Is the adoption of an all female staff really a constructive method towards preventing sexual harassment of female students?
A number of schools and institutions around us are either all-girls, all-boys or co-educational, meaning for girls and boys both. The proposition here asks whether the adoption of an all-female staff can really act as a constructive method towards preventing sexual harassment of female students. Well, I do not believe this can really act as an effective method or initiative. It’s not that, other places where men are free to roam, will not experience sexual harassment or molestation with girls. Also, it is very uncommon and is not heard very often but is very likely that female staff can sexually harass female students too. In mostly missionary schools where nuns and sisters are commonly heard of, certain extremely shocking and sad incidents have taken place. It was heard of, how nuns who are supposedly free from any sexual contact with anyone around them, made female students do things which are absolutely unethical and wrong. Such sexual acts that nuns made their students do, haunt those women till date. At times, one does not understand how things happen, but they keep on taking you in the wrong direction and there’s nothing that you can do about it.
Multiple investigations have taken place on the same, in which the students who were victims of this sexual abuse forced by nuns, refused to give statements against the nuns. They were taught that it was something pure and full of righteousness and honesty. This is the saddest part. Another thing is that, adoption of an all-female staff will make girls get so used to staying around women, that once they graduate from school and come out in the world, they will feel absolutely uncomfortable and awkward while having men around. They will not be able to handle doing tasks with male colleagues in workspaces or also take lessons with male students in colleges and universities. The real struggles of life begin after school-life ends. Hence, we must prepare girls in their school years to take over the world when it comes to them, rather than taking a step back and pushing them into the darkness of comfort amongst only female members of the school staff.
A woman myself,
Shubhangini Shaktawat