From Teasing to Torment: School Climate Revisited. A Survey of U.S. Secondary School Students and Teachers. Executive Summary
Author: Greytak, Emily A.
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Reports - Research
Subjects: Educational Environment,Secondary School Students,Secondary School Teachers,Student Surveys,Teacher Surveys,Homosexuality,Sexual Orientation,Sexual Identity,Student Experience,Bullying,Antisocial Behavior,Learner Engagement,Student Attitudes,Comparative Analysis,Pupil Personnel Services,Teacher Attitudes,Beliefs,Faculty Development,Social Bias,School Safety,Clubs,Language Usage,School Policy,Extracurricular Activities

For over 25 years, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has worked to promote safe and affirming schools for all students, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. A significant part of this work has been to document the experiences of students, as well as to examine teacher beliefs and practices that can influence school climate. In 2005, GLSEN released &quot;From Teasing to Torment: School Climate in America, A Survey of Students and Teachers.&quot; Findings from &quot;From Teasing to Torment&quot; reinforced awareness that bullying and harassment, especially those incidents which are based on bias and personal characteristics, are major challenges confronting all schools. Yet 10 years later, it is believed that bias-based bullying and harassment remain a significant concern of students, families, and schools all across the country. Furthermore, despite legal and cultural changes, it is seen that Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) students continue to face hostile school climates, although there have been small, gradual improvements. However, there has been limited research that assesses how the school climate may have changed over the past decade for the general population of students in regards to bias, bullying, and LGBTQ issues. Furthermore, there is little information about the general population of teachers' beliefs and practices as related to bias, bullying, or LGBTQ issues, and no information about how these beliefs and practices may have shifted over time. For these reasons, the authors felt it was important to reexamine the issues they explored in the 2005 &quot;From Teasing to Torment&quot; report by conducting a similar survey in 2015, exactly a decade after the initial report. This report gives the authors the opportunity to document the current state of safety, bias, and bullying in schools and assess potential disparities based not only on LGBTQ status, but also on race/ethnicity, sex, gender expression, and socioeconomic status. As school climate is determined not only by the existence or absence of victimization, the authors also explore students' experiences with school disciplinary actions and extracurricular activities, seeking to develop a more complete picture of the student experience. In addition, they again document students' access to resources that may improve school climate, such as student clubs that address LGBTQ student issues, inclusive curriculum, and anti-bullying/harassment policies. Moreover, in this report, secondary school teachers offer their perceptions on bias, bullying, and LGBTQ students' safety, and provide valuable information about the preparation they may have received to address these issues. The authors also document teachers' practices in regards to combating bias and supporting LGBTQ students specifically, including the potential barriers to doing so. Lastly, they offer recommendations for both further research and specific programmatic and policy strategies that may help schools reduce the risk of peer victimization, counter the damaging effects of bias, and provide safe and supportive learning environments for all LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ students alike. This executive summary provides a summary of findings. [For the full report, &quot;From Teasing to Torment: School Climate Revisited. A Survey of U.S. Secondary School Students and Teachers,&quot; see ED574775. For &quot;From Teasing to Torment: School Climate in America, A Survey of Students and Teachers,&quot; see ED486343.]