Transgender and Gender-Diverse Youth in Aotearoa New Zealand: How High-Schools Influence Student Wellbeing

Under the Education and Training Act 2020, New Zealand schools must provide a physically and emotionally safe place where all students are able to meet their highest possible standard of educational achievement. The schools must be inclusive of, and cater for, students with differing needs, and take all reasonable steps to eliminate bullying and discrimination within the school. Yet, research shows the safety and educational needs of transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) students are consistently being unmet in NZ high-schools, contributing to mental health and wellbeing disparities. This research examined the factors which impacted TGD student wellbeing in NZ high-schools, to provide insight into how these disparate conditions and outcomes may be addressed. The study used a qualitative phenomenological approach to understand TGD individual’s high-school experiences. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with youth participants with lived experience as TGD high-school students in NZ, and organisation participants who work for a Rainbow support organisation that works closely with high-schools and TGD youth.

This study found that high-school policies and practices influenced experiences of gender-affirmation, which positively impacted on TGD student wellbeing, and experiences of gender minority stress, which contributed to negative mental health and wellbeing outcomes. Underlying cisnormative beliefs were present in all participants’ schools, but to varying levels. I found that participants’ experiences fell into three categories. Schools with fewer cisnormative beliefs, and greater underlying beliefs of inclusion, were found to have more inclusive values and foster TGD students’ access to gender-affirmation, with fewer reports of gender minority stress or negative wellbeing. Inclusive policies at other schools were rendered ineffective when these policies did not address the underlying cisnormative beliefs present in the schools’ culture. For some participants, the entrenched beliefs in cisnormativity and essentialist perspectives of gender resulted in a non-inclusive school environment, where experiences of gender minority stress were frequent, and contributed to the repression of self and negative wellbeing. These findings highlight the importance of addressing underlying beliefs in a school’s culture to enhance gender-inclusive policies and practices and support TGD student wellbeing.