| SO | Sexual orientation |
|---|---|
| GI/E | Gender identity/expression |
| SC | Variations of sex characteristics |
| GR1 | Legal gender recognition without self-determination |
| GR2 | Legal gender recognition with self-determination (over 16) |
| GR3 | Legal gender recognition with self-determination (under 16) |
| FPN | LGBTI focal points network |
| CA | Ministerial call to action |
The Law on the Improvement of Quality of Education (2013) prohibits discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity, and states that such discrimination is a serious misconduct that should be sanctioned with a corrective measure. Several autonomous regions have also adopted laws against discrimination of LGBTQI people, that call on schools to develop concrete anti-discrimination policies and include elements in the curriculum to foster inclusion.
In 2015, the Strategic Plan for School Coexistence was drawn up through a participatory process coordinated by the Ministry of Education. For this reason, a Technical Group was created, made up of representatives of the autonomous communities and cities of Ceuta and Melilla, as well as other government agencies. At present, the contributions made by this Technical Group and by civil society organisations have been incorporated. This Plan is structured around seven fundamental axes that are related to the prevention of all types of bullying and school violence. Its structure also includes the following lines of action with objectives and measures to be applied in each one of them: monitoring of the implementation of inclusive measures; development of educational policies to improve inclusion; incorporation of Educational Success Actions and practices based on scientific evidence for the improvement of school inclusion; teacher training; coordination and cooperation between administrations, civil society organisations and other institutions; prevention and control of violent incidents or harassment in educational centres and support for people who have experienced discrimination; communication, exchange and dissemination of information and knowledge about the impact of school inclusion in education; and research and scientific dissemination on school coexistence.
The government has also developed a comprehensive action guide entitled Embracing diversity to prevent, identify and tackle bullying in schools. These guidelines contain recommendations for school management teams, teaching staff, students and families and sets up an intervention protocol in case of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, or variations in sex characteristics.
Some regions have also developed specific anti-bullying policies. The Autonomous Community of Madrid, for instance, has developed a law on LGBT rights which call on schools to include sexual and gender diversity in their curriculum. Catalonia also has a Law to grant the rights of LGBTI people and to eradicate homophobia, biphobia and transphobia (see Education curricula).
The curriculum in Spain varies from school to school. Some regional governments have implemented anti-discrimination laws or policies in the education curriculum, stating that school content should be inclusive of LGBTQI people.
More specifically, Andalusia has become a national and international role model due to the production of the Action Protocol on Gender Identity in Andalusia’s Education System, which is notable for addressing trans realities in schools in a detailed, comprehensive and depathologising manner. Catalonia also has a Law to grant the rights of LGBTI people and to eradicate homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. It contains measures that school must implement to be inclusive (such as inclusive education curricula). Extremadura has approved a Law of social equality for LGBTI people and of public policies against discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity in the Autonomous Community of Extremadura, which includes a specific chapter on measures to be taken in the educational environment. The Canary Islands’ Board of Education has transversally incorporated the prevention and identification of homophobic and transphobic bullying into all of its courses of action, producing a teachers’ Equality Accreditation. The Basque Country’s government considers education as one of the areas for priority action and proposes various specific actions for the educational environment.
There is currently no mandatory teacher training on LGBTQI awareness. However, some universities offer lessons for teachers on this topic.
Specific laws in some regions of Spain promote a self-determination procedure to change the gender marker of a person. Andalusia provides whatever accreditation needed of their self-declared gender identity to avoid situations of outingor discrimination. The Integral Law for non-discrimination on grounds of gender identity establishes that minors can apply to change their gender marker with the collaboration and facilitation of their parents, tutors or legal representatives. The government of Catalonia stated in 2014 in the Law to Guarantee the Rights of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexual, Transgendered and Intersexual Individuals and to Eradicate Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (2014) that there must be regulations in the public administrations of Catalonia, particularly in educational institutions and at the university level, for trans and intersex people to be treated and referred to in accordance with the gender with which they identify, even if they are minors.
These laws, however, are only regional. The Spanish government adopted a Law regulating the Rectification of Mentions in the Registry of the Sex of Persons (2007), pursuant to whichthe correction of sex marker will be allowed upon proof of gender dysphoria to people whoare over 18. The Law also contemplates a name change so that the name of such individual is consistent with the preferred sex identification. Since the law extends to these protections only to adults, young people might not be able to change their own gender in the civil registry inmany regions of Spain.
The government does not provide data on homophobic, biphobic, transphobic and interphobic bullying. In 2013, however, it published a diagnosis of bullying and abuse among adolescents in Spain based on reliable consensual indicators that included new types of bullying and abuse and the role of the group, entitled Bullying among dolescents in Spain. Prevalence, participants’ roles and characteristics attributable to victimization by victims and aggressors. The goal was to ascertain what the characteristics of victimisation are and how effective students expect different kinds of measures to be.
There are several support systems for LGBTQI learners in Spain. The guidelines Embracing diversityset up a national framework of school intervention in this regard. For its part, the different regions have standard action protocols to tackle bullying and provide support to people who have experienced discrimination: Andalusia, Aragon, Canary Islands, Castilla-La Mancha, Basque Country, Catalonia or Madrid.
The government has funded the project Red Educa co-ordinated by the NGO FELGTB. This project is aimed to provide information to learners and school staff in regard to sexual orientation, gender identity and expression and variations in sex characteristics. FELGTB has also developed a website with information related to bullying on grounds of actual or perceived sexual orientation or gender identity and expression.
The government supports LGBTQI civil society organisations working in the area of education.
– Spain has signed the Call for Action by Ministers – Inclusive and equitable education for all learners in an environment free from discrimination and violence.
– Spain is a member of the European Governmental LGBTI Focal Points Network.
Conference on LGBT cyberbullying
Covers: SO and GIE
[http://www.felgtb.com/educacion/jornadaseducacion/2017/author/2017_educacion/]
In 2018, FELGTB organised a national conference to open a space for debate, collaboration and reflection among professionals working in the field of education, governments and civil society organisations.
“Back to School” campaign
Covers: SO and GIE
[http://felgtb.com/stopacosoescolar/]
FELGTB, in collaboration with a team of volunteers made up of teachers and students, have created different educational resources personalized in relation to LGBT bullying. The organisation presented the first national website dedicated exclusively to tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying.
