ALMOST half of parents do not want homosexual teachers for their children, according to a survey conducted by the MVK agency for the daily SME.
More than 45 percent of parents with children in school in Slovakia would not want their children to be taught by homosexual teachers. Around 41 percent of people without school-aged children gave the same response.
Adults seem to be less open-minded than the students themselves. Only about 23 percent of school-aged students said they would object to a homosexual teacher.
According to SME, there is general tolerance towards homosexuals in Slovakia. A 2003 Institute for Public Affairs (IVO) survey found that 79 percent of respondents said that gays and lesbians should have the same rights to carry out their professions as other people.
"However, the SME survey confirms that this trend does not apply to all the professions," sociologist Zora Bútorová commented in the daily.
Bútorová said that a third of respondents automatically suggested that a homosexual teacher would hurt students or would be a bad teacher just through being different.
Compiled by Marta Ďurianová from press reports
TheSlovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the informationpresented in its Flash News postings.
