A friend sends you a naked picture of a girl he knows. Is it a big deal to share it with others?
H&PE Curriculum Connections
Grade 7: A1.1, A1.2, A1.4, A1.5, A1.6; D1.1, D2.2, D2.4, D3.3
Grade 8: A1.1, A1.2, A1.4, A1.5, A1.6; D1.4, D2.2, D2.3, D2.4, D3.2, D3.3
Grade 9: 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5; C1.2, C2.2, C2.3, C3.2, C3.3
What Is It All About?
Consent is a key component of healthy relationships. This Draw the Line scenario explores what consent means in a real life situation and how the violation of consent can occur when intimate photos are shared without permission. In school settings, the role of bystanders is especially important in creating safe and inclusive spaces and in supporting victims. It can be hard to call out our friends, but bystanders make the difference between whether or not a photo goes viral.
Using the Draw the Line scenario, students will:
- Explore what consent means and how they are implicated in situations involving the sharing of intimate photos as bystanders;
- Consider their core values and beliefs and reflect upon how their role as a bystander could affect perpetrators and victims of gender-based violence while promoting restorative justice.
The video used for this activity has two parts.
In Part 1 of the video Julie Lalonde will present the most common responses to the Draw the Line Photo Sharing scenario including:
- No, I wouldn’t send it because it violates her consent.
- No, I wouldn’t send it because it’s child pornography.
In Part 2 of the video, Julie will summarize the key lessons from the Draw the Line Photo Sharing scenario.
What Do We Need?
- Link to the Photo Sharing scenario video and projection equipment
- Draw the Line Photo Sharing scenario and or projected copy of the card
- Guiding questions for facilitation
- If we all know this is wrong, why does it keep happening?
- What is stopping bystanders from intervening or from supporting the person in the photo?
- How can we realistically intervene if someone’s nudes come across our screen?
- IDEAL Decision Making Model: This framework for decision-making includes five steps: I, Identify the problem; D, Describe all possible solutions; E, Evaluate the pros and cons of each solution; A, Act on the best solution; L, Learn from the choices.
- Student worksheet
- Two different coloured pens or pencils per student
- Also refer to Ophea’s Gender-Based Violence Prevention Education Resource Database for additional resources.
How Do We Do It?
Minds On
Have each student read the scenario card and draft notes of the impact on each of the three people in this scenario: the friend, the girl, and the bystander, using the Photo Sharing Scenario Worksheet question 1.
Sample Responses:
- Sample words drawn around “ME” stick figure: Shocked, Excited, Surprised, Trusted, Judgemental, Superior
- Sample words drawn around “FRIEND” stick figure: Confident, Manipulative, Low Self-esteem, Powerful, Vindictive, Thoughtless, Careless, Increased Social Status
- Sample words drawn around “GIRL” stick figure: Unaware, In love, Trusting, Manipulated, Scared, Negative Impact on Well-being
Encourage students to consider what is motivating each of the three people’s actions in the scenario once “send” is pressed as well as how they might feel or respond (Photo Sharing Worksheet question 2).
Sample Responses:
- Sample words/phrases drawn around “ME” stick figure: Complicit, Powerful, Conflicted, Ashamed, Stressed, Judgement, “Don’t want to get friend in trouble.” “I wouldn’t take/send a photo like that.” “My status will change.” “Are there legal ramifications?” “She deserved it.”
- Sample words/phrases drawn around “FRIEND” stick figure: Confident (that no one will report them), Powerful, Popular, Cool, Nonchalant, “She deserves it.”
- Sample words drawn around “GIRL” stick figure: Hurt, Powerless, Decreased Reputation/Social Status, Embarrassed, Ashamed, Defiant, Lower Self-esteem, Stressed, Danger of Self-harm, Judged, Deserving of Punishment, Breach of Trust
Action
Watch the first segment of the Photo Sharing scenario video.
Students can add notes to the Photo Sharing Scenario Worksheet as needed and complete questions 2 and 3.
Sample Responses:
- Sample words drawn around “ME” stick figure: Decent, Good Person, Respectful, Non-judgemental
- Sample words drawn around “FRIEND” stick figure: Embarrassed, Loss of Social Status, Cannot be Trusted
- Sample words drawn around “GIRL” stick figure: Supported, Understood, Cared For
Lead a large group discussion about how the notes on their worksheet align with what they heard in the video, noting similarities and differences and what actions they could take.
Watch the second segment of the Photo Sharing scenario video paying attention to why it can be hard for bystanders to intervene and why it is important to act.
Student may add notes to their worksheet as needed and respond to questions 4, 5 and 6 on their own.
Consolidation
Option 1
Have students work in groups of three and take the roles of three people in the scenario – the friend, the girl, and the bystander – inspired by the How to Draw the Line section of the Draw the Line Photo Sharing scenario. The goal is to demonstrate an understanding of consent and on how a bystander can intervene in a compassionate and empathetic way.
Remind students that they should not show judgement toward the person in the photos. Challenge them to show respect for others who may have made a choice different from their own.
Option 2
Have students work in groups of three to discuss and analyze what motivates someone to share an intimate photo of someone else without their consent. Possible educator prompts:
- How can they discourage this action being taken?
- What power dynamics need to be considered?
- How does taking action as a bystander in this scenario play a role in preventing gender-based violence in our world?
Help students understand the implications of peer pressure. Discuss how calling out their friends can be really difficult and can feel awkward or “uncool”, yet it is extremely valuable in a situation like this one.
Have students revisit questions 4–6 on the Photo Sharing Scenario Worksheet to extend their responses to them, based on the Consolidation discussions.
Opportunities for Assessment
Use the Photo Sharing Scenario Worksheet to assess students’ understanding of how they and others can impact various types of bullying, such as sexual harassment and coercion, and how to apply strategies for preventing or resolving such incidents.
Use the student-generated scenarios to assess students’ understanding of consent, the skills needed to make safe and healthy decisions about sexual activity, and how to build healthy relationships.
Use the student-generated scenarios, the final small-group discussion, and the Worksheet responses to assess students’ understanding of how to make informed decisions, how to take appropriate actions, and how their choices and behaviours impact themselves, others, and the world around them.
Ideas for Extension
Have conversations about what consent looks like in a variety of relationships (e.g., sibling, partner, friend). What do these relationships look like, sound like, and feel like
Review the notions of effective means of communication such as affirming oneself and setting boundaries.
Study conflict resolution and restorative practices.
Discuss the difference between consensual and non-consensual activities (e.g., sexting is consensual, whereas sharing someone’s intimate photos without their consent, a form of online gender-based violence, is non-consensual).
Have students define the terms sexting and online gender-based violence and note the differences between the two in terms of consent and/or have them brainstorm other terms they want to learn more about.
Complete the Consent Tea Party activity in the Ideas for Action: Growth and Development resource.
Educator Notes
- Before starting classroom conversations, be aware of what some students may have experienced related to the topic, whether directly or indirectly, in the past or present. Also identify resources for support (i.e., trusted adult, educator, guidance counsellor, social worker, social services, health nurse, and/or school liaison officer) that you can share discreetly or generally with students.
- Ensure students are aware of and can access referral services and resources they may need. Consult the Working with Adult Team Members section in the Ideas for Action: Growth and Development resource for more information. See also Ophea’s Gender-Based Violence Prevention Education Resource Database for additional resources.
- Coordinate with school support staff (e.g., school guidance councillor, social worker, principal) to ensure they are aware and available to support and refer students as needed during and after the discussions.
- Allow students to capture their feelings in a variety of ways (e.g., through notes, pictures, doodles, drawings). Understand that students may have a lot of different feelings in reaction to scenarios. Help students “unpack” the feelings that come up and work through them in a healthy way.
- Consider using the Four Pillars safe space at the outset of the activity.
- Remind students about the Better and Best Tips applicable before, during, and after the activity.
- Prevent and correct victim blaming. The fact that the photo was taken is not the problem (e.g., “She shouldn’t have taken the photo in the first place!”). This implies that the victim did something “bad” and therefore deserves to be punished for it. Focus the discussion instead on the sharing of the photo without consent and the role of the bystander.
- Consider how students treat the person in the photo after it’s been shared (e.g., shaming them, ignoring them, supporting them). It’s not enough just to delete the photo or to report it to an educator or school administrator.
- Focus students’ attention more on the moral and ethical implications of the scenario and why it’s wrong to violate someone’s consent, and less on legal implications. While child pornography is a valid concern and discussion topic here, age-of-consent laws in Canada are complicated (e.g., it is technically legal for a 12-year-old to send another 12-year-old a nude photo). This argument may have the desired impact on some students, but it can shift the focus away from consent and towards “just don’t get caught.”
- If a student discloses that they are at risk of harm to themselves or others, this information cannot remain confidential. The educator must report it to the Children’s Aid Society. Educators should seek support from their administrator to fulfil their duty to report.