Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Student Participation: Teachers' Beliefs

Abstract

There have been several declarations, regulations, and training at an international and national level to preserve human rights. However, their mere existence doesn't ensure inclusive treatment free of violence to students because of their sexual orientation and gender identity in educational communities. The investigation that brings origin to this article's purpose is to identify the teachers' beliefs about the inclusion of LGBTI students from two Chilean public educational units. This study of qualitative focus, through the application of semi-structured interviews, managed to establish that in both establishments the professional manifest confusion in the comprehension of fundamental concepts on this ambit; beliefs associated with a sense of a gender binary and actions of invisibility that disfavor the participation of LGBTI students. From this, it is estimated that the beliefs of the teachers and their practices limit the development of the social, emotional, and academic potentialities of their students.