Teaching Guide:
Eliminate Sexual Harassment

Participants will:

understand what sexual harassment is and be able to recognize it; understand how sexual harassment affects its victims; know what they can do if they are the victim of sexual harassment; and recognize the role they can play in eliminating sexual harassment.

MATERIALS

• copy of "Eliminate Sexual Harassment" for each participant
• container for written, participant questions
• flip chart and markers, chalk board and chalk or overhead projector
• VCR and "Is It Love; Is It Gross; or Is It Sexual Harassment" video (optional)

PRESENTATION GUIDE

This lesson is straightforward. For most presentations, you can simply go over the material found in the factsheet. This guide simply provides comments on how you might present the material, suggestions for eliciting participant discussion and descriptions of supplementary material and activities you may want to use. Don't feel like you have to follow or use everything in it. You know your audience better than anyone else, you know how much time you have to make your presentation and you have your own unique ways of presenting material you're most comfortable with.

INTRODUCTION

Most teens have either experienced or seen sexual harassment. Therefore, this lesson should elicit a lot of participant discussion.

Begin your presentation by going over the definition of sexual harassment found in the first paragraph of the factsheet and ask participants if they have ever experienced or seen examples of it. Ask how they think it affected the victims. Invite comments and discussion.

Presentation Option 1

Consider centering the rest of your presentation around the video "Is It Love; Is It Gross; or Is It Sexual Harassment." If you choose to use it, encourage participants to think about what constitutes sexual harassment as they watch it. Also ask them to look for ways to prevent harassment.

Show the video. After giving participants an opportunity to express their overall reactions to it, tell the group they're now going to get their chance to answer the question, "Is it love, gross or harassment?" Read each of the following situations and ask if they think it's harassment or not. You can either ask for a "show of hands" or ask those who think it is and is not harassment to move to different sides of the room. In either case, be sure to give participants an opportunity to discuss why they answered the way they did.

• Mr. or Ms. X is always brushing up against you in the school hallway and making sure that he or she touches a very personal part of your body.

• A male student has decided to take a class that has always been primarily for girls. Everyone is making fun of him and suggesting that he is gay.

• There is an extremely good-looking young man in your class. He does not seem to be interested in girls at all. Even though he gets lots of calls from girls and opportunities to date, he doesn't. Word at school is that he is gay.

• Mr. or Ms. X comes on to you for sexual favors.

• There is a group of students that always block the hallway when a male or female comes along. They make remarks such as "let me do you baby," "have I got what you need" or "show me some breast/butt."

• Someone in the class has found a polaroid picture of another student taken at a slumber party. The person in the picture is only wearing "night clothes." The person with the picture is carrying it around and showing it to other students.

• A teacher tells you that you look very pretty or handsome. They do this on a regular basis.

End the discussion of these situations by stressing the need to prevent sexual harassment before it occurs or gets out of hand. You can do this by reviewing the STOP approach described in the video.

Spot the behavior -- If the behavior is interfering with school or work and making you feel uncomfortable, it is harassment.

Tell someone -- Tell the person that is causing the problem to stop. Let him or her know exactly how you feel. If this does not get results, go to your parents, school officials or a loved one you can trust.

Obtain support -- Work with peer groups, your school's student council or teachers in obtaining support for stopping the problem.

Policy -- If your school does not already have one, work to get a written policy on sexual harassment. It should contain some system for taking action against those who are creating the problem.

Presentation Option 2

If you decide not to use the video, you can simply go over the material found in the factsheet.

Go over what type of behavior constitutes sexual harassment. Give specific examples. (If an overhead projector is available, use "Sexual Harassment Includes:" to make a transparency.)

If you want to draw participants into a discussion at this point, use the situations described above under "Option 1" and ask participants if they think each one constitutes harassment or not.

Continue your presentation by citing the factsheet statistics on the prevalence of harassment and discussing the effects harassment has on its victims.

IF YOU ARE A VICTIM

Let participants know the things they can do if they are sexually harassed. (Use "If You Are Sexually Harassed" to make a transparency.)

IF YOU ARE A PERPETRATOR

Be sure to emphasize this section of the factsheet. It's important for perpetrators to hear that their "intentions" do not determine whether or not their behavior constitutes harassment. It's the "effect" of their behavior on others. They also need to be encouraged to change their behavior.

EVERYONE HAS A ROLE

End your presentation by pointing out that everyone can play a role in eliminating sexual harassment. Even those who are not victims or perpetrators have a role to play. They can speak up when harassment occurs.

AUTHOR: Gary L. Hansen, Ph.D., Extension Specialist in Sociology, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Kentucky; and William W. Mallory, Fayette County Extension Agent for 4-H/Youth Development, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Kentucky.