8 out of 10 Middle School Students Say "LGBTQ+ Education Is Necessary"

21.1% of Students Have Encountered Education or Information on Sexual Minorities
'Sexual Minorities' Term Removed in Revised Curriculum

Students of a middle school in Seoul are going to school. The photo is unrelated to the article content. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] Eight out of ten middle school students believe that education related to sexual minorities is necessary.

According to data from the Korea Women's Development Institute's "Youth Sex Education Demand Survey" released on the 29th, 77.9% of middle school students responded that information or education related to sexual minorities is needed. The survey was conducted from November 6 to December 5, 2018, targeting 4,065 middle school students.

Only 21.1% of respondents answered that they had received information or education about sexual minorities in school sex education. By gender, female students (86.2%) felt a greater need than male students (70.1%), and first-year students (81.2%) felt a greater need than second-year (75.3%) and third-year students (77.4%).

26.1% of students answered that they had experience contemplating their sexual identity, and 30.7% had thought about their sexual orientation. Female students (sexual identity 31.7%, sexual orientation 37.0%) were found to have more experience with such concerns than male students (sexual identity 20.8%, sexual orientation 24.9%).

Regarding how they would act if they thought they were a sexual minority (multiple responses allowed), the most common answer was "I try to get rid of such thoughts," at 28.9%. For male students, the order was ▲try to get rid of such thoughts (35.4%) ▲hide it (24.0%) ▲consult parents (21.1%).

In contrast, female students answered in the order of ▲consult parents (32.3%) ▲talk to friends (25.0%) ▲gather information through the internet (24.9%).

The research team analyzed, "Unlike male students who answered that they would deny or hide the thought that they are sexual minorities, female students want to share their thoughts within relationships with parents or friends, revealing a gender-based difference in perception."

Prejudice against sexual minorities was also lower among female students than male students. When asked to imagine a situation where a friend reveals they are a sexual minority, the most common response was "the friendship remains unchanged," at 51.5%. While 60.6% of female students said they would maintain the friendship, only 43.0% of male students responded similarly.

While youths have diverse perceptions of sexual minority issues, controversy continues over "sexual minorities" in school education. The Ministry of Education removed the terms "sexual minorities" and "gender equality" from the draft that policy researchers had originally included. The Ministry announced the administrative notice for the 2022 revised curriculum draft by the 29th.

In the explanatory notes for the integrated social studies achievement standards for high school, the phrase "people with disabilities, migrant foreigners, sexual minorities, etc." as examples of "social minorities" was revised and supplemented to "members of society who are discriminated against due to gender, age, race, nationality, disability, etc." after several discussions. The Ministry explained that mentioning sexual minorities as examples of social minorities raised concerns about promoting a "third gender" during adolescence.

The National Human Rights Commission also expressed regret over the deletion of expressions related to sexual minorities. Song Doo-hwan, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, stated, "For decades, our society has emphasized the importance of active gender equality beyond passive anti-discrimination to eliminate prejudice and discrimination related to gender," and pointed out, "The deletion of the term 'sexual minorities' is a very serious issue as it may lead to intensified discriminatory attitudes toward sexual minorities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.