COLLECTIVE ACTION FOR RELATIONSHIPS AND SEXUALITY EDUCATION (RSE) |
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The new Australian Curriculum is here! |
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The latest Australian Curriculum Review made improvements to the Foundation to Year 10 curriculum by refining, realigning and decluttering the content. There are some improvements in regards to way respectful relationships and consent are addressed throughout the new release. What do you think about the new curriculum? Are there aspects you think need improvement? We would love to hear your thoughts! |
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As part of Bloom-Ed's mission to create collective action for RSE, we constantly seek to showcase the fabulous work that is happening around Australia. We want to spotlight any work that supports efforts to provide evidence-based RSE to Australians - be this through homes, schools, community groups, or other means. We are always on the hunt for evidence to support the efficacy of RSE and we'd like to start putting together a page on our website that highlights recent (RSE-positive!) media. What are we asking of you? Here are just a few ways you might be able to help: - If your current work align with our mission to provide evidence-based RSE to Australians, we would love to include your organisation's name and logo on our websites under our 'Allies' tab. Check out the amazing list of allies who have already joined us!
- Let us know if there is campaign, petition, consultation or event that we should now about. We'd love to share it.
- Have you been involved in any media, or read a great RSE-related article lately? We are looking to create a new page on our website that showcases various media mentions of RSE. If you have engaged with media regarding RSE in the last 1-2 years, please send us the links through so we can add it to our database. Similarly, if you have read a great article, please send it our way!
- Consider joining our team! Scroll to the bottom of this eNews update to learn more.
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Catching up with 'Amazing Me' |
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Bloom-Ed caught up with sexuality educator and primary school trained teacher, Rowena Thomas. Rowena is the facilitator of 'Amazing Me', specialising in providing positive and empowering sex education programs in primary schools for 25 years! What was your experience of RSE (relationships and sex education) at school? I’m 56 and went to school a really really long time ago. We really didn’t have any relationships and sex education at all. I remember I got my periods when I was in year four and I had no idea what was happening to my body. I vowed that my children would never be the same. I also had no idea about pornography when I saw it at the age of 14 which was confronting as it just wasn’t spoken about back then. What is something you try to embody when teaching in this area? The thing that I try and teach in every single lesson is that no matter who you are or what you look like or even believe, that you and your body are amazing... and that’s why it’s called 'amazing me'. I want to celebrate and acknowledge diversity. I want the students to understand that their bodies are individual and it's normal and even encouraged to be curious about their own bodies. I want them to feel safe to ask questions and know who they can ask. Sexual health education starts from a young age and not puberty. Consent has been a focal point in the media lately. Has this altered the content you teach to your students? I have always taught consent in all of my programs, however I prioritise it more than I may have before. I am certainly more focused and concrete in the way that I teach it. At Bloom-Ed we believe RSE and consent belongs in the primary school curriculum. Do you share the same view? I believe that consent education starts from when a child is born and I don’t believe that it ever stops really. I absolutely believe that consent must be addressed in primary school, and ideally it should be a familiar concept before then. Consent amongst children means teaching them to have healthy relationships and boundaries. Children have a right to feel safe in their bodies and even be given the tools to do so, before they begin primary school. What are the challenges you face teaching RSE? The world is changing really rapidly particularly when it comes to the digital world and what kids are accessing. It's a real challenge because our kids are accessing pornographic and explicit sexual material at a much earlier age, and currently the curriculum does not address how to manage this. I think the way we use language has changed a lot, particularly in relation to gender and sexual identities, and while most of those changes are progressive and positive, the curriculum does not mandate many relevant and important aspects of sexual education. My challenge is bringing all of those sensitivities into the sessions, so that all the students feel a connection to what I teach. However sometimes I feel it's a really fine line between saying too much and possibly offending families. As we are all different, so are our values, beliefs and cultures. | | |
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Spotlight on university campuses Universities Australia recently shared findings from the most recent National Student Safety Survey. Sadly, this work continues to document high levels of sexual harassment and sexual assault, associated with the university experience. You can access the full reports below, together with an official response from Universities Australia and separate statements from various universities across the country. |
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Position statement on Roe v Wade Children By Choice have recently issued a position statement regarding the possible reversal of Roe v Wade. Please consider adding your name to this statement, to show that: "You stand in solidarity with healthcare professionals who provide abortion care and every person who has accessed an abortion, or may need to in the future. You support access to legal, safe, timely, compassionate healthcare and protections for reproductive rights in conjunction with supporting bodily autonomy and reproductive justice." |
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Recent journal article: ‘Own your narrative’Teenagers will pave their own path to receive sex education One of our very own Bloom-Ed founding members has helped to deliver this thought provoking article: 'Own your narrative’: teenagers as producers and consumers of porn in Netflix’s Sex Education. The article references the ways in which teenagers will access explicit sexual material to fill in the gaps amongst their own education. The article uses the popular Netflix series 'Sex Education' to demonstrate this. Not only does this series support teenagers, it resonates with adult audiences who missed out receiving comprehensive sex education themselves. Gen X viewers have expressed that watching the show has taught them of the modern world of sex... and alas, sex education is never complete. |
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| | The fabulous Talk Soon. Talk Often. resource has been turned into a website! This enduring resource supports families to talk to young people from 0-18 about relationships and sex. | | |
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| | ShineSA have recently launched A Quick Guide to the Menstrual Cycle & Periods. The guide This guide is available to download as a PDF (you can send this on to young people in your life) or as a physical booklet. | | |
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| | TransHub, powered by ACON, is a digital information and resource platform for all trans and gender diverse people in NSW, their loved ones, allies and health providers. | | |
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| | Transcend Australia was founded in 2012 as the first parent-led peer support network for the families of trans, gender diverse and non-binary children in Australia. | | |
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| | SIECUS: Sex Ed for Social Change have recently launched Comprehensive Sex Education for Youth with Disabilities: A Call to Action. This interactive document champions the cause for disability inclusive comprehensive sex education. Note: USA resource | | |
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| | Equality Australia exists to improve the wellbeing and circumstances of LGBTIQ+ people in Australia. They have some recent updates regarding the Federal election, the Religious Discrimination Bill, and ensuring sport is accessible to all. | | |
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If you would like to share an update regarding your work to support or deliver relationships and sexuality education throughout Australia, please get in touch. |
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Our team is looking to expand and we'd love you join us. At the current time, our team meets online for 1 hour per month. Members usually spend about 1-3 additional hours per month working on various tasks. If you'd like to help support our efforts to improve RSE delivery in Australia, please send through your CV and a brief cover letter or statement - we'd love to know why you are so passionate about RSE and what skills you could bring to the team. |
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So who is Bloom-ED? We are a collective of teachers, researchers, sexologists, students, parents and activists who operate as an alliance - in conjunction with other organisations - to advocate for comprehensive RSE. Learn more about our hopes for RSE here. At the current time our focus is on improving RSE delivery in Australia, but watch this space... |
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