Teachers as Actors of Change: Comparing the Attitudes of Teachers in Spain and the UK Towards LGBTIQ+ Teaching

Abtract

This article compares the attitudes of teachers located in Spain and the United Kingdom toward the integration of LGBTIQ+ issues in their teaching, reflects on teacher training and proposes recommendations to improve teacher education. Drawing on data gathered from 447 teachers located in both countries, the study reveals that the participants agree that their lessons would benefit from integrating LGBTIQ+ topics. However, the results show that pre-service teachers are more favorable than in-service teachers, and teachers in Spain are more positive than their counterparts in the United Kingdom. The article seeks to encourage the development of specific LGBTIQ+-related teacher training.

Disclosure statement

The authors participated equally in the writing of the article. They also report there are no competing interests to declare and that the content of this paper presents an accurate account of the work performed as well as an objective discussion of its significance.

Data availability statement

The authors designed the materials for data collection, and informed consent was obtained from the participants, whose responses were collected on a strictly voluntary and anonymous basis.

Notes

1 Understood as the belief that heterosexuality is the default sexual orientation, and that the masculine-feminine binary is the only possible gender identity and expression.

2 In October 2019, same-sex marriage became legal in Northern Ireland, although it was allowed since 2013 in England and Wales, and since 2014 in Scotland (Masci et al., 2019).

3 The Equality Act aimed at reducing socio-economic inequalities and discrimination in the country, and from which the focus on RSE sprouted (UK Parliament, 2010).

4 The ‘Trans Law’ recognizes the right to self-determination of gender identity of trans people and also guarantees their access to public gender-affirming healthcare (Spanish Government, 2023).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Francisco Javier Palacios-Hidalgo

Francisco Javier Palacios-Hidalgo belongs to the Department of English and German Philologies of the University of Córdoba (Spain). He is a member of the Research Group HUM-1006 ‘Research in Bilingual and Intercultural Education’ (EBeI). His research focuses on the teaching of English as a foreign language, language and bilingual education teacher training, educational technologies, teacher digital literacy and queer pedagogy.

Cristina A. Huertas-Abril

Cristina A. Huertas-Abril belongs to the Department of English and German Philologies of the University of Córdoba (Spain). She is a member of the Research Group ‘Research in Bilingual and Intercultural Education’ (HUM-1006). Her research interests are computerassisted language learning (CALL), bilingual education, teacher training, and teaching English as a foreign language.