Primary school resource to tackle homophobic bullying

With research showing most children discover they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) by age 12, a new primary school resource has been launched which is designed to tackle homophobic bullying.

BeLonG To, the National LGBT Youth Organisation, said free online resource All Together Now aims to tackle LGBT bullying in primary schools by teaching children about types of identity-based bullying and bullying behaviours with lessons that can be incorporated into the social personal and health education module.

Half of LGBT young people have experienced bullying, according to BeLonG To figures. The study also found they are more likely to suffer from mental health problems as a result of bullying.

Addressing homophobia and transphobia in primary schools is urgent, the organisation says, especially considering the most common age for a person to discover they are LGBT is when they are 12, according to the LGBTIreland Report 2016.

The programme was piloted in 14 schools during 2016 before it was officially launched yesterday. Of those schools nine are Catholic, two are Educate Together, and two are community national schools. Two of the schools are also DEIS.

The classes being taught to a mixture of fourth, fifth and sixth class students.

The lessons cover topics like human rights, bullying and how to respond to bullying, using slides, scenarios and discussion questions.

Pupils are taught about types of identity-based bullying, based on the nine grounds of the Equality Acts while also being taught about verbal, physical and cyberbullying and social isolation.

One sixth-class teacher who ran a class during the pilot scheme said: “The children came out of the lesson with a hugely positive attitude towards making a stand against bullying and, to me, that was a success.”

BeLongG executive director Moninne Griffith said: “We know from our work with young people throughout Ireland that going to school can be a difficult experience and that anti-LGBT bullying is commonplace.”

There is a direct link between bullying and the significantly higher rates of mental health problems including self-harm and suicide for LGBT young people, Ms Griffith said.

“Recent research found that 67% of Irish LGBT students witnessed bullying of other LGBT students in their schools and 50% had personal experience of same.

“Young people have been telling us for some time now that there is a need to begin tackling this problem in primary schools,” she added.

The Irish National Teachers Organisation general secretary Sheila Nunan said: “The All Together Now lessons are a very welcome development.”

Speaking at the launch of the resource, Education Minister Richard Bruton said: “Through awareness, training and prevention, we can work to tackle bullying in schools.”