Sex, ethics and consent: Engaging with young people on their terms

Sex, ethics, consent and young people is ubiquitous in current public debates in Australia, often led by young women breaking silence around their experiences of sexual harassment and violence. Conversations about sexuality and consent are not new in education. In 2008, the late Professor Moira Carmody’s book Sex and Ethics: Young people and ethical sex positioned violence prevention in relation to wider questions of sexual ethics and sexuality education for young people. Professor Carmody commented, “Current approaches to preparing young people for sexually active lives is limited in reaching them on their terms”—an observation that is still relevant today. This workshop uses Professor Carmody’s work as a provocation to delve into histories of educational initiatives in the field of sex, ethics and consent, as well as to discuss current initiatives within and outside education contexts. This panel brings together people who have diverse engagements with these fields - in terms of disciplinary expertise, practice, and cultural context. This is critical in understanding consent, because experiences of sex and consent are specific - they are differently embodied, differently legislated, different in terms of frequency and intensity - and speakability. We also know that this work is incredibly complex when it involves young people and school contexts. Perhaps this is precisely why people within education have refrained from leading in this space, at least in public debates, despite the legacies of people such as Professor Carmody. This workshop includes Melissa Kang (the iconic Dolly Doctor and co-author of Welcome to Consent); Vic Rawlings who is researching gender and sexuality in school communities; Mary Lou Rasmussen, editor of Sex Education; Cristyn Davies who has expertise across sexual health and sexuality education with children and young people, and Kerry Robinson who has an expertise in gender, childhood and sexuality education.  The workshop format begins with a brief overview of Professor Carmody’s contribution to the field. Each researcher will reflect on sex, education and consent in Australia (5 -10 mins per presenter) in conversation with Professor Carmody’s provocations about engaging with young people on their terms. We will then open up to a larger conversation with participants regarding contemporary research, practices, and implementation of policy in this space. Engaging with key stakeholders, our aim is to develop a co-authored strategy on the education of teachers on sex, ethics and consent.