Homophobia 'widespread' in schools [IrishTimes]
- Published: 04 July 2011
The majority of primary school teachers are too uncomfortable or too afraid to confront widespread homophobic bullying by young students, a Department of Education course heard today in Dublin.
The week-long course, which is the first of its kind for primary school teachers in Ireland has been approved by the department as one of its teacher education summer courses and is supported by the Irish National Teachers' Organisation (INTO).
It is being organised by Belong To Youth Services, a group for young gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, in co-ordination with Educate Together, which runs 58 non-denominational schools across Ireland.
Teachers and principals from both Educate Together and traditional church-run schools today heard how young children were learning to associate homosexuality with negativity and the difficulty authority figures had in confronting the problem.
Full Story: www.irishtimes.com
