Latest news with #RelationshipsandSexualityEducation
1News
15-05-2025
- Health
- 1News
Learning about gender: Is it appropriate for school students?
Re: News asked recent school leavers and a high school teacher what they think about the proposed changes to sex education, which could mean students no longer learn about gender identity in their health classes. Watch the full video on TVNZ+ In 2020, Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) guidelines were introduced for teachers. They were an optional resource and included detailed information about gender identity and sexual orientation. One school leaver Re: News spoke to said some of the topics included in those guidelines 'could definitely be seen as inappropriate, especially at a young age'. Another said the topics should be taught at a young age and the Government shouldn't take that education away from kids. The guidelines were removed in March. ' If parents actually knew what was taught, then I think the stigma would go — Teacher Ben Rogers | In New Zealand First's 2023 election manifesto, the party said it wanted to 'remove gender ideology from the curriculum' when it negotiated its coalition agreement. While on the campaign trail that year, New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said the party was 'going to make sure we go back to teaching education and stop indoctrination". In March 2025, the guidelines were taken down from the Ministry of Education's website. The Ministry of Education is aiming to release a new health curriculum by 2026 and they're currently consulting on it. In April, a new RSE framework was put up, both for consultation, and as an interim support for teachers to use until the curriculum is released. Unlike the 2020 Guidelines, the new framework does not explicitly mention gender identity and only mentions sexual orientation in one section. The Ministry of Education says it's focused on making sure sex ed content is 'age-appropriate' and 'evidence-informed'. It says the RSE framework was made by its own experts, and that it looked at a range of international guidance while writing it, including guidance from UNESCO. ' We wouldn't be the kind of men we are today without knowing all these sorts of things — Recent school leaver | But UNESCO's guidance has a whole section on understanding gender, which says students should learn to respect people's unique gender identities and understand why transphobia and homophobia are harmful. Ben Rogers is a Year 9 and 10 health and PE teacher at Onslow College in Wellington who supports teaching students about gender identity and sexual orientation. 'I definitely think teaching that is appropriate for that age group, because it's at that time when they're starting to form their identity and their feelings around that,' he says. Ben says he teaches his students that gender identity 'is a thing' in the sense that some people don't identify with the gender they are assigned at birth. He says it's better for students to learn about these topics in a safe classroom environment, which helps prevent misinformation and skewed views from taking root. 'This isn't as scary as what people think it is. And if parents actually knew what was taught, then I think the stigma would go.' Watch the full video on TVNZ+
Scoop
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
RSE Draft Erases Rainbow And Takatāpui Youth
Te Pāti Māori is demanding urgent changes to the draft Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) framework, calling it a dangerous step backwards for Takatāpui, trans, and rainbow rangatahi. 'This draft erases Takatāpui voices, ignores whānau diversity, and delays consent education. It's not just inadequate, it's unbelievably unsafe' said Te Pāti Māori Co-leader Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The draft excludes Takatāpui or trans identities, frames gender in binaries and postpones meaningful consent teaching to later years. It also makes no effort to affirm our same-sex or gender-diverse whānau. Te Pāti Māori is calling for: 'We need education that reflects all our tamariki. Silence is not safety' said Ngarewa-Packer. Submissions close Friday 9 May. Te Pāti Māori urges whānau and communities to speak out.
Scoop
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Proposed Changes To Relationships And Sexuality Education Will Put Children At Risk
The coalition agreement between National and NZ First promised to review Aotearoa's Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) guidelines. This review is now coming to its end, and the public have until 11:59 pm this Friday, 9 May, to make submissions on proposed changes. The proposed changes are disastrous and leave children at risk of abuse. The current guidelines, put in place in 2020, addressed gaps in the then-current 2007 guidelines regarding consent, online interactions, cultural differences, and diverse sexualities and genders. Although NZ First was part of the government that created the 2020 guidelines, they campaigned in 2023 on removing them as part of their pivot to a 'war on woke'; Winston Peters tweeted 'Why are our school children, from age five, now being taught about 'relationships, gender, and sexuality'?' (1) The reason children as young as 5 must be taught the importance of consent is because this is one of the most - and potentially the most - effective strategies for combating sexual abuse. Teaching children what consent is, how to recognise breaches of consent, and the fact that they have a right to autonomy and to report harm done to them, gives children the tools they need to detect when people mean to harm them, and to report this harm. We have decades of research demonstrating that sex education is a necessary and effective tool for preventing abuse. (2) While the proposed guidelines retain mention of consent, they eliminate mention of gender diversity. This creates a dangerous gap in the curriculum in which trans, non-binary, and intersex children will not see themselves reflected in consent education, and may only be taught about consent within the confines of normative gender experiences. As members of the queer and trans communities, many of us at Queer Endurance in Defiance understand what it is like to grow up in a world that does not acknowledge your existence, knowing that our autonomy is not valued as highly as our peers'. The current government's regressive plans for RSE put gender-diverse youth at risk by failing to acknowledge the intersection of social marginalisation and abuse. Trans, non-binary, and intersex youth are often targeted because we are seen as of lesser value, because police and courts do not care as much about our rights. Teaching gender-diverse children that they are valid and that their autonomy is just as important as anyone else's empowers them to detect and report upon those who would harm them. By removing reference to our existence, the government is actively putting gender-diverse children at risk of abuse. This is a deliberate choice that has been made to put children in harm's way, and it has been done because the government does not care. You have until just before midnight friday to submit against this plan. We recommend using the Greens' submission guide and making your voice heard: - Queer Endurance in Defiance References: (2): See K J Zwi, S R Woolfenden, D M Wheeler, T A O'brien, P Tait, K W Williams: School-based education programmes for the prevention of child sexual abuse (2007); Kerryann Walsh, Karen Zwi, Susan Woolfenden, Aron Shlonsky: School-based education programmes for the prevention of child sexual abuse (2015)
Scoop
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Auckland Women's Centre Joins Tidal Wave Of Criticism Of Transphobic Curriculum Proposals
Press Release – Auckland Women's Center Auckland Women's Centre is the latest in a growing number of organisations expressing serious concerns regarding the draft Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) Framework for schools. Leonie Morris, Project Lead for the Centre's Aotearoa Free From Stalking campaign described the draft framework as 'a significant failure in supporting the diverse needs of tamariki and rangatahi in Aotearoa', due to its erasure of trans and non-binary people, and of Māori culture and because the Centre considers that the framework's treatment of consent is inadequate. Ms Morris called the government's recall of the previous guidelines as 'jeopardising the next generation by using their safety as a political football in an imported culture war'. Her comments come in the wake of strong criticism of the draft framework from health and wellbeing organisations such as the Mental Health Foundation, InsideOUT and Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa. 'RSE should reflect and affirm diverse identities, and equip students to build relationships grounded in respect, care, and equity,' says Ms. Morris. 'This draft falls profoundly short of that goal.' The draft guidelines completely omit reference to gender diversity, including the experiences of transgender and non-binary young people. 'This is a harmful act of erasure. Trans and non-binary rangatahi already face disproportionately high rates of harm. Excluding their realities not only invalidates their identities but also entrenches marginalisation within educational spaces,' said Ms Morris Concepts central to Māori understandings of identity and well-being are also entirely absent from the revised guidelines. 'The removal of all references to iwi Māori and te ao Māori, is deeply concerning and breaches the Crown's responsibilities to uphold te Tiriti o Waitangi,' said Ms Morris. 'This exclusion strips the curriculum of cultural relevance and actively undermines equity for Māori students.' Comprehensive information about topics such as body image, gender stereotypes, media influences, staying safe online, and pornography needs to be added, and should begin prior to young people's ability to access the internet, said Ms Morris. 'Gender stereotypes can fuel serious problems like bullying, sexism, harassment, domestic abuse, and gender-based violence. Inclusive, comprehensive RSE equips students with the tools to recognise and resist harmful behaviors early.' 'Stalking often stems from distorted beliefs about relationships—beliefs that are often shaped in adolescence,' said Ms. Morris. 'Effective RSE challenges myths, such as the idea that persistence equals love, and instead fosters respect, boundaries, and consent.' Gender violence is endemic in this country – the NZ Crimes & Victims Survey shows around a third of women in Aotearoa New Zealand have experienced sexual violence, and more will have experienced other forms of intimate partner violence. 'Education is our strongest tool for violence prevention,' said Ms. Morris. 'When young people are equipped with knowledge and empathy, we nurture a generation committed to respect, consent, and safety.'
Scoop
30-04-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Auckland Women's Centre Joins Tidal Wave Of Criticism Of Transphobic Curriculum Proposals
Auckland Women's Centre is the latest in a growing number of organisations expressing serious concerns regarding the draft Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) Framework for schools. Leonie Morris, Project Lead for the Centre's Aotearoa Free From Stalking campaign described the draft framework as 'a significant failure in supporting the diverse needs of tamariki and rangatahi in Aotearoa', due to its erasure of trans and non-binary people, and of Māori culture and because the Centre considers that the framework's treatment of consent is inadequate. Ms Morris called the government's recall of the previous guidelines as 'jeopardising the next generation by using their safety as a political football in an imported culture war'. Her comments come in the wake of strong criticism of the draft framework from health and wellbeing organisations such as the Mental Health Foundation, InsideOUT and Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa. 'RSE should reflect and affirm diverse identities, and equip students to build relationships grounded in respect, care, and equity,' says Ms. Morris. 'This draft falls profoundly short of that goal.' The draft guidelines completely omit reference to gender diversity, including the experiences of transgender and non-binary young people. 'This is a harmful act of erasure. Trans and non-binary rangatahi already face disproportionately high rates of harm. Excluding their realities not only invalidates their identities but also entrenches marginalisation within educational spaces,' said Ms Morris Concepts central to Māori understandings of identity and well-being are also entirely absent from the revised guidelines. 'The removal of all references to iwi Māori and te ao Māori, is deeply concerning and breaches the Crown's responsibilities to uphold te Tiriti o Waitangi,' said Ms Morris. 'This exclusion strips the curriculum of cultural relevance and actively undermines equity for Māori students.' Comprehensive information about topics such as body image, gender stereotypes, media influences, staying safe online, and pornography needs to be added, and should begin prior to young people's ability to access the internet, said Ms Morris. 'Gender stereotypes can fuel serious problems like bullying, sexism, harassment, domestic abuse, and gender-based violence. Inclusive, comprehensive RSE equips students with the tools to recognise and resist harmful behaviors early.' 'Stalking often stems from distorted beliefs about relationships—beliefs that are often shaped in adolescence,' said Ms. Morris. 'Effective RSE challenges myths, such as the idea that persistence equals love, and instead fosters respect, boundaries, and consent.' Gender violence is endemic in this country – the NZ Crimes & Victims Survey shows around a third of women in Aotearoa New Zealand have experienced sexual violence, and more will have experienced other forms of intimate partner violence. 'Education is our strongest tool for violence prevention,' said Ms. Morris. 'When young people are equipped with knowledge and empathy, we nurture a generation committed to respect, consent, and safety.' Public submissions on the draft RSE Guidelines are open until 9 May via the NZ Curriculum website: For further information, people can also visit the Auckland Women's Centre's website:
