Primary school teachers in Melbourne’s inner north are being trained to challenge misogynistic behaviour and online “toxic masculinity” as new research highlights the scale of gendered violence in schools.
The workshop, delivered by Jesuit Social Services’ The Men’s Project, brought together eight teachers to examine how boys are influenced by rigid ideas about masculinity and increasingly aggressive online content.
A recent national survey found that 78% of teachers had observed or experienced gendered violence in schools, while 70% had noticed online misogyny affecting pupils’ attitudes or behaviour over the previous year.
The training focused on the idea of a “man box”, built around expectations that men should be providers, protectors, strong and competitive. Kirsty Giles, a prevention educator with the project, said those qualities were not inherently harmful but could become damaging when boys felt unable to step outside them.
“There are young people that hold on to it so strongly, they can never ask for help,” she told the teachers.
Educators were encouraged to question their own assumptions as well as challenge sexist remarks and behaviour. One example involved replacing the familiar classroom request for a “strong boy” with a request for a strong girl, to expose unconscious expectations about gender.
Programme manager Drew Hanger said qualities such as resilience and strength should not be treated as exclusively masculine. But he warned that traditional ideas were being reinforced by online influencers and algorithms promoting a “manosphere” centred on toughness, hypersexuality and dominance.
“They’re now being amplified in a really big way through online sources and algorithms we can’t keep up with,” he said.
Teachers describe pressure on boys
During the session, teachers described pupils feeling pressure to win, appear older than they were and conform to divisions between boys and girls.
One male teacher said some pupils’ behaviour appeared to depend on whether they had won or lost a sporting event at the weekend. He also said children as young as those in their first year of school were asking to be grouped as “boys versus girls”.
A female teacher said boys in her class were often comfortable shouting over others to discuss sport, while girls responded by becoming quieter. The workshop leaders urged staff to consider the impact such behaviour could have on female pupils.
The Men’s Project began in prison settings before expanding into prevention, early intervention and responses aimed at promoting healthy masculinity and reducing gender-based violence.
It will work with 30 schools during the current semester through its modelling respect and equality programme. Two teachers from each school take part in two days of intensive training, followed by visits from project educators.
Physical education teacher Josh said the training had given him practical ways to explain the harm caused by inappropriate language, rather than simply reprimanding pupils.
He has begun recording incidents among Year Six pupils, including sexist and homophobic name-calling. “When you call it out, sometimes the kids don’t always know what the meaning is behind what they’re saying or how much gravity it might hold,” he said.
He hopes the conversations will prepare boys for secondary school and help them become positive role models in their communities.
The programme can also be delivered to parents, although Mr Hanger said parent evenings were often poorly attended. The project has instead sought opportunities to speak to adults in their workplaces, including construction sites where many workers are fathers.
The Men’s Project is midway through four years of Victorian state funding and hopes the support will continue after the state election in November. Mr Hanger also delivers one-off training in New South Wales and hopes the work will expand there.
He rejected Nationals leader Matt Canavan’s claim that the “feminisation” of the curriculum was contributing to the rise of the manosphere, describing it as political scapegoating.
“Female teachers are not pushing an agenda,” Mr Hanger said. “Literally, it’s for them to have healthy and respectful relationships.”
