SEX EDUCATION

TODAY'S LESSON ON SEX EDUCATION

What is sex education?

Sex education is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, and other aspects of human sexual behavior.

Sex education helps people gain the information, skills and motivation to make healthy decisions about sex and sexuality. Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest provider of sex education, reaching 1.5 million people a year.

Facts About Comprehensive Sex Education

Sex education is high quality teaching and learning about a broad variety of topics related to sex and sexuality, exploring values and beliefs about those topics and gaining the skills that are needed to navigate relationships and manage one’s own sexual health. Sex education may take place in schools, in community settings, or online. Planned Parenthood believes that parents play a critical and central role in providing sex education. Resources for parents can be found here. 

Comprehensive sexuality education refers to K-12 programs that cover a broad range of topics related to:

·         Human Development (including reproduction, puberty, sexual orientation, and gender identity)

·         Relationships (including families, friendships, romantic relationships and dating)

·         Personal Skills (including communication, negotiation, and decision-making)

·         Sexual Behavior (including abstinence and sexuality throughout life)

·         Sexual Health (including sexually transmitted diseases, contraception, and pregnancy)

·         Society and Culture (including gender roles, diversity, and sexuality in the media)

Several important resources exist to guide comprehensive sexuality education implementation, including:

The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS) Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education were developed by a national task force of experts in the field of adolescent development, health care, and education. They provide a framework of the key concepts, topics, and messages that all sexuality education programs would ideally include.

The Future of Sex Education Initiative (FoSE) seeks to create a national dialogue about the future of sex education and to promote the institutionalization of comprehensive sexuality education in public schools. They have developed the first-ever National Sexuality Education Standards, National Teacher Preparation Standards and many additional tool kits and materials to strengthen comprehensive sexuality education implementation and professional development.

What Role Does Planned Parenthood Play In Sex Education?

Planned Parenthood education staff reaches 1.5 million individuals each year, and 64% of those individuals are middle school and high school aged youth.

Planned Parenthood education departments provide a robust range of programming options, including:

Evidence-Based education programs for young people, adults and priority populations

Peer Education Programs

Promoters Programs and other community-driven, culturally relevant health education programs.

Parent/Family Education Programs

Training of Professionals, including educators and school-staff, community-based organization staff, and faith-based leaders.

Outreach and Single Session Workshops

Sex Education Resources

The best sex education resource is your local Planned Parenthood education department!

There are also many other resources available to inform and guide sex education programs and policies:

Advocates for Youth

Advocates for Youth partners with youth leaders, adult allies, and youth-serving organizations to advocate for policies and champion programs that recognize young people’s rights to honest sexual health information and accessible, confidential, and affordable sexual health services.

Answer

Answer provides high-quality training to teachers and other youth-serving professionals.

Bedsider

Bedsider is an online birth control support network for women 18-29

Advantages of sex Education

Background: Although the importance of sex education for the youth is well documented in the literature around the world, sex education remains controversial in the World today

Objectives: The aim of this study was to explore people’s beliefs and perceptions regarding advantages of sex education.

Patients and Methods: In this qualitative inquiry, we interviewed 41 young women aged 18 - 35. Focus group discussions and individual interviews were used to collect the data. Conventional content analysis was used for data analysis. Multiple data collection methods, maximum variation sampling, and peer checks were applied to empower the rigor of study.

The importance of sex education for young people is well documented

(1). According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), sex education could influence young people's attitudes, beliefs, interactions, and intimate relationships

(2). Worldwide, people experience sexual maturity earlier and marry at later ages; thus, they are more probable to engage in premarital sexual behavior. Furthermore, adolescents and youth are at greater risk for sexually transmitted infections; therefore sex education for this group is essential

(3). Sex education remains controversial in Iran due to the fact that any extra marital relationship is legally, culturally, and religiously forbidden

(4). Also, many people with specific moral views are worried about becoming sexually active as a consequence of sex education in adolescents

(5). We believe sex education is more critical in the society than others due to some rationales. About 80% of the population is made by youth

(6). These young individuals are interested in postponing their marriage; the unique institute that permits them to engage in sexual behaviors. However, despite the law, they begin their sexual activities before marriage. According to a study, 27.7% of the youth experienced their first coalition

at age 15 and 68.2% of sexually active youth engaged in at least 1 sexual risk-taking behaviors. Also, risky sexual behavior, such as unprotected sexual intercourse and multiple sexual partnerships, is the second main route of HIV transmission in the world

However, sex education may not simply be plugged into the curriculum. Therefore, to design a culturally appropriate, comprehensive, and effective sex education, attitudes and concerns of youths, parents, and the society as a whole need to be considered will help to reduce these risks in their early ages…..