Teaching Teachers How to Teach Sex Ed with Alison Wiggins
In this episode, Hannah is joined by Alison Wiggins, who is Subject Leader for the PGCE in Social Sciences and PGCE Psychology programmes at University College London. Alison discusses how she works with teachers to remove their own personal experiences and beliefs around sex when working with students, and the importance of listening to young people and providing what they themselves tell us that they need. Alison and Hannah talk about the crossover of anti-racism work and sex education, why Alison believes primary school isn’t too early to talk about gender roles, and why Alison tells teachers to watch the Netflix show Sex Education! Hannah and Alison discuss how to create a more LGBTQ+ inclusive space in RSE for students and teachers, and why the RSE you deliver in your school won't have any impact unless the culture of your school as a whole reflects the values of equality and safety that you are teaching. Finally, they explain why we should centre pleasure (not just safety) in sex education and uphold it as an important valid reason why people have sex!
CW: brief mention of suicide, mentions of sexual harassment and violence
Read the episode transcript here!
What we chat about…
What’s currently included in teacher training about sex ed and what isn’t?
What kinds of things can teachers do to identify and acknowledge their personal feelings around sex and relationships?
What pushback does Alison see from teachers and schools?
Pushback about inclusive language
Building on people’s own empathy
Pushback about nudes and technology
The difference between how students and teachers often use technology outside of school
Pushback about sexual harassment and sexual violence
Victim blaming in schools
Effective methods of engaging teachers and schools in the topics they push back on
Alison’s worst story from her own sex ed experience
Assuming sex ed removes innocence
Does getting schools and teachers to buy into sex ed through a health and safety lens feel like giving into more conservative ideology?
School sex ed not talking about pleasure
Pornography and solely health and safety focused sex ed sending contradictory messages about sex
Where statutory sex ed might develop in the future
How can schools create a safe environment in sex ed for queer students and teachers?
Schools separating sex ed lessons by gender
Getting teachers to watch Sex Education (the Netflix show)
Involving young people in what they get taught in their own sex education
Intersectional sex ed
How to include anti-racism work in RSE?
How good are schools at talking about accessibility needs in RSE?
Cultural sensitivity in teaching RSE
Examples of how schools have implemented RSE
Logistical barriers to implementing the new RSE guidance (such as COVID)
Why a whole school approach is important
School values and culture needing to match the values of equality and safety they’re teaching in RSE
Gender equity and uniform policies
Do you have tips for non sex ed teachers when sex comes up in class? Suggestions for classroom management when topics are awkward. (43:54)
As a teacher, how can we know how to teach sex ed at the appropriate level, both age and academic? (46:48)
Should gender identity be taught in primary school? (48:47)
How to deal with backlash from students themselves? (52:45)
How to talk about sex without my students thinking about the fact that I have sex? (55:24)
USEFUL LINKS
No More Boys and Girls: Can Our Kids Go Gender Free? (BBC2 documentary)
The Secret Life of 4 and 5 Year Olds (Channel 4 documentary)
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MORE ABOUT ALISON WIGGINS
Alison Wiggins is the Subject Leader for the PGCE in Social Sciences and PGCE Psychology programmes at IoE-UCL and leads work across ITE on PSHE, RSE and Anti-racism. She is also a tutor on the MA Education programme and contributes to the Understanding Research and Feminist Pedagogies and approaches to education modules. Until earlier this academic year, she was also a part-time Psychology and Sociology teacher in a London Secondary school and sixth form and has been teaching for the last 14 years. She is vocal and active feminist and is passionate about building an equitable Education system and using Education and Social research as vehicles for Social Justice. Her research interests are focused on issues of Race and Gender equity, and she is currently working with the Equality and Inclusion team in her department to develop our use of Anti-racist practice and pedagogy and is working on the creation of a new module for the MA Education focused on ‘Decolonialisation’ in education through curriculum, assessment and pedagogy. This year, she will also be working with colleagues on cross-institutional research projects focused on the racialised experiences of Minority Ethnic student teachers and is developing an RSE specialism for all PGCE students though her collaborative work with the School of Sexuality Education. She hopes that one day she will get around to beginning her PhD!
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