyone believes school is the right place for young people to learn about these issues, whether it is because they are ill-equipped to do so or because it is for parents to decide.

Lack of Teacher Knowledge - Many teachers do not feel fully confident teaching these topics, either because they lack the training to do so or don’t feel they have the knowledge or experience to teach LGBTQ+ topics appropriately. This means too many teachers lack the necessary expertise to handle such sensitive topics, making the potential risk of misinforming students too great. School is therefore not the right place to learn about these issues.

Many parents do not feel comfortable with their child learning about these topics and as their legal guardians, should have a say in this aspect of their lives

Parental Consent and Pushback - For some people, gender and sexual identity is a controversial topic that cannot simply be taught in a matter of fact way by schools. It should therefore be up to parents to decide whether to teach their children about these topics. Many parents do not feel comfortable with their child learning about these topics and as their legal guardians, should have a say in this aspect of their lives. This external pushback also leads to schools fearing the reaction of parents if they implement these topics, making it more problematic to teach.

Faith Schools - Faith schools may struggle to teach LGBTQ+ topics in a positive light because of incompatibility with their founding beliefs such as opposition to same-sex marriage. This creates a huge barrier to implementing this sort of teaching, especially when it comes to upholding freedom of speech and religion.