Programme 1: School's Out

Introduction

School’s Out is a continuous drama exploring some of the personal and social issues facing a young teenage boy growing up gay. Struggling to come to terms with his sexual orientation, he has to cope with prejudice and bullying at school, changing relationships, bereavement and loss, and the tensions of a new stepfamily at home.

Within this context the drama raises a wide range of issues surrounding the prejudice and discrimination often experienced by young gay men. It provides young people with the opportunity to reflect on such behaviour, its motivation, and the emotional cost to everyone involved. It can therefore contribute to personal, social and health education, citizenship and cross-curricular themes dealing with social justice and inclusion.

Teachers should familiarise themselves with the content of the programme and with any guidelines which might apply when discussing the issues with pupils or carrying out follow up work. Further guidance is given in ‘Background Information’ and ‘Curricular Relevance’ and in the online extra for this series.