Consent Education and teaching English

20th June 2022 : 16:00 - 17:30

In early 2021, in the wake of the global #MeToo movement, an online petition in Australia generated more than 500 testimonies from school students, depicting experiences of sexual assault during their time at school and asking for more emphasis to be given to consent education in secondary schools.  

This seminar shares findings from a research project conducted by the Literary Education Lab at the University of Melbourne, Australia, in conjunction with the Stella Prize for women and non-binary writers, titled ‘Teaching Literature with Consent’. This project analysed commonly taught canonical texts and showed that literature taught in secondary school English regularly includes accounts of interpersonal violence, including sexual harassment and sexual assault. Consequently, the research demonstrated that subject English, and the teaching of literature more broadly, provides an important site through which to contribute to consent education.  However, in terms of pedagogical practice, this project also found that teachers of English commonly avoid discussing the more sensitive issues pertaining to sexual relations when conducting a novel study. This seminar will provide the opportunity for teachers to discuss the report’s findings, and the implications of this research for practice, pre-service preparation and CPD.

 Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84829709061?pwd=SFFjSmxESzlicGUxN3FLVXVzRU0vUT09

Meeting ID: 848 2970 9061

Passcode: 870342