Photo Shutterstock The recent recommendations made by government commissioner Mariette Hamer to include relationship and sex-ed in the first-year curriculum will not be added to the existing initiatives in Wageningen.
‘WUR has already taken many initiatives in this domain, with mandatory online modules for first-year students on social safety, among various other initiatives’, says head of Student Services Ingrid Hijman. She feels that the crux lies in facilitating discussions on the topic and providing students with tools. WUR has already taken action in this respect (see box below). ‘Whether a mandatory lecture is a solution to the issue is not certain’, says Hijman.
However, that doesn’t mean Hamer’s suggestion is off the table entirely. The Control Group for Social Safety is studying and discussing the report, Hijman clarifies. ‘The question is always where the educational institute’s care duties begin and end.’
Fair play-workshop
Let’s Talk About Yes Wageningen has petitioned for mandatory sex- and consent-ed for first-year students, for example, in the shape of a workshop by the Gelijkspel (which loosely translates as fair play) foundation. LTAY feels this answer is insufficient. ‘WUR says including such a class is difficult as it requires changing the mandatory curriculum, and that responsibility rests with the Board of Education. Our position is: difficult is not impossible’, says LTAY representative Judith Rommens.
Those who want have opportunities to follow the Gelijkspel-workshop in Wageningen. WUR facilitates sessions to help student associations prevent transgressive behaviour. There are also occasional open sessions, which resulted in a full house last year during an evening organised by Studium Generale in Impulse.
The workshop touches on topics such as appropriate ways and moments to check consent without the risk of misunderstandings. Or how to indicate you don’t want sex, even if you have gone home with someone. That such situations can lead to serious problems became painfully clear recently during the rape case against Utrecht student Van Z.
Existing WUR initiatives
Online modules (social) safety, mandatory for all first-year students;
Focus on social safety during the AID, via the escape room, for example;
SafeTea challenges to bring social safety out into the open;
Establishing a social safety contact point for students;
Confidential counsellors for students;
Confidential counsellors within student organisations;
A course in social safety for student organisation boards;
Support for student associations with training such as Gelijkspel;
Behind the scenes, there are protocols and agreements within education, discussions with study advisors, and a specially installed WUR Control Group for Social Safety.
