Elite schools enlist experts to teach parents on porn epidemic

A private girls school in Sydney is one of many that has taken steps to educate both parents and teachers on the epidemic of online pornography. Kids as young as 10 are accessing explicit material.

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Pornography has become a ­default sexual educator for primary school aged children, prompting elite Sydney schools to enlist experts to teach parents how to deal with the epidemic.

Ascham, in Edgecliff, is among a number of schools which have taken steps to educate both parents and teachers on the impact of online pornography, after learning Australian children aged as young as 10 are ­accessing explicit material.

Head of school at Ascham, And­rew Powell said while school seminars on cyber safety and social media usually attract 100 or so parents, more than 330 attended the porn presentation

“There was a real desire (from parents) to get some knowledge around what’s going on with the girls, and boys as well,” Mr Powell said.

“If the porn industry is having these conversations with our kids, we need to be the ones starting that conversation. These seminars give parents information and help to start conversations with our children.”

Kids as young as 10 are accessing online pornography as the epidemic grows

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Sexuality educator Maree Crabbe, the expert who has been approached by Sydney schools, said: “Porn has ­become a default sexuality educator for many young people. It is more ­accessible than many parents realise.

“It is more difficult for children to avoid pornography than to see it.

“My seminars help parents understand how prominent porn is and how easy it is for students to access as well as the kind of content they see.”

As part of her presentations, Ms Crabbe shows interviews with “performers” from the adult industry who talk about their work and the aggression often associated with it.

“I also talk about how pornography has become mainstream and that the material they are exposed to is not the centrefold that it used to be, but is often very aggressive, particularly ­towards women.”

Crabbe said while some parents are in the dark about their children accessing pornography, others are aware and need tips on how to tackle the issue with their kids.

Performers from the adult industry are also interviewed during the presentations.

Child psychologist Michael Carr-Gregg said adolescents are turning to pornography to educate themselves on sex instead of learning from longstanding sex education programs.

“The lead sex educator for kids in Sydney schools at the moment is online pornography,” Mr Carr-Gregg said.

“The average age at which kids are seeing this is 11. Porn is performance sex. It is nothing to do with intimacy or love, consent — it just reinforces dreadful stereotypes.”

Mr Carr-Gregg applauds Sydney schools for taking action.

“It is really important that parents and schools work together,” he said.

“One in every three of the new sites created every second are now pornography. It is not a matter of whether your son or daughter sees this stuff, it is when, and we need to prepare them beforehand.

“The porn industry has hijacked sex education for parents and this is a way to fight back.”