Published May 11, 2023
Sexism, sexual harassment and sexual violence are, unfortunately, an issue for every school in the UK. In order to combat these issues, we need to understand and raise awareness of what they are, what creates them and what can be done to expose and respond to the harmful attitudes that perpetuate harassment and gender injustice.
We had the privilege of hosting a theatre performance for our Year 9 & 10 pupils on Thursday 4th May by AlterEgo, one of the UK’s leading Social Change Theatre & Film production companies. The aim of their performance was to raise awareness around sexism and sexist behaviours.
About the Performance
Friends Oli and Kalyn confront their friend Adam, who has been saying and posting some worrying things lately. They have decided to stage an intervention and are going to explain to Adam what sexism is, the differing forms that it can take and the impact that comments and actions can have.
(source)
The performance used simple storytelling and Narrative Theory techniques to cover:
- What is Sexual Harassment?
- What is Sexist Language?
- What are Sexist Stereotypes, Attitudes and Behaviours?
- Where do these Stereotypes, Attitudes and Behaviours come from, where can they lead and what are their effects?
- What is Consent?
- How can you respond to and/or report these behaviours?
- How do we create lasting change?
What Our Pupils Thought
This informative, thought-provoking, and often hard-hitting drama performance examined the impact of ‘banter’, stereotypes, and the language we use for and around people. The pupils Mr Rooney spoke to after the performance were certainly moved and took on board the main teaching points of the performance.
We’d like to offer a big thank you to AlterEgo for coming to our school!
Comments
Wow, this is brilliant! Great way to teach the kids.