Influencers like Andrew Tate have been blamed for an increase in sexist, misogynistic and explicitly sexualised language among male pupils in Scotland's schools.
A survey of teachers across the country found "great concern about this growing trend and its impact on girls, young women and female school staff members."
They also blamed the rise of social media influencers like Mr Tate for a spike in abusive and sexist language and disruptive behaviour towards female teachers.
“It's really frightening how much he has reached out and infiltrated their world and he's all over social media and it's like a radicalisation of a lot of the young men in the school.”
Mr Tate has amassed a following of millions in recent years. He is currently in Romania, facing charges of human trafficking, rape and forming an organised crime group to exploit women. He has denied all the allegations.
One secondary teacher told the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (BISSR) that influencers were having "an overt impact on how [pupils] display misogyny. I would say that's definitely one of the biggest issues and it's one that's on the rise.”
The survey of 3,754 teachers, headteachers and local authority staff across 525 schools, published on Tuesday, makes for grim reading, with staff saying “a perceived lack of consequences" is partly to blame for “a general deterioration in the behaviour of pupils.”
