Measuring Student Understanding of LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) Issues in Education

• In Event: “We Recruit”: Sexuality and Gender, “Queer Positive” Curriculum, and Teacher Knowledge and Identity

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to create a developmental pathway which could be used in other courses or in future research as a pre-/post-survey, as an individual assessment of one’s beliefs about LGBTQ identity, or as a tool for schools to engage in professional development with their teachers. This research represents the first step in this process: the identification of common themes that can be turned into items for use in such a measurement scale.
The quality and tone of that content can vary across foundational texts (Macgillivray and Jennings, 2008). Moreover, a review of syllabi for multicultural courses found that few students were challenged to rethink the normativity of categorical descriptors such as heterosexuality/homosexuality (Gorski, 2009), thus leaving unexamined the complexities of multiple intersecting identities (Collins, 1999). When engaging LGBTQ speakers, students may reduce their perceptions of their guests to that of only their sexuality – as if independent of all other sociocultural qualities they possess (Athanases & Larrabee, 2003), and students seeking to ask politically correct questions may mask their contentions with non-heterosexual identities (Kumashiro, 2006).
Participants were enrolled in Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity & Education either summer 2010 or 2011, and they submitted a final paper on an LGBTQ-related topic of their choice. All students eligible to participate in the study provided written informed consent for use of their works (n = 23). Individually, the researchers engaged in open coding of the students’ papers, compared sets of codes, collapsed similar codes, and revisited the students’ final reports. They operationalized the constructs that appeared most frequently into items that could be assessed on a modified Likert-type scale. These items represent a preliminary attempt to create a measurement scale by which an individual’s attitudes and beliefs regarding issues of sexual orientation might be assessed. Initial analyses of student work identify several recurring themes: terminology, allies, bullying and harassment, coming out, stereotyping, policies and rights, and intersectionality.
The developmental pathway we are creating is key in growing informed and supportive educators. Prospective teachers will be able to self-assess on the developmental pathway, leading to opportunities for them to more meaningfully engage in coursework. Teacher educators will be able to use the developmental pathway to understand where their students are in their understanding of LGBTQ issues, allowing them to tailor instruction to their students’ needs. Third, schools will be able to use the developmental pathway as a tool in conducting a school climate audit, which could lead to more supportive schools for LGBTQ youth. Overall, the pathway will offer opportunities for teachers, students, and administrators to better address the issues relating to sexual orientation in schools.

Authors

• Timothy G. Larrabee, Oakland University

• Brandelyn L. Tosolt, Northern Kentucky University