SA Education Department data reveals spike in harmful sexual behaviour among students
Reports of disturbing behaviour between children in schools have quadrupled since 2020, as experts warn it is now Australia's fastest-growing form of sexual abuse.
Disturbing sexual behaviour between children on school grounds, excursions or camps is on the rise, driven by earlier exposure to pornography and abuse at home.
There were more than 220 incidents reported at South Australian public primary and secondary schools last year, according to figures released by the Education Department.
That was up from just more than 50 reports of “harmful sexual behaviour” between children in 2020.
Examples could include preschoolers lying on top of each other to imitate sex, children exposing themselves, inappropriate touching, forcing others into certain acts and other sexually aggressive or predatory behaviour.
Experts have warned it constitutes the “fastest-growing” type of sexual abuse in the country and is being driven by easier access to pornography online, violence in family homes and children “re-enacting” abuse they have suffered.
Australian Centre for Child Protection director Professor Leah Bromfield told a recent royal commission that more children were being exposed to increasingly violent pornography.
“What they’re seeing is really explicit sexual content and some of it is really outside of what we would consider … normal healthy sexual relationships,” she said.
Last year there were 76 incidents reported at public primary schools, 97 at high schools and 47 at campuses with students enrolled from reception to year 12.
That is up from 26, 16 and 10 respectively in 2020.
In 2019 there were 80 reports. Numbers dipped during the Covid pandemic years of 2020-22 – which included periods were students were kept off campus during lockdowns – but have surged again in recent years.
Education Minster Blair Boyer said a policy released in mid-2022 had “contributed to an increase in reporting of incidents, as staff became more aware of reporting requirements and processes”.
The issue is also covered in the Keeping Safe child protection curriculum, which teaches students how to recognise and report abuse and “keep themselves safe”.
“Children need to understand what these behaviours mean and know what to do if they experience or witness them,” Mr Boyer said.
“Schools and families need to remain vigilant given the rise in misogynistic and sexualised content circulating on social media platforms, which can normalise harmful attitudes and influence young people’s behaviour.”
Opposition education spokeswoman Heidi Girolamo said the figures revealed “a disturbing trend that demands immediate attention”.
“The safety and wellbeing of students must be a top priority and that requires real investment and accountability, not just talk,” she said.
Education Department deputy chief executive Peter Kelly said reports of harmful sexual behaviour between children were “treated with the utmost seriousness”.
“The department’s policies require that our staff always respond … with clear steps for how to do so,” he said.
This could include making a mandatory notification to the Department for Child Protection (DCP) or reporting to police.
DCP has been charged with developing an “across government” framework to provide consistent advice and definitions, which the recent royal commission into family and sexual violence heard was lacking.
Professor Bromfield warned the commission there were very limited treatment options for children displaying harmful sexual behaviours, with just one full-time worker in the Women’s and Children’s Health Network and two staff in the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.
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Originally published as SA Education Department data reveals spike in harmful sexual behaviour among students
