Fairytales for kids under fire in Respectful Relationships guide

UPDATE: CLASSIC fairytales could be audited to determine whether they promote gender stereotypes, under a Victorian government plan. But the Premier denies there is a move to ban the books.

• Kinder program to stop sexism in four-year-olds comes under fire
• Victorian children to be taught boys conditioned to dominate women

FAIRYTALES could be at risk in public schools from moves to degrade the much-loved stories for gender bias.

Preschool books and toys could also be audited to determine whether they promote gender stereotypes, under a Victorian government plan to address family violence.

A teaching aid in the Respectful Relationship program wants pupils to analyse men and women in classics like Cinderella, Snow White and Rapunzel and compare them to modern stories challenging gender norms.

It argues that the traditional fairytales often serve to reinforce gender norms and to cause “a sense of entitlement in boys and lower self-esteem in girls”.

Children will be encouraged to act as “fairytale detectives”, to “describe and compare the roles commonly given to male and female characters” and to “identify gendered messages fairytales give readers”.

They would then be encouraged to consider what would happen if the characters in fairytales swapped roles — for example, if the girl were armed with the sword while the boy waited for her to rescue him.

The program suggests children would notice that in fairytales “men are supposed to be strong and brave and women are supposed to be beautiful and need rescuing by men”.

The program says: “If a man or woman does not fit this description, they are usually made out to be the ‘baddies’ or the villain — like a witch or an evil prince.”

Teachers are encouraged to explain that sex refers to different bodies people are born with, and gender “helps us to talk about the ideas we have about the pressure on men and women and girls and boys to behave in certain ways.”

The aid said: “Analyses of popular books have found that central characters are more likely to be male, female characters are more often in nurturing roles, and occupations are gender-stereotyped”.

It also includes a “Mind the Baby Relay” that sees grade 1 and 2 children in pairs — either as two boys, two girls or one of each, to represent modern families — carrying dolls across a room.

A Melbourne teacher said the pupils were too young to understand the message.

“I would rather be teaching them how to read, write and count. We really don’t need to crowd out the curriculum with this social engineering.”

The controversial Respectful Relationships program, which claims children as young as four can exhibit sexist behaviour, was recommended by the family violence royal commission.

But critics say that it introduces children to gender theory and notions of gender-based violence too early.

Australian Catholic University senior research fellow Dr Kevin Donnelly said the program would unsettle parents.

“It’s a concerted campaign across kindergarten to year 12 to indoctrinate children with a gender and sexuality program that is biased and ideological. My concern as an educator is, there is no real balance in the program. It is pushing a cultural Left argument,” he said.

Premier Daniel Andrews denied there was a move to ban fairytales in Victorian classrooms.

“We are very much in favour of kids reading stories and then sitting down and talking about them,” Mr Andrews said.

“It is called learning.

“Learning is about reading books and talking about them, it is a proper thing to do, it is not new.”

But he said poor attitudes to women were formed in early years and needed to be challenged at a young age.

“I think there are lots of attitudes formed in many different ways over a long period of time,” Mr Andrews said.

“Those attitudes are, in aggregate, are leading to some really bad outcomes for women.

“We have to challenge that and do everything we possibly can. But the notion the government is banning fairytales is just a fairytale itself.”

Opposition Leader Matthew Guy likened Mr Andrews to Pinocchio in hosing down Labor scandals, but “it doesn’t mean he should ban fairytales”.

A training kit, included in a tender to teach Respectful Relationships to 4000 early childhood educators, encourages them to consider bias in statements like “good morning, princess”, “boys don’t cry” and “girls can’t play with trucks”.

As part of training, educators would develop a plan which the kit says could include an audit of whether their books and toys challenge or support gender stereotypes.

Families and Children Minister Jenny Mikakos said the program gave teachers the “tools to treat children equally, regardless of gender, background or circumstance”.

“Fairytales like Cinderella can always be read in class.”

But Opposition education spokesman Nick Wakeling said politics shouldn’t be at play in classrooms.

Wantirna South mother of six Frith Mohring said the fairytales she reads her children are not sexist.

“My girls have always been interested in dolls and having tea parties,” she said.

“They climb trees, too, but they love their dolls. The boys have always just been more interested in trains.”

The Mohring family at home: Hannah, 9, Ruth, 3, and Thomas, 5. Picture: Ian Currie

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VICTORIAN PEDESTRIAN CROSSING MALE, FEMALE SIGNAL PUSH