Although many self-identified bisexual individuals report having at least one child, bisexual parents' unique experiences, including sexuality-related communication with their children, have been largely absent from the parenting literature. We conducted in-depth interviews via telephone (or digital telephony such as voice over Internet protocol)…

Being labeled as "abnormal, or deviant, or not being one of the rest of us" has real effects for one's life chances. Trans* people are one such group who have continually been codified as abnormal, abject, weird, deceptive, and social pariahs. The purpose of the following study was to explore how the concepts of passing, realness, and…

Young people may face conflicting and confusing messages about what it means to respond well in relation to homophobia and transphobia. Consequently, we ask--What might it mean to respond well to homophobia and transphobia? This strategy, inspired by Anika Thiem and Judith Butler, is recognition of the ambivalent conditions which structure…

This paper explores notions of (hetero)sexuality circulating in elementary school classrooms through an analysis of students' own talk and interactions. Data collected during a multi-site ethnography in a diverse set of elementary schools demonstrate that while curricular silences and teachers contribute to heteronormative classroom environments,…

This multisite case study explores how rural principals in high poverty schools in a Southern state that had identified themselves as social justice leaders perceived student diversity, specifically LGBTQ students, and how they sustained a socially-just school climate for all students. Using a qualitative approach lent itself to understanding the…

With growing awareness of the negative school experiences of trans students, more schools in North America are working to support such students and create more inclusive educational environments. This paper analyses how 60 educators in British Columbia, Canada talked about the involvement of trans students in decision-making processes at their…

We explored types and qualities of microaggressions or subtle forms of discrimination towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people among teachers in South Africa. For data collection, we used in-depth interviews. Twenty-five Life Orientation teachers, nine men and 16 women, from both rural and urban schools throughout the Free…

Contemporary youth are increasingly engaging in coming out prior to the formation of concrete sexual identities. They are coming out with an "affinity:" affirming to themselves and expressing to others that "I like girls" or "I like boys." This study centers on the experiences of 13 individuals who all came out with…

This paper is based on research that is concerned to provide insight into the pedagogical potential for interrupting heteronormativity and addressing the politics of gender expression/embodiment in the elementary school classroom. It is informed by an engagement with queer and trans theoretical literature that raises questions about restrictive…

This article investigates educational experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming (TGNC) youth living in Northern Ireland (NI) through a mixed-methods research design and analytical framework of heteronormativity. It draws on large-scale survey data which, for the first time in NI, captured the experiences of 16 year olds who identify as…

From 2006 to 2008 UK-based primary school teachers in the "No Outsiders" project explored possibilities for addressing sexualities equality in their classrooms. What all teachers had in common was a resource pack that included 27 children's books exploring themes of gender and sexuality diversity either directly or indirectly (i.e. by…

In this article I explore two questions -- how does, Thatho, a transgendered life orientation teacher enact, resist and reproduce dominant understandings of gender and sexuality in terms of his own identity and practice; and what specific possibilities, challenges and resistances exist for a transgender educator in the rural. Using life-history…

Increasingly, the importance of reflexivity has been acknowledged in higher education research. In this paper, I reflect on my experience of researching lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) university students in Hong Kong. The focus is not on the findings that emerge from the in-depth interviews conducted per se, but on the…

Faculty and peer interactions are 2 of the most important relationships for college students to foster (Astin, 1993). Transgender college students have an increasing visible presence on college campuses (Pusch, 2005), yet limited research exists on their experiences and struggles in the classroom environment (Garvey & Rankin, 2015; Renn,…

Purpose: Previous research examining the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer (LGBTQ) youth in schools suggests that schools are not inclusive places for non-heterosexual students. Some scholars, however, suggest that a continued focus on how these young people are marginalised is itself a problem, and that research should also…