School cultures and Gender Diverse Children: Parents’ and guardians’ perspectives

Abstract

Children’s transgender issues have emerged from the periphery of general consciousness to center stage within human rights discourses, and as a controversial medical topic. Moreover, gender diverse children, known sometimes as trans (gender), are increasingly visible within the school system in the UK. Most of the small amount of research on gender diverse children in schools has been conducted in the United States (US) in which they often concluded that social service professionals, teachers, and administrators of schools are often uncomfortable with them. Additionally, many school service providers fail to create a safe and respectful atmosphere for gender diverse youth. This study I am presenting here sets out to look at this topic from a different angle and to explore the educational environments that families are experiencing in the UK with their gender diverse children. The study was created to understand parents’ and guardians’ views on the schooling system and the challenges they face in relation to being parents and guardians of gender diverse children.