Children are set to receive lessons on new online dangers as part of a drive to combat what’s been dubbed “an epidemic” of misogyny in schools. Bridget Phillipson has raised concerns about children being “bombarded by manipulative content online”, making a commitment to help them “separate fact from fiction”.
The Education Secretary published new Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) guidance earlier this week (Tuesday, July 15), targeting troubling attitudes towards women and girls among boys and men. The forthcoming guidance will stress that RSHE should not dwell on negative qualities, instead urging teachers to promote positive figures and images of femininity and masculinity.
When asked about positive examples for youngsters, Ms Phillipson told the Mirror : “For young women, I think the Lionesses have been amazing in demonstrating how sport is something for women too, that it’s good to be healthy, to be physical, to be strong and they’re not simply male traits.”
She added: “For young men, if you look at someone like Gareth Southgate. He was an incredible footballer, then became a brilliant leader in his field, but wasn’t afraid of talking about some of the challenges that he’d had to overcome in his own mental health. I think it’s a nice balance to demonstrate that all of us can have our ups and downs, but that there are other people out there, including people that have really reached the pinnacle of their careers, who’ve also been through some of those same challenges too.”
Under new guidance, children will be educated on incel culture and the dangers of AI, deepfakes, and the connection between pornography and misogyny. The curriculum will also address healthy sexual relationships, touching on topics such as reproductive health, unplanned pregnancies, and abusive relationships.
The teaching of sexual ethics aims to delve “beyond consent”, instructing youngsters that “yes doesn’t always mean yes as factors like peer pressure should be taken into account”, according to the forthcoming guidance. However, dating apps will not feature in the lessons, Ms Phillipson has confirmed.
Health education is set to broaden, with a focus on enhancing understanding of fertility and conditions affecting women’s health, such as endometriosis. New topics being introduced include spiking and methanol poisoning.
Mental health education is due for expansion too, with secondary schools being encouraged to collaborate with experts on discussing suicide prevention sensitively. This comes against the backdrop of suicide being the leading cause of death among those under 35.
While the bulk of online safety advice is aimed at secondary pupils, primary school teachers will also receive guidance on helping children who come across harmful content online. Educators will have more leeway to address issues that younger students might encounter on the internet or through peers, provided it’s handled in an “age-appropriate” way.
The new guidance relaxes Conservative regulations that prohibited sex education from being taught to children under the age of nine or ten. It still advises that primary schools should introduce sex education in Year 5 or 6, alongside discussions about conception and birth. It is explicitly stated in the guidance that parents can request to see all RSHE curriculum materials.
Speaking to The Mirror, Ms Phillipson said: “We know that our children are being bombarded by manipulative content online and offline, and it’s the responsibility of governments to tackle that and to make sure that young people are able to separate fact from fiction. With the development of deep fake technology, AI, young people are seeing material that we really need them to be able to question and not to take at face value.”
She added: “The action that we’re taking through the guidance is to better equip young people to understand what’s acceptable and what’s unacceptable, how to navigate this world, but also to support healthy relationships and to make sure that all young people, including young boys, are supported to develop healthy relationships without stigmatising them.”
The Department for Education (DfE) has released new figures indicating that “misogynistic attitudes have reached epidemic scale by the end of secondary school”.
Reflecting on just the previous week, over a third (37 per cent) of students aged 11-19 reported hearing remarks that raised concerns about the safety of girls, while more than half (54 per cent) had observed comments they would classify as misogynistic.
Elsewhere, research indicates that over one in five (22 per cent) of girls aged between seven and ten have seen ‘rude images online’, with the average age for exposure to pornography being 13. The Department for Education (DfE) defines misogyny as a dislike of, contempt for or ingrained prejudice against women.
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