Questions & Answers: Sexual Orientation in Schools

Preface

First published in 1994 and revised in 2003 and 2008, the Public Health Agency of Canada’s Canadian Guidelines for Sexual Health Education (Guidelines) were developed to assist professionals working in the area of health promotion and sexual health education in programming which supports positive sexual health outcomes. Feedback from a national evaluation of the Guidelines indicated the need for companion documents to provide more detailed information, evidence and resources on specific issues. In response, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) identified a ‘question and answer’ format as an appropriate way to provide information to educators and other professional working with school aged populations. The Questions and Answers styled documents are intended to cover a range of topics reflecting current issues in sexual health education with school-aged populations, are evidence-based and use inclusive language as reflected in the Guidelines.

This document, Questions & Answers: Sexual Orientation in Schools, is intended to address the most commonly asked questions regarding the sexual orientation of youth in school settings.  The goal of this resource is to assist educators, curriculum and program planners, school administrators, policy-makers and health professionals in the creation of supportive and healthy school environments for youth struggling with issues of sexual orientation.

Acknowledgements

The Public Health Agency of Canada would like to acknowledge and thank the many contributors and reviewers who participated in the creation of Questions & Answers: Sexual Orientation in Schools. The development of this document was made possible through the valuable input provided by experts working in the field of sexual health education and promotion across Canada, including the members of the Sexual Health Working Group of the Joint Consortium for School Health. Specifically, the Public Health Agency of Canada would like to acknowledge the following individuals who contributed to the development of this document:  Barry Adam, Dianne Berg, Gillian Butler, Kyla Christiansen, Maryanne Doherty, Olivier Ferlatte, William Fisher, Bernie Froese-Germain, Jacqueline Gahagan, Loralee Gillis, Jocelyne Maurice, Alex McKay, Rosanna Pellizzari, Pauline Theoret and Kristopher Wells.

In addition, the Public Health Agency of Canada would like to acknowledge the staff of the Sexual Health and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) Section, Centre for Communicable Diseases and Infection Control, for their contribution to the development of this document.