LGBTQ teens more likely to be bullied by teachers, school staff

LGBTQ+ young people are more often bullied at school by teachers and other school staff than their heterosexual peers. This emerged from new research by youth researchers from Utrecht University and the University of Groningen.

"It is the first study with nationally representative data on the experiences of LGBT pupils with bullying behavior in the Netherlands," said researcher Tessa Kaufman. The researchers' findings were recently published in the Journal of Adolescent Health. 

Nearly 30,000 young people to part in the study by Kaufman and her Groningen colleague Laura Baams, spread over 136 secondary schools in the Netherlands. "We found that LGBT youth are more often bullied by teachers or other school staff. This bullying happened more often in locations where there is little supervision. Think of changing rooms, toilets, the bicycle cellar, the parking lot and online," said Kaufman. 

According to her, schools should do more to prevent this bullying behavior. "For example, keep a closer eye on the experiences of LGBT youth. In this way, schools can provide clearer information. Preferably at the beginning of the school year, so that everyone knows where you can report experiences with bullying safely and possibly anonymously. Hopefully, the school will become a safe school for everyone," said Kaufman, who pointed out that the Week against Bullying starts on 27 September.