'Consent Education' Proposed In PA Curriculum: What It Means

WEST CHESTER, PA — A newly proposed bill coming to the Pennsylvania legislature would add "consent education" to school curricula statewide.

The measure, introduced by State Sen. Andy Dinniman (D-19), would teach consent as a life skill and in broader contexts, early and often.

"All too often, any discussion of consent in our schools comes too little, too late,” Dinniman said in announcing the bill. "Meanwhile, consent is a skill young people need to successfully navigate adulthood. Beginning in elementary school, we should lay the foundation that consent is a fundamental value in human relationships through age-appropriate instruction."

The meaning of consent is often taken to strictly involve sexual interactions, but it's much broader. Dinniman cited a simple example of a potential lesson that could be part of the new curriculum for first graders: learning to ask someone for permission before playing with their toy. Similar lessons would be integrated in classrooms at the elementary level.

It's not a novel concept, but codifying such an important social skill into early education is much needed, supporters say.

"When we focus on requiring consent education in middle/high school alone and in terms of relationships that involve intimate behavior, it may not be as effective as teaching our students these fundamental skills early in their education," Dinniman added.

The bill was introduced to coincide with Sexual Assault Awareness Month in Pennsylvania this April.