1. Sexual and gender diverse youth's marginalization in school based sex education and development of adaptive competencies.
- Author
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Clonan‐Roy, Katie, Naser, Shereen, Fuller, Kimberly, and Goncy, Elizabeth
- Subjects
SEX education ,EXERCISE for youth ,GENDER ,SCHOOL environment ,FOCUS groups - Abstract
One uniquely marginalizing school environment for sexual and gender diverse (SGD) youth is school based sex education (SBSE). While research has documented the negative sexual and mental health impacts these marginalizing environments can have for SGD youth, we know less about the developmental competencies that this population of youth exercises to survive in and cope with these environments. In this paper, we aim to answer the following question: What are the developmental competencies that SGD youth exercise in sex education spaces? We conducted focus groups with SGD youth (n = 17) in a Midwestern metropolitan region. Our study documents youth exercising six adaptive competencies to persevere through oppressive SBSE. Our data holds several scholarly and practical implications. In our discussion section, we present recommendations for creating inclusive and affirming school environments and nurturing these competencies in youth. Practitioner points: Sexual and gender diverse (SGD) youth endure oppression and marginalization in school‐based sex education (SBSE).SGD youth exercise adaptive competencies (knowledges and/or skills) to navigate through SBSE.Practitioners who work with youth are in unique positions to nurture these adaptive competencies in SGD youth, and to advocate for more equitable educational environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2023
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