Length: 3 programs --15 minutes each
- 1. What Is Sexual Harassment?
- 2. Stopping Sexual Harassment
- 3. Teacher Guide
Introduction Sexual harassment is an important and sometimes uncomfortable topic for teachers and administrators. This program helps students in grades 6-9 to recognize and respond to sexual harassment. It also gives administrators and teachers tools to help students create a safer environment.
This video contains three programs: two of the modules target students, and one targets teachers. Throughout the student programs, the host, an older sister character, provides definitions, explanations and insights based on her own experiences.
The first program uses reenactments and dramatized interviews to define sexual harassment, distinguish between flirting and harassment, and identify different effects harassment can have on students. Four different scenarios are presented, covering a wide range of gender combinations: boy on girl, girl on girl, boys/girls on boy, as well as adult on student.
Using the same format as Program 1, the second program shows students how to respond to offensive behavior whether they are a target or a bystander. The program explains Title IX, the law requiring schools to prevent and address problems of sexual harassment. The TAKE ACTION section provides suggestions on how students can work to eliminate sexual harassment in their schools.
The third program is designed for teachers. Nan Stein, Ed.D, from the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women leads a discussion with educators, providing background information on the subject of sexual harassment and suggestions on how to use the video effectively in the classroom.
The two 15-minute classroom programs include breaks for discussions or activities. These programs are appropriate for coeducational Health, Guidance, Family & Consumer Science, English, Social Studies, Physical Education, and New Student Orientation classes, or Vocational shops in grades 6 through 9.
Glossary Sexual Harassment:
In school, sexual harassment may be words or actions of a sexual nature that stigmatize, demean, frighten, or threaten you because of your sex. You have the right to get an education and participate in school activities free from any unwelcome or unwanted sexual behavior.
Title IX:
A Federal law that says that no person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex:
- - Be excluded from participation in,
- - Be denied the benefits of, or
- - Be subjected to discrimination under
any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Hostile Environment:
There are two types of sexual harassment: hostile environment and quid pro quo. Hostile environment exists when sexual harassment is repeated and severe, and when it makes it difficult to get an education and participate in school work or activities. It can affect other people, not just the person targeted.
Quid pro quo:
There are two types of sexual harassment: hostile environment and quid pro quo. Quid pro quo means something for something. Quid pro quo exists when something is offered or asked for in return for something else. An example is being pressured to trade sexual favors for a higher grade or salary.
Before Viewing 1. Preparation
- When you preview the video, it is very helpful to watch the third segment first. That segment presents a discussion for teachers and administrators about the purpose of the lessons and suggestions for how and where to use this video.
- During and after class, expect to hear disclosures from students of sexual harassment incidents that they have experienced or witnessed. Be ready to refer students to the appropriate Title IX coordinator, counselor, or administrator, and consider inviting that person to the class to explain their role, your school's sexual harassment policy and the school's procedure for sexual harassment complaints.
- After class, expect to hear some students testing your reactions to comments such as "Her skirt is harassing me." Some students can be uncomfortable with the material and may need your patience and sense of humor.
- The two key words in identifying sexual harassment are "unwanted" and "uninvited".
Students' rights of access to education is protected under Title IX. Schools can be sued in Federal Court under the Title IX law for not taking action against sexual harassment.
2. Let students know that:
- Learning about sexual harassment is not about blaming males. Sexual harassment is an equal opportunity issue. Although most sexual harassment has historically been boys on girls, boys also harass boys, and girls do harass boys and other girls.
- In a 1993 survey of 1,600 public school students, four out of five student (76% of the boys and 85% of the girls) in grades 8 through 11 reported experiencing some form of sexual harassment at school. That survey was conducted by the American Association of University Women.
- More than 4,200 teenage girls responded to a survey on sexual harassment in the September 1992 issue of Seventeen . Girls from 9 to 19 reported being harassed, and 92% of them were 12 to 16 years old. Most of their harassers were fellow students, but a small percentage were also adult faculty and staff.
3. Suggestions for previewing activities
Prepare students:
- to watch and listen carefully for the definitions of sexual harassment in the video.
- to watch and listen for situations that may be similar to what they see in their school.
- ask if they know which adult(s) in their school are available to them if they need to discuss harassment or make a report of an incident.
- survey the class or give a pre-test to determine what they know about the law, school policy, and their resources.
- ask students to be video critics and be prepared to rate the video on a scale or give letter grades for how important the topic material is to their grade level, the presentation of the material, and the quality of the material.
After each topic is presented in a reenactment or interview, a graphic screen appears with a definition or discussion question. When a graphic screen appears, pause or stop the video in order to give the students time to discuss the topic.Program 1: What is Sexual Harassment? Graphic 1. Pause and freeze the graphic frame with the definition of sexual harassment on the screen in order to give all of the students time to read, discuss, or question the language.
Graphic 2. When the screen appears with "Agree or Disagree?", stop the video briefly and ask the students if they agree that, "If you're just talking to a girl, you're not sexually harassing her, you're just flirting with her." What makes the difference in a conversation?
Graphic 3. You Decide: Flirting or Sexual Harassment? You can rewind through Takes 1, 2, and 3 and ask the students what they think made the difference for the girl in each interaction.
Graphic 4. Agree or Disagree? Stop the video briefly and record comments on the blackboard or paper, or ask the students to vote their opinion on whether girls can harass and boys can be harassed.
Graphic 5. Agree or Disagree? If someone doesn't respond to a comment or behavior, does that mean it didn't bother them? Does everyone respond the same way? Are some people quiet when they're uncomfortable? If a girl giggles or laughs, does that mean it's alright with her? Do some people laugh when they're nervous? What kind of message do you need in order to know if attention is unwanted?
Graphic 6. Teacher as harasser: Ways to resolve the situation are presented in the next segment, BUT some students may be anxious to discuss this. If you are not going to use Program 2 right away, you can be prepared to discuss solutions to this situation.
Discussion questions: What would be a good way to resolve this situation? Who could explain to Mr. Burke that the girls are uncomfortable? Who could students go to in your school if they had an experience like this? (Sometimes students are not only angry or embarrassed, but also afraid the teacher will be fired and they think it will be their fault.)
Program 2: Stopping Sexual Harassment Graphic 1 Review
Graphic 2. Agree or Disagree? Stop the video briefly and record some comments or poll the students by a show of hands. Would you tell a teacher if you were being sexually harassed?
Graphic 3. What would you do? What would the students do if they had been harassed the way Rachel has been harassed by Matt? How do bystanders contribute to a hostile environment? Do you think that students are responsible for the environment in their school?
Graphic 4. Teacher as harasser: What would you do? Do you think Mr. Burke knows that the girls are uncomfortable? Discussion questions: What would be a good way to resolve this situation? Who could explain to Mr. Burke that the girls are uncomfortable? Who could students go to in your school if they had an experience like this?
Graphic 5. What would you do? When Laura spread rumors about Shantai, other students began bothering her. Is this sexual harassment? Why or why not?
Graphic 6. What would you do? What can Doug do about the rumors Kyle is spreading? Is this sexual harassment? Why or why not?
Graphic 7. Review and When a student is not satisfied with the way a school handles their complaint, they have the right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights or their state's Board of Education or their state's agency for human rights. In some cases, students have hired a lawyer to file a lawsuit in Federal Court under the Title IX. law.
Graphic 8: Take Action: Does your school have a policy for student-to-student sexual harassment? What is it? If not, ask the students to research and draft suggestions for a policy and submit them to the student council or principal.
Graphic Frame Reviews What sexual harassment looks like and feels like Examples of Sexual Harassment:
- Suggestive comments & gestures
- Sexual graffiti, notes & pictures
- Spreading sexual rumors
- Touching or grabbing of body parts
- More severe: Demands for sex and sexual assault, and rape.
Effects of Sexual Harassment:
- Feelings of fear, anger or powerlessness
- Loss of self-confidence
- Lower grades
- Withdrawal from friends
Stop Sexual Harassment
- Tell the harasser to stop
- Talk to people you trust, enlist their help
- Talk to the Title IX Coordinator for your school
- Make a list of incidents
- Keep any notes and pictures
- Keep track of where and when things happened, who was there, and how you felt
- Write a letter to the harasser
- Describe the behaviors you consider sexual harassment, how they made you feel, and that you want it to stop.
- Have an adult deliver the letter
Take Action to prevent sexual harassment
Suggested student activities:
- publicize the school policy or
- ask principal or school board to create a policy
- speak out when you see harassment
- conduct a survey in your school and publish the results
- form a student leadership group, and make presentations
Using the video with
Flirting or Hurting: A Teacher's Guide on
Student-to-Student Sexual Harassment in Schools
by Nan Stein and Lisa SjostromProgram 1, Graphic 2: Stop and use the first lesson and activity, "Flirting vs. Sexual Harassment". (page 12)
* If you show Programs 1 and 2 at different times: After viewing Program 1, assign the activity from Lesson 2, "Take a Closer Look". (page 20)
* Use the questionnaire from Lesson 3, "Says Who?" as a pre-test before the video, a post-test after the unit, or an activity at Graphic 5 in Program 1. (page 24)
* In Program 2 at Graphic 2, use Lesson 4, "What are Your Rights?" with the What Can I Do? activity. (page 38)
* In Program 2 at Graphic 5, use Lesson 5, "Case Studies and Role Plays". (page 42)
* In Program 2 at Graphic 6, use Lesson 6, "Get Up, Stand Up for Your Rights". (page 54)
For More Information
Call the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights for more information or to file a complaint at 1-800-421-3481.
Nan Stein and Lisa Sjostrom, Flirting or Hurting? A Teacher's Guide on Student-to-Student Sexual Harassment in Schools (grades 6-12).
Publications Department
Center for Research on Women
Wellesley College,
106 Central St,
Wellesley, MA 02181-8259
(617) 283-2510or
NEA Professional Library, 1994. Order from:
NEA Professional Library
P.O. Box 509
West Haven CT. 06516-9904
1-800-224-4200Nan Stein, Nancy L. Marshall, Linda R. Tropp, Secrets in Public: Sexual Harassment in Our Schools. A Report on the Results of a Seventeen Magazine Survey. A joint project of the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund and Wellesley College Center for Research on Women, 1993.
Order from
NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund
99 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10013
(212) 925-6635Hostile Hallways: The AAUW Survey on Sexual Harassment in America's Schools,American Association of University Women, 1993. $11.95
Order from
AAUW Sales Office
P.O. Box 251
Annapolis Junction, MD 20701-0251
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