Sexual Harassment In Schools Essay

Sexual harassment is often confused with sexual assault. Needless to say, both are sexual behaviours, harassment does not involve physical contact between the offender and the victim, while assault does. Sexual harassment is very common in educational institutions, especially in schools. It is defined as “any unwanted or unwelcome sexual behaviour, which makes a person feel offended, humiliated or intimidated” (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2014). However, in educational institutions, this definition is amended to include the phrase “that interferes with the right to receive an equal educational opportunity”. It is important to safeguard the lives of these children, since sexual harassment can have serious life changing implications. “The issue of sexual harassment has become a big thing and is being taken seriously by the management in schools and workplaces.” (Daily Nation Online,

This is when teachers promise a student a good grade in return for something sexual. It could, however, also go the other way around. A student may be exceptionally bright, but a teacher may threaten to lower the grade if sexual favours from the student are not returned. Take, for instance, a scenario: Jane is a bright girl. Her teacher, Mr Mathews, asks her to stay back after school to discuss class work. After a while, Mr Mathews asks her to meet him in his private office. At all these after school meetings, Mr Mathews only brings up classwork a couple of times but spends most of their time talking about how pretty and talented she is, while maybe holding her by her arm or brushing against her thigh. This is inappropriate behaviour and may be considered illegal if the child is below 18 years of age. Jane may feel very uncomfortable with her teacher’s behaviour and may not even muster the courage to speak to somebody about