Parents at Radford College say they have been left in the dark about an online chat group where boys were rating girls' appearances.
At the beginning of the term it came to light that some boys in the year 6 cohort had been discussing their female peers in an online chat.
A spokesperson for the college said there was not enough evidence to substantiate the matter and denied that boys were told not to speak about the issue.
One parent said she heard from her daughter that the boys had been pulled aside on two occasions to be disciplined over a chat which was rating girls as "hot" or "ugly".
The girls have not been addressed about the issue and the boys were given the impression they should not be talking about the incident, the parent said.
"I was shocked, of course. And I had a talk with her about body image and the rest, but I expected some communication from the school, and I didn't get that," the parent said.
The incident prompted a discussion with their children about why treating women as objects was dehumanising and needed to be corrected rather than kept quiet.
"[My daughter] said to me, "Mum, can you write down everything that you've just said to me because I don't have the words... to respond to the boys if they come to me and say that we have given you this rating... And I was like, Oh man, you shouldn't have to worry about this at 11 years old."
Another parent said her son, who was not part of the chat, said the boys were all questioned about the incident.
Their child became uncomfortable when speaking about the matter and said they were not supposed to talk about the incident to other students or to people outside of school.
"I was concerned because it's raising issues around labelling of personal characteristics and talking in an inappropriate manner about the opposite gender," the parent said.
"If they were going to talk to a specific cohort as a larger group, I would have preferred that I would have had that communicated to me."
The parent said they were concerned that the issue was being hidden from parents.
"I think the trust is not there anymore with the community [compared] to what it used to be.
"I trust the teachers. I don't trust the decision-makers, and I do question who has decided not to inform us."
A Radford College spokesperson said there was not enough evidence to substantiate the concerns raised about the online chat.
"The College takes all concerns relating to student wellbeing, respectful relationships and digital citizenship seriously and responds promptly to information brought to our attention," the spokesperson said.
"The College has undertaken appropriate inquiries into the concerns raised, including working with our IT team. Our inquiries have not identified evidence to substantiate the concerns raised about inappropriate online discussions."
The spokesperson denied that the boys were told to avoid speaking about it with other students.
"In response to the concerns raised, students were reminded of our expectations around respectful relationships, personal character and digital citizenship. The College did not direct students to avoid speaking with other students.
"We will continue to monitor the situation."
One of the parents said they expected more from the school especially after a similar incident which occurred recently at Canberra Grammar School where the parents were notified about what happened and boys and girls were addressed.
"And in the context of the parents at Radford calling for better communication from the school... It does not build trust with the school when they are again not communicating a very important issue with us that really they have a duty to communicate."
The Radford College chair announced her resignation this week, citing "attacks" on her character since the school had a significant fee rise.
