On Monday, hundreds of Wellingtonians marched on Parliament to speak out against rape culture and call for compulsory consent education in high schools. Yesterday, we published a piece from a former Wellington College student titled 'All-boys schools breed toxic cultures'. This is a response to that.
OPINION: Let us start by commending those who marched to Parliament on Monday. What was going on in those two Wellington schools was simply unacceptable and should not be tolerated at all.
Those boys and girls are tomorrow's leaders, making their mark today. It was powerful and inspiring watching them deliver their message.
But what happened at Wellington College and St Patrick's College Silverstream is not indicative of culture problems at all boys-only schools.
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We attended a public all-boys secondary school in Christchurch. Sure, there was your fair share of dickheads like you would see in any school - young blokes hungry to ascend to the top of the pecking order by whatever means necessary.
But to suggest the problem lies solely in single-sex institutions is plain wrong, and quite frankly offensive to those who have dedicated careers to teaching young men right from wrong.
All-boys schools can be a really positive environment for young boys to mature and learn, and grow into fine young men.
At our school, it was compulsory to take part in the school's "fine young men" programme. It sounds corny, but it worked.
The programme taught us to respect others, including women. Teachers are now required to submit weekly reports on student behaviour and the way they are conducting themselves. Bullying results in suspension.
The school also had a really healthy relationship with a nearby all-girls school. The Prefects had an annual netball match against each other, we entered a combined team into the Christchurch Stage Challenge competition, and we did our drama productions together. The collaborations formed lifelong friendships beyond our five years at high school.
Yesterday's piece suggested bullying and all-boys schools go hand in hand. Wrong.
The 2015 CensusAtSchool survey looked into bullying at both co-educational and single-sex schools.
Twenty-four percent of boys at co-ed schools reported it to be a serious problem at their school, compared with just 16 percent at single-sex ones. The gap was bigger when it came to online bullying.
And to suggest isolation from girls means misguided ideas go unchallenged is ridiculous. A 2014 report found 60 percent of secondary teachers in New Zealand are women. It's unfathomable to suggest these educated women aren't going to challenge students with ill-considered ideas on how to treat young women.
But it's not just their job either. It's a collaborative effort: parents, schools, friends, everyone.
Wellington College and St Patrick's College Silverstream should be appalled by the behaviour of their students. If that was directed at someone we knew, we'd be furious.
We have no doubt that toxic cultures do exist in some schools, and that is not good enough.
It's something that must change because to simply ignore it, is to say the issue doesn't exist. Just don't blame all-boys schools for it.
We need more boys and girls like the ones who marched to Parliament. They are the ones acknowledging the issue, and doing something about it.
Let's help them by making consent education mandatory.
Mitch McCann and Ollie Ritchie are Newshub reporters.
