The rise of online misogyny and its impact on young people, particularly boys, has become a growing concern in the UK. Margaret Mulholland looks at what schools can do to address the issue, including seven practical steps we can take
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Last term, the government introduced new guidelines that included a recommendation to ban mobile phones.

Without any consultation with schools, education secretary Gillian Keegan announced this “crackdown” on mobile phones to “minimise disruption and improve behaviour” – seemingly unaware that nearly all schools ban or strictly control their use already.

Nobody is questioning the need for controls on mobile phones. According to Ofcom (2023), 97% of children have their own phones by the age of 12. Misuse of these devices – which generally happens outside school time – can lead to bullying online and often spills over into school.

The real issue is that this is just one of the factors beyond the school gate that affects behaviour. There is a far deeper problem growing in our society around misogynistic behaviour among some boys.

 

Generational attitudes

Research by King’s College London (Duffy et al, 2024) has shown that there is a shift in generational attitudes on gender. Young men are notably less positive than young women about the impact of feminism.

Among those aged 16 to 29, 46% of women think feminism has done more good to society than harm, 10 percentage points higher than the share of young men who feel this way (36%). And within this age group, 16% of men say feminism has done more harm than good, compared with 9% of women.

Another study, this time from UCL, shows that harmful content, presented as entertainment through the algorithmic processes of social media platforms (such as TikTok) can amplify negative materials to young people and vulnerable groups. As a result, ideologies, such as sexism and misogyny, are normalised among young people and seep into their everyday interactions (Regehr et al, 2024).

These trends are showing up in schools, and we need a more comprehensive approach to deal with it. As one headteacher put it: “Schools can and do implement their policies on phones in school and no doubt there is value in us sharing best practice, rather than a ‘ban’. On the other hand, all schools pick up masses of work dealing with the damage inflicted by mobile phones outside of school premises and hours – this feels like the mayor in Jaws asking citizens to be happy that he is tackling the jellyfish problem.”

 

Online Safety Act

There has been some progress. The recent Online Safety Act (see SecEd’s recent article here) aims to tackle the negative types of content frequently found online but doesn’t sufficiently address the impact of algorithms on social media, as identified in the UCL research cited above.

Last year, in an article in the New Statesman, former education secretary Nicky Morgan described the Act as “sorely lacking in relation to violence against women and girls” (Morgan, 2023)

Surprisingly, women and girls are not mentioned at all in the Act. She argues that abuse, misogyny, and gendered harassment remains rife online, with “devastating consequences for women and girls and indeed for wider society, through the unleashing of harmful misogynistic ideas, shaping public attitudes and social norms.”

What have Labour said they would do? Bridget Phillipson, shadow education secretary, has pledged to “smash” online misogyny and sexual harassment “imported into school” with new digital literacy and safeguarding measures.

Should they be elected, Labour is committing to a series of programmes including regional improvement teams, school mentor training, and embedding digital literacy in the curriculum to ensure young people are given the critical tools to deal with online hate and misogyny.

Alongside access to mental health counsellors in every school, these would indeed be positive measures.

 

The real experts

What can schools do now? We see so many schools working hard to educate young people about the risks of social media and online harms but few claim to have expertise and they worry about how quickly the experiences of young people are shifting. The real experts are young people themselves.

Mentoring is being viewed positively. Wales High School in Rotherham, for example, trains staff and pupils as wellbeing champions.

In Scotland, meanwhile, the Mentors in Violence Prevention programme, first piloted back in 2012 in two council areas, has now been adopted by all Scottish local authorities.

The programme supports young people to influence positively the attitudes and behaviour of their peers to tackle the issue of gender-based violence. It explicitly addresses behaviours including physical violence, name-calling, sexting, coercive and controlling behaviour and harassment.

Individuals are not looked on as potential victims or perpetrators but as “empowered onlookers” with the ability to support and challenge their peers while keeping themselves safe.

 

Challenging victim-blaming

The peer-mentoring programme gives young people the chance to explore and challenge the attitudes, beliefs and cultural norms that underpin all forms of gender-based violence in society. It models leadership skills employing “active bystander” theory. Young people explore the scope of violence and are motivated in challenging victim-blaming.

The most important challenge is to recognise that young people now exist in hybrid realities that are woven between their offline and online worlds.

Schools face unprecedented challenges in understanding this area and equipping young people to deal with these issues and content when they come across them. Information regarding critical digital literacy – or a healthy digital diet approach – is needed to provide young people with key skills to recognise radicalisation and think critically about toxic online material.

Indeed, most adults are often unaware of how harmful algorithmic processes function, or indeed their own social media addictions, making parenting around these issues difficult.

 

Practical steps for schools

So, what practical steps to change can schools take? Here are seven strategies encompassing a more nuanced and strategic approach to understanding misogyny.

  1. Whole-school approach: Adopt a comprehensive strategy that involves all stakeholders, including staff, students, and parents, to create a safe and respectful learning environment for all.
  2. Staff training: Provide professional development opportunities for teachers and staff to recognise different types of sexism and misogyny, including those directed towards staff, and respond consistently to enforce school policies and procedures.
  3. Curriculum integration: Integrate gender equality across the curriculum and encourage critical thinking to help students identify and challenge misogynistic content they may encounter online.
  4. Positive role-models: Work with boys to promote positive, healthy masculinity and challenge toxic stereotypes perpetuated by misogynistic influencers.
  5. Parental engagement: Collaborate with parents and the community to promote respectful behaviour and raise awareness about the impact of online misogyny on young people.
  6. Online safety education: Teach students digital literacy skills to navigate online spaces safely, critically evaluate content, and report inappropriate behaviour.
  7. Support systems: Establish clear reporting mechanisms and support services for students and staff who have experienced misogynistic behaviour, both online and offline.

Using these seven strategies, schools can better equip themselves to tackle the growing problem of online misogyny and its influence on students. A proactive, whole-school approach that involves education, prevention, and support is essential to create a safe and inclusive learning environment for all.

This is easier to say than do. It is clear that many schools are already developing these ideas, but it is currently a patchwork quilt of provision and schools need resourcing to do this comprehensively and consistently. If a new Labour government comes along it needs to be held to this promise.

 

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