Not so straight: engaging same-sex-attracted students in Catholic secondary schools - an Australian study

The high susceptibility of students with diverse sexualities to self-harm or suicide that has been widely established in the research literature could well be increased for students at Catholic high schools. In Australia, the Catholic Church discourages disclosure of other than a heterosexual identity for their teachers and also for students attending their high schools. The presumption of straight sexual identity and the effective exclusion of alternative sexual identities being expressed by staff and students in Catholic schools could be seen as a breach of the United Nations International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and, with respect to students, of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, in that GLBTIQ students suffer discrimination and denial of their human rights. This article draws on the findings of a national consultation of Catholic secondary schools in Australia conducted in 2006 which sought to identify best practice in relation to the provision of a safe and inclusive learning environment for students with diverse sexualities. It situates that report in the context of international human rights conventions and current policies in relation to sex education and homophobic bullying in educational settings and more recent studies on the sexual health and well being of same sex attracted and gender questioning young people.