Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 12 June 2018

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Education and Skills

Review of Relationships and Sexuality Education: Discussion (Resumed)

4:00 pm

Ms Orla McGowan:

No. It asks a general question and is open-ended, rather than structured. As it is open-ended, young people can talk about whatever they think needs to be included.

I will come back to Deputy Funchion's questions about what is being delivered. The teaching relationships, understanding sexuality teaching, TRUST, resource at senior cycle is being delivered. Approximately 70% of schools are using this approach, which was developed in 2009 and requires an update. This is the resource the Professional Development Service for Teachers, PDST, currently uses in its training in RSE. At junior cycle, it is B4UDecide, which is supported by a website, b4udecide.ie, and approximately 66% of schools report that they use B4UDecide. We have not yet developed materials at primary level. We have the "Busy Bodies" booklet which is for fifth and sixth class, with a DVD to accompany it, and we have recently published guidance for parents on talking to their young child about relationships, sexuality and growing up, with a little booklet for younger children called "Tom's Power Flower" that goes into the very basics of the human body and how babies are made.

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