Statement on Graduate Diploma in Social, Personal and Health Education/Relationships and Sexuality Education
The Graduate Diploma in Social, Personal and Health Education/Relationships and Sexuality Education (SPHE/RSE), run by Dublin City University’s Institute of Education is designed to help post-primary teachers and secondary schools in the provision of the new SPHE/RSE curriculum for junior cycle and senior cycle students. The course is funded by the Department of Education.
In recent weeks, on the back of a video that completely misrepresented the course and the materials on it, there has been a concerted disinformation campaign about the SPHE/RSE course, its content and what will be taught to children. This campaign purposefully conflates what is taught to teachers on the Graduate Diploma programme so that they have a broader knowledge of the SPHE/RSE area, and what is actually taught to secondary students in accordance with the national curriculum.
It has led to targeted attacks on the academic staff who teach the course, with unacceptable threats of violence, misogynistic and homophobic slurs, and libellous remarks being made on social media, in comment sections on articles about the course and over email.
The university is exploring all legal recourse in relation to these matters.
This course is for second level teachers. It is to help them teach the new SPHE/RSE curriculum and empower them to help children and young people through what can be an incredibly challenging time of their lives. It deals with topics such as mental health and wellbeing, consent, sexuality, respect and relationships; all in a sensitive and age-appropriate manner.
Supporting and safeguarding children, and educating them, according to the curriculum, is the number one priority for both teachers and DCU.
The University materials used on the Graduate Diploma are provided only to the teachers as adults in the context of their broader SPHE/RSE education on this DCU programme. It is made clear by DCU that no graphic or explicit material is intended for use by teachers in a secondary school classroom setting.
Any claims that say otherwise are completely false.
The university stands firmly over the content of the course, and stands fully behind the academic staff who deliver it.
More information about the course is available at dcu.ie/sphe
A number of teachers have also spoken about their positive experience of the DCU programme.
The full SPHE/RSE curricula for Junior and Senior cycles are available on curriculumonline.ie. Ireland's primary and post-primary school curricula are set by the Minister for Education who is advised by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA).