Sexuality education school policy for Australian GLBTIQ students

Are LGBT Populations at a Higher Risk for Suicidal Behaviors in Australia? Research Findings and Implications

“…While some research has been conducted on predictive factors in Australia, such as the risk posed by discrimination (Hillier et al, 2010;Jones & Hillier, 2012), further research is needed in the Australian context in order to develop the evidence base for suicide prevention initiatives for LGBT populations. For example, large-scale studies identifying specific trajectories of predictive factors toward suicidal behaviors would be extremely valuable.…”

“…He posits that reducing these risk factors may act as a protective factor against suicide. Jones and Hillier (2012) found that perceived school-based policy protection in Australia was linked with decreased likelihood of thoughts of self-harm, actual self-harm, suicidal ideation, and attempted suicide in LGBTI students. Perceived policy protection was also linked with students' feeling good about their sexuality.…”

Researching and Working for Transgender Youth: Contexts, Problems and Solutions

“…Other global and regional positivist critical reviews of whether policy protection "exists" or not and critical evaluations hailing interventions' successes through surveys of students. Studies have been conducted mainly in Western contexts by disparate, relatively unconnected researchers and non-government organisations: USA's Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) [6] and the UK's Stonewall [24] found the majority of transgender students face discrimination at school; Australian researchers [25,26] have found that although transgender students faced increased risks in schools compared to same-sex attracted students, they also engaged in increased education activism. Beyond such contexts, research is characterised by absence, or risk.…”

Young People and HIV Prevention in Australian Schools

“…Notably, GLBTIQ students who reported that their school had anti-homophobia policies in place were not only less likely to experience homophobic abuse, but highly significantly more likely to receive useful information on topics like gay safe sex and lesbian safe sex (Jones & Hillier, 2012). However, without such policies becoming a standard feature of Australian schools (which they certainly are not), it would be reckless to rely on Australian schools as the main source of information on HIV for the same-sex attracted boys and gender questioning youth who are considered most at risk of being impacted by a youth epidemic.…”

“…National Australian surveys of GLBTIQ students have repeatedly revealed that increasing numbers of these students are experiencing homophobic abuse over time (outlined in Hillier et al, 2010). A 2010 national Australian survey of 3,134 GLBTIQ students aged 14-21 revealed that 60.61% reported having experienced verbal homophobic abuse (70.22% of boys, 53.39% of girls and 65.93% of gender questioning youth), and 18.07% had experienced physical homophobic abuse (23.17% of boys, 13.72% of girls, and 30.77% of gender questioning youth); and that of those who were abused, 80.00% underwent the experience(s) at school (Jones & Hillier, 2012). Further, only a quarter of young people attended a school where they knew there was policy-based protection from homophobia and discrimination, two fifths attended a school with no social or structural support features for sexual difference, and over a third described their school as homophobic (Jones & Hillier, 2012).…”