Academic Performance and College Aspirations Suffer When Harassment Goes Unchecked
Media Contact:
C. Riley Snorton
rsnorton@glsen.org
212-727-0135 ext. 138
LINK
Apr 01, 2005

The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, or GLSEN, released its most recent National School Climate Survey in 2003. For the first time, the bi-annual study reported a direct relationship between in-school victimization, grade-point averages (GPAs) and the college aspirations of LGBT students. At the same time, more than 4 out of 5 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students reported being verbally, sexually or physically harassed at school because of their sexual orientation.

Key findings of the 2003 National School Climate Survey include:

Unchecked harassment correlates with poor performance and diminished aspirations: LGBT youth who report significant verbal harassment are twice as likely to report they do not intend to go to college and their GPAs are significantly lower (2.9 vs. 3.3).

Supportive teachers can make a difference: 24.1% of LGBT students who cannot identify supportive faculty report they have no intention of going to college. That figure drops to just 10.1% when LGBT students can identify supportive staff at their school.

Policymakers have an opportunity to improve school climates: LGBT students who did not have (or did not know of) a policy protecting them from violence and harassment were nearly 40% more likely to skip school because they were simply too afraid to go.

Harassment continues at unacceptable levels and is too often ignored: 84% of LGBT students report being verbally harassed because of their sexual orientation. 82.9% of students report that faculty never or rarely intervene when present. GLSEN's National School Climate Survey is the only national survey to document the experiences of LGBT students in America's schools and has been conducted bi-annually since 1999. The 2003 survey includes responses from 887 LGBT middle and high school students from 48 states and the District of Columbia. Key findings, the complete survey and additional information about methodology and demographics may be obtained by calling GLSEN's Communications Department at 212-727-0135 or by visiting www.glsen.org.

National School Climate Survey

Key Findings of the National School Climate Survey.

Dealing With Legal Matters Surrounding Students' Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

Policy and Law Documents

Just The Facts About Sexual Orientation and Youth

GLSEN, or the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, now in its 10th year, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for ALL students. GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression.

Teach Respect Campaign

Press Release Source: GLSEN

Study Results Demonstrate the Severity of Bullying and Harassment in New York Schools
Tuesday December 6, 9:37 am ET
LINK

NEW YORK, Dec. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- GLSEN, or the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, today released "From Teasing to Torment: A Profile of School Climate in New York," which provides a rare look into student experiences with bullying and harassment, and their attitudes about this serious problem in New York schools. The results are based on students in New York state who were surveyed as part of a national study of secondary school students and teachers conducted by Harris Interactive®.
Results from the survey demonstrate that bullying is far too common in New York schools:


* More than one-third (39%) of New York students reported that bullying,
name-calling, and harassment is a serious problem in school.

* Sixty-five percent reported people at their schools were harassed
because of their looks or body size.

* More than five out of ten (51%) reported that students were harassed
because they were or were perceived to be lesbian, gay, or bisexual.

* A majority (60%) of students who experienced harassment or assault at
school did not report it to a school staff person. Of those that did,
only 37% reported that some immediate action was taken to address the
situation.

Methodology
Harris Interactive® conducted the online study on behalf of GLSEN between January 13 and 31, 2005. A total of 3,450 U.S. public and private/parochial students ages 13 to 18 were surveyed. Within this sample, an oversample of students was drawn from several states including New York. A total of 210 respondents attended schools in New York at the time of the survey. Sample was drawn from the Harris Interactive multimillion member online panel of cooperative respondents. Invitations for this study were emailed to a selected sample of the database identified as residing in the United States and being a student between the ages of 13 and 18. Data for the national survey were weighted to reflect the national population of children ages 13 to 18 for key demographic variables (gender, age, race and ethnicity, size of place, region, and parent's education). A post weight was applied to the student data to adjust for the 12 state oversampling so that the regional distribution reflects the nation as a whole. Demographic weights were based on U.S. Census data obtained via the March 2004 Current Population Survey (CPS).

In theory, with probability samples of this size, one could say with 95 percent certainty that the overall results have a sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points of what they would be if the entire population of U.S. youth aged 13 to 18 who attend public or private/parochial school had been polled with complete accuracy. This online sample is not a probability sample.

Note: The data for this survey were collected by Harris Interactive on behalf of GLSEN. Harris Interactive and GLSEN are jointly responsible for the survey design. Harris Interactive is responsible for the online data collected, and the weighting and analysis of the national data and GLSEN is responsible for the New York data analysis and reporting. State specific data including that which is presented in this report does not reflect the postweight mentioned previously.

About GLSEN

GLSEN, or the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, is the leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for ALL students. GLSEN envisions a world in which every child learns to respect and accept all people, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity/expression. For more information visit www.glsen.org.

GLSEN Educates Spanish Language and Bilingual Americans About Harmful Effects of Bullying and Harassment in Schools