My husband this week taught a bunch of year 7s about puberty as part of a new subject called Communications that he has ended up being roped into. He has never done so before and it is not his subject specialism. When he offered to get involved in the subject it was originally just teaching one aspect of it (English and Drama) but he's now doing pretty much the whole thing and not enjoying it. He felt very uneasy about the puberty lesson and in fact when our DS was home from school ill on Friday he jumped at the chance to saty home and care for him as it meant getting out of the puberty lesson. He couldn't avoid Monday's lesson though.
I said he should have refused to do it. What do you think? Would you feel qualified enough to teach it? He said a bunch of his younger female colleagues told him they keep putting it off as they don't want to teach it either.
He said he had questions on bits of paper from pupils asking about vaginal discharge, periods starting, breast development etc and felt totally out of his depth although answered as best he could. He also had some questions about test tube babies which he said he felt more able to discuss (as we had IVF).
I know young people need to learn these things and they shouldn't cause us embarrassment to talk about, but DH (a nearly fifty year old Drama teacher) was well out if his comfort zone, talking about intimate personal things with 11 and 12 year olds.
I think it's unfair to expect teachers that are not trained to teach this subject to deliver this, You wouldn't expect it in any other subject would you?
Please or to access all these features
Please
or
to access all these features
Whether you're a permanent teacher, supply teacher or student teacher, you'll find others in the same situation on our Staffroom forum.
The staffroom
Teaching 'puberty'
3 replies
Thewhingingdefective · 05/02/2013 11:53
OP posts:
Please create an account
To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.