The Australian Education Union has released a new study into teachers’ experiences of misogyny in schools by Monash University. The report outlines the increasing problem of persistent sexism and gendered violence faced by teachers.
The findings highlight the depth of the issue, including the growing influence of the manosphere on students, and the significant risk of teachers leaving the professions due to misogyny and gendered violence.
The report, Duty of Care: Teachers’ experiences of sexism, misogyny and sexual harassment in Australian schools, was commissioned by the AEU and surveyed 2668 AEU members. It is Australia’s largest study of misogyny and gendered violence in Australian schools.
AEU Federal President Correna Haythorpe said the report was a sobering read that highlights the urgent need for actions by Governments to address this growing problem.
Ms Haythorpe said, “This research confirms what we know anecdotally, that there has been a disturbing rise in boys displaying misogynistic attitudes in schools, often fuelled by the manosphere, with increasing reports of sexism and gendered disrespect towards female students and teachers.”
The importance of addressing sexism and misogyny within schools has been recognised in recent national policy frameworks aimed at preventing violence against women and girls. The Australian Government’s National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children 2022–2032 (Department of Social Services, 2022) identifies gender inequality as setting the underlying context for violence, driven by factors including rigid gender stereotypes and dominant forms of masculinity.
The National Plan highlights the importance of prevention across multiple settings, including education. Whilst schools are increasingly recognised as places where harmful gender norms can be challenged, they are also environments in which sexism, sexual harassment and misogyny are widely experienced by students and staff.
Examples of such misogynistic behaviour in schools appear in our news cycles all too regularly. The Age, for example, last month published an article on this topic that included reports from teachers of being “punched, slapped and groped” by male students, as well as being subjected to extremely degrading sexist comments, and more recently they reported on the expulsion of two senior boys from Sandringham College because of misogynistic behaviour and threats directed at female staff. Every year we see another, and another, and another example of boys engaging in offensive behaviour, with female teachers and students being harmed as a result. But such reports are notable only by how rarely such action is taken when confronted by this conduct.
Gendered violence and sexual harassment are recognised psychosocial hazards that must be addressed by employers - OHS/WHS regulators across the country, including WorkSafe Victoria, offer guidance and tools to assist employers in doing so.
Employers also have a positive duty under the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) to eliminate, as far as possible, unlawful discrimination, sexual and sex-based harassment, and victimisation.
The AEU-Monash Duty of Care report “highlights the significant impact this misogynistic behaviour is having, and the risks it poses to the teaching profession as a whole if it is not addressed by Governments,” says Ms Haythorpe.
“This behaviour is disrupting girls’ education and driving teachers out of the profession at a time when Australia is already facing a teacher shortage.”
You can learn more about your employer’s duties and responsibilities to preventing sexual harassment and gendered violence at Sexual harassment guide for employers | WorkSafe Victoria and Managing reports of sexual harassment | WorkSafe Victoria.
VTHC’s Women’s Team has resources including the Stop Gendered Violence at Work Report which outlines the problem and offers some solutions to ensure that workplaces are safe for women workers. VTHC also offers training for HSRs, employers and others interested in safer workplaces, including:
· Safe Respectful Workplaces - We Are Union VTHC
· Positive Duty Training - We Are Union VTHC
· Women's Rights at Work Training - We Are Union VTHC
· Bystander Action Training - We Are Union VTHC
Read more: AEU-MONASH REPORT ON MISOGYNY IN SCHOOLS HIGHLIGHTS SYSTEMIC ISSUES