Educational research on LGBTIQ students and teachers is increasing and has a long tradition at ECER conferences for over a decade. At the same time empirical research is still marginal (De Witte et al. 2021). In this symposium, we spotlight Australia, Germany and Sweden which have all had legal and policy changes concerning gender and sexuality diversity, such as recognition of same-sex marriage or gender diversity (IGLYO 2022). But these legal improvements do not necessarily translate into better conditions for LGBTIQ students and teachers. Educational institutions are shaped by heteronormative traditions and are often structured in binary gendered ways; this is apparent in language, policy, facilities and curriculum taught or omitted at school (Heasley & Crane 2012; McBride & Neary 2021). Teacher training generally omits gender and sexuality diversity, and teachers often feel uncomfortable or incompetent to address gender and sexuality diversity in class (Shepherd 2022). Universities and schools also lack measures to protect LGBTIQ students, teachers, lecturers and staff from bullying and discrimination, and currently violence against gender non-conforming students has increased in the wake of an anti-genderist right wing backlash (EU-FRA 2020; UNESCO 2021).

This symposium brings together researchers who analyze these paradoxes and focus on questions of gender and sexuality diversity in educational settings and practices. Framed within empirical educational research, they study conditions which might help to improve the educational opportunities for trans, intersex, non-binary and gender expansive (TIN) students or support the professionalization of LGBTIQ teachers. The symposium will be composed of presentations from three countries. Lundin will present the narrative of Kim, a trans teacher in a Swedish school. He will present supportive conditions of inclusion and recommendations to educators based on Kim’s narrative. Ferfolja and Ullman will introduce a professional research-informed learning module from Australia with multiple guidance resources, including a short film for teacher education. Fütty and Götschel will discuss challenges and requirements in teachers training at German universities about gender and sexuality diversity at school with a focus on ambivalences, entanglements, and uncertainties in education. The presenters are united in the goal to enable inclusive education systems and the symposium aims to foster synergies between these scholars.

De Witte, K., Holz, O., Geunis, L. (Eds.) (2022). A Little Respect? LGBT+ Perspectives on Education from Across Europe. Münster & New York: Waxmann. EU-FRA (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights) (2020). FRA Report 2020. A long way to go for LGBTI equality. https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/fra-2020-lgbti-equality-1_en.pdf accessed 15th January 2024. Heasley, R. & Crane, B. (2012). Queering classes – Disrupting hegemonic masculinity and the effect of compulsory heterosexuality in the classroom. In: J. C. Landreau, & N. M. Rodrigues (eds.), Queering Masculinities: A Critical Reader in Education. Dortrecht, 99-118. IGLYO (The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer & Intersex Youth and Student Organisation) (2022). LGBTQI Inclusive Education Report 2022. https://www.iglyo.com/resources/ie-2022 accessed 15th January 2024. McBride, R.-S.; Neary, A. (2021). Trans and gender diverse youth resisting cisnormativity in school, Gender and Education, 33 (8), 1090-1107, https://doi.org/10.1080/09540253.2021.1884201. Shepherd, R. (2022). ‘The winds of change have begun to blow’ – A discussion on English governmental education policy and Inclusion for LGBTQI+ adolescents in English secondary schools. In: De Witte, K.; O. Holz; L. Geunis (Eds.) A Little Respect? LGBT+ Perspectives on Education from Across Europe. Münster & New York: Waxmann, 201–216. UNESCO (2021). Don’t look away. No place for exclusion of LGBTI students. Policy paper No. 45. https://www.unesco.org/gem-report/en/lgbtidontlookaway accessed 15th January 2024.