School experience and sense of belonging: perspectives from sexual and gender diverse young people

Abstract

Sense of belonging is a described as a fundamental human need, yet, LGBTQ+ youth typically report lower levels of school belonging than their peers. A systematic literature review of the factors that impact LGBTQ+ youth’s sense of school belonging (SoSB) is presented in chapter one. Fourteen papers were deemed eligible for inclusion and they explored the effects of various factors that fit into seven broad categories: victimisation; school atmosphere; school achievement; personal support; gay-straight alliance (GSA) support; suicide; and other. The review identified victimisation as a strong predictor of lower sense of school belonging for LGBTQ+ pupils and, therefore, highlights victimisation as a key factor to address. Furthermore, support from parents, peers, teachers and GSAs, and a positive school atmosphere, were associated with higher levels of SoSB. Implications for the Department for Education, educational settings and Educational Psychologists are discussed.

Chapter two sought to explore the views and experiences of transgender young people in secondary education. Ten interviews were conducted with secondary school-aged transgender participants. Reflexive thematic analysis generated the overarching theme, acceptance and validation. Five main themes were also created: seeking acceptance and validation; receiving acceptance and validation; active rejection and invalidation; passive rejection and invalidation; and consequences of rejection and invalidation. The findings suggest there is a need to foster a sense of acceptance and validation within school environments to fulfil the basic need to belong. Therefore, trans education (for both staff and pupils) is necessary to increase understanding of gender diversity. In addition, changes to the national curriculum, school policies and practices are recommended to ameliorate the negative outcomes associated with transgender youth.

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