Angry Dad Removes Daughter, 9, from School over Material Used for Sex Education Class: ‘Disgusting Video'

After weeks of being denied access, one father was finally granted the opportunity to see the teaching materials intended for one of his nine-year-old daughter's classes. Upon reviewing the content, he was appalled and immediately requested for his child's removal from the school.

Parental love and the desire for children's strong future development drive many parents to place significant importance on instilling values and principles early on. With the collaboration of schools, parents entrust educators with the responsibility of imparting both academic knowledge and moral ethics to their kids.

However, when one father discovered that his daughter's school was allegedly introducing inappropriate topics beyond her age without his knowledge, a mix of rage and shock swept over him. Here's the whole story.

According to reports, a Christian father from Suffolk, United Kingdom, Michael Doherty, 50, took the drastic step of removing his nine-year-old daughter, Sophia, from Thurston Primary School. This decision came after he was finally granted access to the reported teaching materials for her sexual education classes, weeks after being denied access.

Initially, the school refused, but intervention from the local authority allowed him to do so.

This came after controversial and explicit teaching materials used for Relationships and Sex Education (RSE) classes were exposed online, which had reportedly been compulsory at the school for the past three years. Utterly horrified by what he saw, Doherty felt compelled to protect his daughter and her innocence by withdrawing her from the school.

What Was the Content of the Sexual Education Program Which Disgusted the Dad?

The secretive lesson plans that Doherty came across revealed that young schoolchildren were being taught about topics such as sex and orgasms before reaching puberty.

Concerned about his daughter Sophia, who was a student in Year 4, Mr. Doherty requested that she be excluded from the RSE class due to religious reasons. However, he was reportedly informed that he did not have the right to withdraw her from the class, as it was deemed necessary for all children to receive and be educated on the said content, which included topics such as friendships and personal safety.

The school claimed to have consulted with parents, but documents obtained by a renowned media outlet showed that they used the COVID-19 pandemic as an excuse not to share specific teaching materials with parents.

Additionally, the headteacher's letter to Mr. Doherty stated that the school followed the national curriculum for PSHE (Personal, Social, Health, and Economic education) relationships. However, there was no national curriculum for that subject.

The Suffolk parent expressed his frustration and anger, feeling he and other parents were being left out of the decision-making process and that his concerns were met with hostility. He disapproved of his daughter being shown a BBC Bitesize video that reportedly depicted a boy engaging in sex-related behavior. An upset Doherty remarked:

As a parent, it just feels wrong. The video is really strange and disgusting. It's a really creepy and vile video. I don't want my child seeing a vile, disgusting video that [is] being pushed into primary schools."

After Doherty complained to the BBC, the video was said to be taken down from their website. However, the RSE teacher claimed that the video's contents were not sexual and assured Mr. Doherty that sex education was not being taught to his daughter's year group.

According to Mr. Doherty, the headmaster, CEO, and the class teacher all deemed the video appropriate for a nine-year-old. He alleged that the school relied on teaching resources from an external charity, the PSHE Association. The distraught father also expressed concerns about the over-sexualization of children and its impact on their education.

In addition, Mr. Doherty claimed the school lied to him about the start date of the RSE classes. After confronting the headmaster, CEO, and RSE teacher, he attempted to remove his daughter from the school. Initially, the school refused, but intervention from the local authority allowed him to do so.

For the remainder of the school year, Sophia will be with her family in Poland, and her parents plan to find another primary school in September 2023. If unsuccessful, they will consider homeschooling as an alternative.

How the Case Was Resolved & How Other Parents Praised the Suffolk Father in His Stance

Mr. Doherty, a concerned father, likened the teaching of PSHE and RSE to a "sausage factory," with schools paying third-party organizations like the PSHE Association for content taught to children.

He expressed disappointment in some school leaders' judgment and believed that many parents were unaware of the materials shown to their children in the school setting, and if they were more informed about potential harm, they might take similar action to his.

In response to concerns, the Education Secretary delayed the release of government guidance on children questioning their gender. Gillian Keegan emphasized involving parents in decisions related to their child and prioritizing safeguarding measures.

The Department of Education has initiated an urgent review of the curriculum and is considering introducing age ratings for teaching materials to ensure appropriateness. Moreover, schools have been reminded of parents' right to view teaching materials, ensuring copyright laws do not prevent access to external resources on school premises.

Meanwhile, when Mr. Doherty's story made rounds on social media, it amassed widespread attention and praise from netizens far and wide. Here are a few comments worth mentioning:

"At 9yrs of age!! [expletive]... so wrong in my opinion....I support the father 100% so disgusting [sic]."

— (@kylie.heath.5) July 23, 2023

"Being a good father. Wish there were more like him."

— (@atodd.cppms) July 23, 2023

"Absolutely disgusting there's just things schools should not be teaching and this is that [sic]."

— (@robina.mcilroy) July 23, 2023

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