Sexual harassment is quickly becoming normalised within schools, with 90% of girls being sent unwanted pictures and videos.
It is not just girls, 50% of boys say that being sent explicit images happen ‘a lot’. Inspectors working for Ofsted visited 32 state and private schools, talking to over 900 students. The results of the review highlights serious underestimations in the scale of sexual abuse among children.
The Chief Inspector of schools is “shocked” by the results of the report. These results reveal that teachers, government and even Ofsted are majorly under prepared for the scale of abuse in schools.
In another shocking revelation, boys informed inspectors that they collect nudes of women before sharing them on social media.
Fast becoming normality, the report found people don’t bring attention to the sexual harassment as its “normal behaviour”. There is an increasing frustration amongst females that boys are not receiving an education on how to behave. In a particularly powerful statement, one female pupil said “it shouldn’t be our responsibility to educate boys”.
When questioned as to where these acts of violence happen, they typically talk about spaces that are unsupervised. Places with no adult supervision such as parks, parties and even school corridors.
How do we stomp out sexual harassment in school?
The report recommends that schools act under the assumption that sexual harassment is prevalent in their schools already.
Her Majesty’s chief inspector, Amanda Spielman, is shocked by the result. She finds it “alarming” that many females believe they have to accept sexual harassment as “a part of growing up”. Any victims should be encouraged to report it “whether it is happening in their school or social life”.
Amanda is calling for the Government to look further into online bullying and abuse, including how easy it is to access pornography. However, “schools and colleges have a key role to play”. The need to give children the right culture within the corridors to “reflect reality and equip young children with the information they need”.
Soma Sara, the Everyone’s Invited founder, says the report highlights the shocking reality of the increasing “rape culture”. However, the schools not on Soma’s list are the ones that worry her. Those not on Soma’s list may still be experiencing the issue of sexual harassment but not be aware.
The sexual harassment study is NOT the start of another “me too” movement
However, a headteacher of the first school mentioned Master of Magdalen College worries this could turn into the next ‘Me too’ movement. Helen Pike told Sky News in an interview that reading her name in the report is a “real moment of realisation” providing a “window into elements of teen life”.
Mrs Pike wants to be careful to not “over criminalise” children. Instead she thinks cultures and environments need to be looked at. By examining the the environments that result in people, particularly boys, making these “unfortunate and sometimes illegal decisions”, we can help educate them further.
Many teachers say they don’t feel prepared to teach outside their subject, lacking knowledge on things like consent.
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