Lucy Clewley, Deputy Head Pastoral, at St Dunstan’s College in south London has praised Netflix’s Adolescence and said she hopes it sparks a renewed approach for collaboration across sectors to work with and help protect young people.
Speaking about why the show has become such a talking point, Clewley explained: ‘It has been a wake-up call for everyone to see the impact online extremism can have on lives, in so many senses. There have been so many articles on it and so much research into it, but seeing it play out on our screen in such an emotive way, is really challenging to watch.
‘The way that you see the many sides to Jamie and the sense you have about where these views have come from, as well as the lack of understanding of the online world from all of the adult characters in the show, is very poignant and weighs heavily on parents and people who work with young people and want to protect them.’
Following the release of the show, and this week’s Richard Dimbleby lecture by Gareth Southgate, Clewley explained she hopes the attention around the show could bring about change.
‘It's been very reassuring to hear it being discussed in parliament and to have such influential figures like Gareth Southgate involved in the discussion. We've seen that figures like that are capable of changing the dialogue around big topics, so to have them pushing this forward is reassuring.
‘I think it's an incredibly complex situation to address, so we need the government to support but there is also so much we can do as schools, so I hope that this sparks the impetus for collaboration in this area, across industry experts, media figures, education, government, and more.’
In recent years, St Dunstan’s College has made headlines around the world for its forward-thinking approach to education, and its groundbreaking Stuart Curriculum, which includes lessons on toxic masculinity, consent, fake new and social media platforms. Current Head of Senior School, Jade McLellan, was one of the teachers who taught lessons about the impact of the manosphere to GCSE students, using media articles about Tate to stimulate discussion. Speaking about this period, McLellan reflected: ‘It was some years ago now that we worked with the BBC to showcase the work we were doing with our students to address incel culture online and yet it seems as a wider society, we have made minimal progress. In Adolescence, the police officer has to have the red pill reference explained to him. Whether this is meant to point to ignorance amongst authorities or to act as a moment of exposition for viewers, it is shocking to think that there may still be educators or our safeguarding partners who are ignorant of the effects of the manosphere on young, developing minds.’
Speaking about the roles schools and education providers have to play in the issues explored by those in Adolescence, Clewley added: ‘Regular, high quality staff training is essential. You can see in Adolescence how incredibly challenging it is for adults to keep up with communication styles and the meanings of different things, but you can equip staff with the tools they need to identify things of concern.
‘One of the most powerful CPL sessions we have ever had was delivered by a group of sixth form girls, speaking about some of the key gender microaggressions to look out for and how to address them. It has been a longstanding view in teaching that 'tactical ignoring' when managing low level behaviour is accepted or even encouraged and this CPL made it so clear the impact that can have on young people and why it is not the way to address such important issues. They also explained some of the things that adults might not understand that are actually routed in misogyny, so every left with a guide of current things to proactively look for, which can then be updated regularly.
‘In the current climate, it's essential to build this into PSHEE programmes and form time discussions, in an innovative way. You need to give the space to exploring ideas and challenging them openly, in a calm and reasoned way. You need to ensure you are building in digital literacy, which includes a healthy approach to phone use and social media, so young people understand what the algorithms do and how they do it, rather than just being told that it's dangerous, so stay away from it.
‘Utilising older students to speak to younger groups about masculinity and social media figures is a highly effective tool. Hearing those conversations can be very powerful for them and they can be easier to identify as role models than their teacher, as well as further empowering young men to support each other.’
When asked about the role of social media platforms in the rise of online extremism, Clewley added: ‘Social media giants have a responsibility to ensure that young people are not given easy access to (and even encouraged to access) material that is not accurate and/or fuels these kinds of beliefs. We all have a responsibility to continue to push for them to do more on this and help to protect young people.’
‘I would welcome the opportunity for schools to work closer with social media platforms. I think hearing first hand the impact the current settings and algorithms have is crucial but, beyond that, I think we can have really valuable insights into how young people can interact with social media in positive, controlled ways.
-ENDS-
Notes to Editors
Adolescence has been a global hit since it’s debut on Netflix last month and has topped the viewing charts in more than 70 countries around the world.
In 2022, St Dunstan’s College won Senior School of the Year at the Tes Schools Awards, which is known as the Oscars of education. Last year, the school was also named Most Progressive School in south-east England at the Private Education Awards.
For further information contact: jsquibb@stdunstans.org.uk
