School Selection and Psychological Safety: Lessons from Families with Gender-Diverse Students

• In Event: AERA Research in Progress Roundtable Session Two
  In Invited Roundtable: Research-in-Progress RT075 (Thursday)

Abstract

School information that signals psychological safety, which are signs that a school is open to hearing parent and student concerns, may be a key, organization-level mechanism in school choice-making. Psychological safety signals are especially salient to marginalized families, such as those with transgender youth facing polarization on gender identity and restrictive policies. This exploratory study examines how psychological safety signals inform school choice and how families communicate with their schools, drawing on 23 in-depth interviews with the parents of transgender students. We report how parents chose schools and analyze references to teacher preparedness, administrative support, sector, representation, and climate for transgender students. Findings offer practical insight for transgender inclusion and advance general propositions for connecting psychological safety to school choice.

Authors

• Joe Heisler, Indiana University

• Shaun Khurana, University of Florida