Planning and programming support

When planning and programming for effective child protection and respectful relationships education programs it is important to:

• review the content for potentially sensitive or controversial material to ensure it is appropriate to the development, experiences and cultural values of their students
• allow for progressive learning that is reinforced over the school years
• for primary students, it is particularly important to plan the delivery of this sensitive content at a time in the school year when respect and trust has been developed between students and with the teacher.
• integrate content within the related content areas of PDHPE rather than teach in isolation
• select activities, teaching and learning strategies and resources that best meet the needs of your students and match your school’s PDHPE program.

Selecting teaching and learning activities and resources

Below are some considerations when selecting resources and teaching and learning materials.

• Preview and evaluate all strategies, resources and teaching and learning approaches in full before use with students to determine suitability for student learning needs, stage of development and local school context.
• Consider the age, maturity, cultural background, sexuality, gender, sex, health and other characteristics of students in your care.
• Seek endorsement by the school principal before use of materials in NSW Government schools.
• Select the activities most suitable for your students.
• Enable students to withdraw if they find issues personally confronting.
• Recognise that some students may find it difficult to contribute to class discussions and may say little in group activities. Don’t assume they are not engaged in the activities but rather provide all students with the opportunity to contribute in less public ways.

External providers

Advice when engaging external providers:

• Principals and teachers have primary responsibility for education programs in schools.
• As a teacher, you have expertise in teaching and learning, knowledge of your students’ needs and abilities and the ways they learn. You are skilled in developing teaching and learning programs that address the needs of students within a curriculum context.
• Use of visiting speakers and external providers should be embedded within existing programs where learning activities and opportunities for debriefing are provided before and after the event.
• Consider the expertise and approaches of external providers or individuals prior to the event.
• One-off speakers or sessions, isolated from the context of a planned approach to education, will have minimal effect in enhancing students’ knowledge and skills.
• Use the Guidelines for engaging external providers for curriculum implementation (DOCX 326 KB) when determining whether to use external providers to support curriculum implementation both within and beyond the school.
• Enable students to withdraw if they find issues personally confronting to protect them from making harmful disclosures. Equally, it is important to be prepared for issues that arise as a result of a student making a public disclosure in the classroom.

Communication with the school community

Some aspects of PDHPE may be viewed as sensitive or controversial, such as learning about abuse, child protection, drugs, respectful relationships, sexual health, sexuality and violence.

Access PDHPE communication with parents and carers to find out more about communication with the school community, including sample letters and policy guidance.