Explore a case study (Exercise)

• You will need: pen and paper
• Estimated time: 15 minutes

Here is an example for a case study that you can use for discussing the previously outlined topics. You can also search for country specific case studies in reports of research conducted in your country, or you can also use stories you know of LGBTQI+ students.

“You work as a counsellor in a public high school. An adolescent girl comes to your office very worried. She tells you that one girl from her class to whom she is not close has found out that she had a girlfriend by spying on her FB profile. This girl is from a very traditional family and she holds quite a homophobic belief system. She is blackmailing your client that she will tell the client’s parents about her sexual orientation if she does not give her 15 EUR each weekend. Your client’s parents also hold patriarchal life views. “

• What would you do as a counsellor in this case?
• What would be your concerns?
• What do you perceive as a risk?
• What would you do with the information about your client’s sexuality?
• What if your client happens to be forcefully outed in the classroom, in front of her parents?
• Would you ask for personal professional support and where?