International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Publications ISSN (Online): 2581-6187 41 Francis Thaise A. Cimene, Ma. Cynthia Fe V. Siwagan, Jirby Jake Laniton, and Irish Joy Q. Nacua, “Attitudes toward Homosexuality in a School Context,” International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Publications (IJMRAP), Volume 2, Issue 11, pp. 41-46, 2020. Attitudes toward Homosexuality in a School Context Francis Thaise A. Cimene, Ma. Cynthia Fe V. Siwagan, Jirby M. Laniton, Irish Joy Q. Nacua University of Science and Technology of Southern Philippines Abstract— The purpose of this research was to ascertain the attitude of students toward homosexuality and the select factors correlated with it specifically age, gender, religion, frequency of going to church, exposure with the LGBT community, and preference for movies/shows with LGBT as main characters. The participants are comprised of 451 students and data were collected through survey questionnaires. The results revealed that attitudes toward homosexuality in a school setting could range from liberal to conservative depending on the situation and conceptualization. The participants tend to be liberal on working with homosexuals in team projects and being a member of organization with homosexual members. However, they could agree that same sex holding hands or displaying affection in public is disgusting and the love between two males or two females is quite different from the love between two persons of the opposite sex. Moreover, the student participants stood neutral on the propositions that “gay movement” is a positive thing; that homosexuality is not sinful and the increasing acceptance of homosexuality in society is aiding in the deterioration of morals. These indicate their ambivalent attitude towards homosexuality. This means that their attitudes toward homosexuality is confined to specific parameters. This study further concludes that age, sex, religious affiliation, frequency in going to church, having LGBT sibling/relative, and preference for movies/shows with LGBT main characters are significantly related with attitude towards homosexuality. I. INTRODUCTION In a cross-national study on attitudes towards homosexuality (Smith, 2011), the global trend showed that the Philippines followed by Russia and Slovenia registered the lowest approval of same-gender-sexual behavior. This was based on a survey conducted in 12 countries in 1991, 1998, and 2008. For 1998 and 2008 involving 24 countries, the Netherlands was top in both years and the Philippines at the bottom. As a result of the civil rights movement of gays and lesbians, homosexuality‟s social and cultural status has evolved (Lingiardi and Capozzi, 2004). Also, in recent years, homosexuals have become targets of prejudices in school settings (Worthen, 2013). Academic, social and political discussions of homosexuality have become more and more complicated over the years. As Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) population have become prevalent among universities and colleges, so is the need for a deeper understanding on them. This is one great quest of every institution to provide their needs particularly that discrimination can be detrimental to well-being such as depression, suicide, and drug abuse (Birkett, Espelage, and Koenig, 2009). Hence, this study underscores the significance of examining the attitudes toward homosexuality in school setting. This is important because initiatives to minimize prejudices will be likely successful if it is research-based. Besides, Birkett, Espelage, and Koenig (2009) found out that schools have the ability to counter negative outcomes of homophobia by creating positive school climate. By understanding the attitudes and actions of heterosexuals toward homosexual populations on college campuses institutions can better determine the climate that LGBT students experience. According to Liang and Alimo (2005), this understanding can also “contribute to the development of educational programs that address negative heterosexual attitudes that influence negative physical, psychological, and educational outcomes.” Review of previous studies revealed that the LGBT student population in higher education is viewed as an evolution from exclusion to integration. LGBT students have become a visible campus population who are supported by the very educational institutions that once tried to suppress them. Likewise, the experiences of LGBT students have not been extensively examined in scholarly research. The term homosexuals is used in this study as a generic term for the LGBT community. It is worth noting that there has been an increase in the number of available terms to express a variety of sexual orientations and gender identities, or a tendency to defy labelling altogether (Marech, 2004). In order to address “tolerance and acceptance,” some universities and colleges have incorporated “diversity” coursework and workshops into the core curriculum. Research suggests that college courses devoted to homophobia have been found to enhance heterosexual students‟ attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. Also, while there is a trend toward incorporating “diversity” issues as a form of educational reform, often sexual orientation receives little attention, being pushed even further to the margins (Bowen and Bourgeois 2001). Akin to this, with increased education comes greater understanding, tolerance and acceptance of others. Lambert et al. (2006) found that students in the higher education have more positive attitude toward homosexuals than in basic education. This supports the assumption that higher education provides students opportunities for self-reflection, personal growth and social development with respect to prejudicial attitudes. However, Macintosh (2007) has warned of a curriculum that frequently reproduces heterosexuality as „normal‟ and homosexuality as „other.‟ While it is important to consider attitudes toward homosexuality, this research replicates some aspects of previous studies investigating the relationships between age (Besen, and Zicklin, 2007; Smith, 2011), sex (Smith, 2011), religion (Besen, and Zicklin, 2007; Smith, 2011), frequency to going to church, exposure (Calzo and Ward 2009) with the LGBT community, and preference for movies/shows with LGBT as main characters---with attitude towards