Why teaching children about porn and sexting is a step in the right direction
6th March 2017
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Juliane Kloess, University of Birmingham
Given that the large majority of UK adults think children should be taught about pornography and sexting in the classroom, the news that sex and relationship education is to be made compulsory in English secondary schools will be welcomed by many parents. 
Inappropriate chats
Of course, the sexual molestation and abuse of children existed long before the emergence of the internet. But there are features that are unique to the online environment – such as anonymity, accessibility and affordability – which means that sexually inappropriate communication with children can take place more easily. Offenders often access internet communication platforms that are popular with young people – such as chat rooms, gaming and social networking sites. Young people are then approached on these platforms, and can end up having regular conversations with potential abusers.
Putting the abuse in context
While this type of offending behaviour constitutes a very small proportion in comparison to sexual offences overall, there has been an increase in the number of reports of negative experiences by young people online. And in a recent UK study of 354 school children, 33% of the 13- to 14-year-olds said they had been approached sexually online.- Article continues below...
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Impact of abuse
It can take years for victims to come to terms with the abuse before they feel able to access professional help. This involves a long-term process that hopefully helps them overcome – or at least learn to live with – what has happened to them. This process can be very difficult for victims of online sexual abuse and it can sometimes be the unexpected and “decontextualised” nature of certain behaviours – such as offenders’ exposure via web camera – that can be particularly harmful and distressing to young people. Quite often, because the computer’s location is in their own home, many victims can also feel like their safe space has been violated. On top of this, offenders commonly distribute sexual images that may have been taken and exchanged as part of the online interaction with a victim, which then become permanently available on the internet. It is clear then that the relationship young people have with the internet can be incredibly complex. And that monitoring or policing their online presence can only go so far in protecting them. Instead, the focus now should also be on developing young people’s awareness of the risks involved. It should also equip them with general life skills that help build internal resilience, which will enable them to better manage threats encountered online in the future. Juliane Kloess, Research in Psychology, University of Birmingham This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
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