"Have had boys joke about raping girls in front of me"
A teaching union has warned that a “masculinity crisis is brewing” in UK schools, as new data reveals a sharp rise in misogynistic abuse faced by female teachers.
The findings come from a survey by NASUWT, which revealed that nearly a quarter of female teachers experienced misogynistic behaviour from pupils in the past year.
The proportion has risen to 23.4%, up from 17.4% in 2023, marking the fourth consecutive year of increases.
One teacher said the abuse was “traumatising”, while others reported feeling “humiliated” and “violated”.
The union’s general secretary, Matt Wrack, warned that schools are struggling to contain the scale of the problem:
“We have a masculinity crisis brewing in our schools. Teachers desperately need increased support to deal with this new frontier of behaviour management.”
He added that if female teachers are unable to manage gender-based aggression, the situation risks becoming a “ticking time bomb”.
One teacher said a pupil called her a “f***ing s**g”.
Another said a student had made nude AI-generated images of her and other girls.
A respondent said: “Boys have confronted me, shouted at me. Have had boys joke about raping girls in front of me and laughed about it when challenged.”
Teachers also reported being dismissed by male pupils because of their gender. Some said attempts to challenge behaviour were met with further hostility or outright disregard.
The issue extends beyond misogyny alone.
Of the 5,087 teachers surveyed across the UK, more than one in five said they had experienced sexist, racist or homophobic language from pupils in the past year.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Lee Elliot Major said the classroom increasingly reflects wider societal pressures.
Mr Major explained that teachers are now acting as “de facto parents” for many pupils, with broader social challenges emerging during lessons.
He said: “The reality is that a teacher these days is a counsellor, a social worker, a poverty alleviator and a guardian of respectful values.
“Teachers are incredibly stretched because you need training for this sort of challenge.
“I think the balancing act that teachers now face is more challenging than it’s ever been before.”
Mr Wrack echoed these concerns, stressing the need for targeted professional development. He said teachers require training to “identify, challenge, and safely de-escalate behaviour rooted in online radicalisation, sexism, and hate”.
The union is also calling for stronger preventative measures, including a ban on social media for under-16s and stricter rules on mobile phone use in schools.
In response, a spokesperson for the Department for Education said misogynistic attitudes are “learned” behaviours.
They added that the government is “committed to using every possible tool to achieve our mission of halving violence against women and girls”.
They said updated guidance has been issued to schools, alongside new resources to help teachers identify signs of incel ideologies.
The department also confirmed it is strengthening guidance around mobile phone use in schools as part of wider efforts to address harmful behaviour.
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