As the government announces another review of consent education, The Saturday Paper can reveal that evidence-based discussion of sex was removed from the federal framework in favour of a more politically palatable approach to “respectful relationships”.
Recent events – in particular the two alleged sexual assaults involving teen boys from two private Sydney schools, an alleged sexual assault involving Sydney Swans players, and the death of a 16-year-old girl in Sydney as a result of suspected sexual strangulation – prompted Education Minister Jason Clare to announce that the federal government would review consent and respectful relationships education to ensure its “message is getting through”. In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Clare said the federal government would review the current consent education framework to ensure students, parents and teachers had the resources and support they need.
[T]he recommendation for a “sexual ethics informed approach” to be a “core principle” among the 11 interconnected guiding principles for effective consent and respectful relationships education was removed. Essentially, the framework skipped over explicit discussion of sex and instead focused on “respectful relationships”.
According to several sources, who asked not to be named so they could speak freely, the resistance the experts faced in adopting a more “explicit” sexual ethics approach was mirrored in the experience of the Australian Human Rights Commission in developing the questions for the National Consent Survey. The final results are now being tallied by the commission, after a four-year delay, and are due to be released later this year.
[Ed: I can understand the hesitancy trusting the experts advice on providing ‘explicit’ conversations about sexual ethics with our children. It is important but sadly this work may attract all the wrong people for all the wrong reasons. There is a fine line between educating and grooming.]
Source: Exclusive: Government removed ‘sex’ from sex education | The Saturday Paper