Creating and Sustaining Safe and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ Youth: An Exploratory Investigation of the Role of Educational Professionals

Luceno, Andrew

Creating and Sustaining Safe and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ Youth: An Exploratory Investigation of the Role of Educational Professionals

dc.contributor.advisor	Andrews, Jac J. W.
dc.contributor.author	Luceno, Andrew
dc.contributor.committeemember	McCrimmon, Adam W.
dc.contributor.committeemember	Lund, Darren E.
dc.contributor.committeemember	Andrews, Jac J. W.
dc.date	2019-11
dc.date.accessioned	2019-09-09T20:17:21Z
dc.date.available	2019-09-09T20:17:21Z
dc.date.issued	2019-09-05
dc.description.abstract	Recent evidence shows that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) youth regularly face hostile school environments. Those hostile environments contribute to making LGBTQ youth increasingly vulnerable to a number of emotional, behavioural, and social problems. Educators can play a critical role in buffering LGBTQ youth from potential victimization. As such, the present study explored the following questions: 1) What are the roles of educators (i.e., teachers, school administrators) with respect to promoting and creating safe and inclusive spaces for LGBTQ youth; 2) what unique contributions can educators make in nurturing those spaces; and, 3) what barriers do educators face in creating safe and inclusive spaces for LGBTQ youth? This study used a convergent parallel design mixed-methods approach. Fifty-six educators in Alberta completed an online survey; among those educators, 17 of them self-selected to participate in a semi-structured interview. Descriptive statistics were gathered from survey results; the interview data was analyzed using thematic analysis in order to generate themes relevant to the research questions. Those themes were: 1) Lack of awareness; 2) the use of inclusive language; 3) the role of inclusive curriculum in support of LGBTQ youth; 4) the role of educators as allies; 5) situational factors as barriers to supporting LGBTQ youth; and 6) supporting LGBTQ youth through GSAs. Overall, the results from the present study have future research implications and practical utility for educators and policy-makers.	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Luceno, A. (2019). Creating and Sustaining Safe and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ Youth: An Exploratory Investigation of the Role of Educational Professionals (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.	en_US
dc.identifier.doi	http://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/36967
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1880/110895
dc.language.iso	eng	en_US
dc.publisher.faculty	Werklund School of Education	en_US
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary	en
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.	en_US
dc.subject	LGBTQ	en_US
dc.subject	gay	en_US
dc.subject	lesbian	en_US
dc.subject	bisexual	en_US
dc.subject	transgender	en_US
dc.subject	transsexual	en_US
dc.subject	queer	en_US
dc.subject	questioning	en_US
dc.subject	educators	en_US
dc.subject	teachers	en_US
dc.subject	support	en_US
dc.subject	advocacy	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Education	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Education--Social Sciences	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Education--Teacher Training	en_US
dc.title	Creating and Sustaining Safe and Inclusive Spaces for LGBTQ Youth: An Exploratory Investigation of the Role of Educational Professionals	en_US
dc.type	master thesis	en_US
thesis.degree.discipline	Education Graduate Program – Educational Psychology	en_US
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary	en_US
thesis.degree.name	Master of Science (MSc)	en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopy	true	en_US