Title/Proposition:
SEX EDUCATION FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
I. Introduction
A.Introduction of the topic
Sex education refers to formal programs of instruction on a wide range of issues relating to human sexuality, including human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, abstinence, contraception, and other aspects of human sexual behavior. Common avenues for sex education are parents or caregivers, school programs, and public health campaigns.
Human sexuality has biological, emotional/physical or spiritual aspects. The biological aspect of sexuality refers to the reproductive mechanism as well as the basic biological drive that exists in all species, which is hormonally controlled. The emotional or physical aspect of sexuality refers to the bond that exists between individuals, and is expressed through profound feelings or physical manifestations of emotions of love, trust, and caring. There is also a spiritual aspect of sexuality of an individual or as a connection with others. Experience has shown that adolescents are curious about some or all the aspects of their sexuality as well as the nature of sexuality in general, and that many will wish to experience their sexuality.
Traditionally, adolescents were not given any information on sexual matters, with discussion of these issues being considered taboo. Such instruction as was given was traditionally left to a child's parents, and often this was put off until just before a child's marriage. Most of the information on sexual matters were obtained informally from friends and the media, and much of this information was of doubtful value. Much of such information was usually known to be deficient, especially during the period following puberty when curiosity of sexual matters was the most acute. This deficiency became increasingly evident by the increasing incidence of teenage pregnancies, especially in Western countries after the 1960s. As part of each country's efforts to reduce such pregnancies, programs of sex education were instituted, initially over strong opposition from parent and religious groups.
Burt defined sex education as the study of the characteristics of beings; a male and female. Such characteristics make up the person's sexuality. Sexuality is an important aspect of the life of a human being and almost all the people including children want to know about it.Sex education includes all the educational measures which in any way may of life[clarification needed] that have their center on sex. He further said that sex education stands for protection, presentation extension, improvement and development of the family based on accepted ethical ideas. Leepson sees sex education as instruction in various physiological, psychological and sociological aspects of sexual response and reproduction. Kearney also defined sex education as “involving a comprehensive course of action by the school, calculated to bring about the socially desirable attitudes, practices and personal conduct on the part of children and adults, that will best protect the individual as a human and the family as a social institution. Thus, sex education may also be described as "sexuality education", which means that it encompasses education about all aspects of sexuality, including information about family planning, reproduction (fertilization, conception and development of the embryo and fetus, through to childbirth), plus information about all aspects of one's sexuality including: body image, sexual orientation, sexual pleasure, values, decision making, communication, dating, relationships, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and how to avoid them, and birth control methods. Various aspect of sex education are to right[clarification needed] in school depending on the age of the students or what the children are able to comprehend at a particular point in time. Rubin and Kindendall expressed that sex education is not merely a unit in reproduction and teaching how babies are conceived and born. It has a far richer scope and goal of helping the youngster incorporate sex most meaningfully into his present and future life, to provide him with some basic understanding on virtually every aspect of sex by the time he reaches full maturity.
Sex education may be taught informally, such as when someone receives information from a conversation with a parent, friend, religious leader, or through the media. It may also be delivered through sex self-help authors, magazine advice columnists, sex columnists, or sex education web sites. Formal sex education occurs when schools or health care providers offer sex education. Slyer stated that sex education teaches the young person what he or she should know for his or her personal conduct and relationship with others. Gruenberg also stated that sex education is necessary to prepare the young for the task ahead. According to him, officials generally agree that some kind of planned sex education is necessary.
Sometimes formal sex education is taught as a full course as part of the curriculum in junior high school or high school. Other times it is only one unit within a more broad biology class, health class, home economics class, or physical education class. Some schools offer no sex education, since it remains a controversial issue in several countries, particularly the United States (especially with regard to the age at which children should start receiving such education, the amount of detail that is revealed, and topics dealing with human sexual behavior, e.g. safe sex practices, masturbation, premarital sex, and sexual ethics).
Wilhelm Reich commented that sex education of his time was a work of deception, focusing on biology while concealing excitement-arousal, which is what a pubescent individual is mostly interested in. Reich added that this emphasis obscures what he believed to be a basic psychological principle: that all worries and difficulties originate from unsatisfied sexual impulses. Leepson asserted that the majority of people favors some sort of sex instruction in public schools, and this has become an intensely controversial issue because unlike most subjects, sex education is concerned with an especially sensitive and highly personal part of human life. He suggested that sex education should be taught in the classroom. The problem of pregnancy in adolescents is delicate and difficult to assess using sex education. But Calderone believed otherwise, stating that the answer to adolescents' sexual woes and pregnancy can not lie primarily in school programmes which at best can only be remedial; what is needed is prevention education and as such parents should be involved.
When sex education is contentiously debated, the controversial points are whether covering child sexuality is valuable or detrimental; the use of birth control such as condoms and hormonal contraception; and the impact of such use on pregnancy outside marriage, teenage pregnancy, and the transmission of STIs. Increasing support for abstinence-only sex education by conservative groups has been one of the primary causes of this controversy. Countries with conservative attitudes towards sex education (including the UK and the U.S.) have a higher incidence of STIs and teenage pregnancy.
The existence of AIDS has given a new sense of urgency to the topic of sex education. In many African nations, where AIDS is at epidemic levels, sex education is seen by most scientists as a vital public health strategy.[citation needed] Some international organizations such as Planned Parenthood consider that broad sex education programs have global benefits, such as controlling the risk of overpopulation and the advancement of women's rights. The use of mass media campaigns, however, has sometimes resulted in high levels of "awareness" coupled with essentially superficial knowledge of HIV transmission.
According to SIECUS, the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, 93% of adults they surveyed support sexuality education in high school and 84% support it in junior high school. In fact, 88% of parents of junior high school students and 80% of parents of high school students believe that sex education in school makes it easier for them to talk to their adolescents about sex. Also, 92% of adolescents report that they want both to talk to their parents about sex and to have comprehensive in-school sex education. Furthermore, a "...study, conducted by Mathematica Policy Research Inc. on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, found that abstinence-only-until-marriage programs are ineffective."
B.Background of the topic
An important but most undermined phenomenon that has ploughed the society for many years is sex education. This phenomenon is so complicated that people have different view about it. These differences bring tolerance in security among some while it creates problems in some other ethnic groups where discussion of sex is taboo.
Sex education is one of the major determinants of future stability in families of any nation. It is a comprehensive and systematic development programme extending from infancy to maturity. It is planned and directed to produce social and moral desirable sexual attitudes, practices and behaviour; Calder wood and Sloan (1982).
Sex problem have had a very devastating effect on the individual in our society. Some people have wrong idea about sex education. This is not surprising considering the fact that many old people have their respective point of view about life.
In a society where boys and girls admitted into the same school creates problem of physical problem and emotional involvement, which eventually results in arousing sexuality. This anxiety created in them; make them jump into this game of uncontrollable emotion.
In this chapter, the researcher intends to have an overview of terminologies associated with sex before dealing with the scope of this study. Sex education is the instruction about sex and human sexuality which children are supposed to receive but many parents do not instruct their children about sex at all.
With the greater freedom of discussion of sex in our society and the early maturity of children today. One would consider the introduction of sex education to our teenagers too early, the introduction of proper sex education to our youth or teenagers reduce many of the society problems that are in us.
Correct and relevant information should be given to teenagers about the changes and development they observe in their bodies during the period of maturity. The girls develop breast and pelvic bone broaden etc. these start about the age of twelve years (12) while the boys sexual organs matures, their chest widens and their larynx enlarges. This period in teenagers is very crucial in the life of an individual and many frustrations may occur during this stage such as school dropout, sexual immorality, juveniles delinquencies to mention a few.
Gone are those days when sexual matter was hidden from children. They are expected to be given information about sex so as to break through the desire in them so that they will not go astray.
Sex desire can lead to sexual immorality which can result to unwanted pregnancy. Most unmarried teenagers who have babies are carried away by sexual feelings and emotional desire. This can lead to abortion, sexually transmitted disease and so no.
Religious groups and a taboo to the generality of the society consider sexual intercourse between two persons who are not married wrong. It can result to unwanted child, psychological problem for person involved.
The need for the teaching of sex education in junior secondary school in Egor local government Area cannot be overemphasized. This is because of the influx of people from different ethnic groups into the locality. Egor local government area has not only increased in population and also in size. The need to actualize these sexual feelings becomes the evident when students are among themselves. But the forceful preventive warning of the parents only saves them temporary check on sexual tendencies amongst these youth. With the children sent to secondary schools and no true knowledge of sex education, a lot of problem easily comes into play as the students jump this game of uncontrolled emotional. As a place for the dissemination of knowledge, secondary school become the local point for introduction of sex education, since present generation involves itself in promiscuity and corruption, there is the need for them to be taught what sexual relationship is with this, a lot of changes will occur in the life’s of the students, parents and the community at large.
According to Calder-Wood and Sloan (1982) the World War II marked the liberation of many attitudes about sex as well as the beginning of change in behaviour, leading individuals all over the world to advocate for children. The child study association of American in the 1920s led the way towards an open approach to all topics including sex education. Through more emphasis was placed on reproductive education since then, the concept has enlarged.
Today sex education encompassed a wide range of biological, sociological knowledge. Today there is the awareness of the need for sex education in schools, churches and other institution of the growing concern over teenage pregnancy, Abortion, Venereal diseases, increased promiscuity, wide spread marital and sexual difficulties.
Calder-Wood and Sloan (1982) both agree that traditionally, parent were chiefly responsible for the sex education of their children. Community agencies and religions bodies later joined the team but these groups of people were inadequate. Finally sex education became integrated in schools since they could reach the largest segment of the population as well as teaching sex education more objective teachers are being trained in the higher institution of learning all o0ver the world in order to teach sex education
Moreover, the knowledge of sex education will reduce threat of causality which would have resulted from illegal procurement of abortion by quack doctors, presently, sex education programme have been integrated into several secondary schools; education programme.
Therefore sex education should be given to children at any developmental stage because the foundation laid in the early life of the children will determine then stability and quality of their married life.
Sex education should be given to the teenagers through their parents, teachers, counselors and educators. It should also be introduced into secondary schools for teenagers of both sexes with this introduction alone, a lot of changes will occur in the life of the students, parents and the community at large.
C.Thesis Statement
“Sex education should be taught in all schools”.
1.Sex education can help to prevent many atrocities.
-Abandoned babies.
-Abortion.
Malnutrition and starvation.
2. Teenagers will become more careful of their own body.
Anatomy lessons (included in sex education) will make teenagers aware of potential hazards. - STDs.
- Prevent a possible infertility.
3. Some parents think sex education should be taught at home, in family. Teachers take a special course on how to teach their students properly. Some teenager might be scared to talk to their parents about sex. Conclusion: “The opposition we find is mostly based in misconceptions, and instead of force them to accept sex education, we should focus on refute their misbeliefs by showing them the correct information.”
For many years, sex education has been one of the most controversial issues in education, but since the law was passed, the opposition has drastically decreased along the country. Even so, from time to time I hear astonishing anecdotes of parents who send their children to a private school to avoid sex education. Personally, I think that it’s perilous to let them resolve things on their own, because in the future, their children will suffer the consequences of lacking of these vital lessons. I strongly believe that -because of the astounding benefits I’ll expose below- sex education should be taught in every school. The first, and probably the most important advantage of sex education, is that it can prevent many atrocities. This can sound pretentious to someone, but allow me to explain why it is not an exaggeration. In the last years, the number of girls who die in clandestine abortion centers in growing alarmingly. Ignorance and despair are a deadly combination that can lead to tragedy. Many (if not all) of these deaths can be prevented by sex education, since all the healthy ways to avoid an unwanted pregnancy are taught in class (and even some schools give condoms for free in case the student doesn’t have money). But that’s not the only example! What if it’s too late to prevent the unwanted pregnancy? When a baby is abandoned, it’s the most obvious assumption to think that it was because the mother wasn’t able to raise it, or because she simply didn’t know what to do. Well, sex education also teaches what to do and who can help in case of it. Sadly, some babies die before they are found, and this can be avoided by a mother who knows that there are specialized institutions where she can leave her baby safe. In other words, sex education forestalls death. Secondly, sex education not only forestalls death, but it also protects life. It has anatomy lessons, which leads me to the next point: Teenagers will become more careful of their own body. You will think one thing has nothing to do with other, but as it was stated before, education gives the opportunity of decision. For example, a teenager who is fully conscious of his own body will be more careful with it than someone who is not aware of the potential hazards of sexually transmitted diseases. But that’s not all, sex education also prevents a future infertility, since the anatomy lessons remark that the unhealthy habits (like smoking, or drinking alcohol) have dreadful consequences for the body. Finally, I’ll try to vanish one of the biggest fears of some of these parents: what teachers would say to their children. Most of these adults think it should be taught at home, in family, but I’ll insist that it’s better for a student to learn at school. Why? Well, when the law was passed, teachers had to take special courses on how to teach their students properly. Some parents are sure they know everything, but they are wrong. On the other hand, their children might be fearful of asking for advice to someone of their own family, and might prefer to expose their doubts and feelings with a teacher. Taking to consideration all of the points exposed above, I trust the little opposition we find in parents can cease, since as I said before, is mostly based in misconceptions. So instead of force them to accept it, we should focus on refute their misbeliefs by showing them how sex education is taught by an specialist that took a course on how to help to prevent atrocities, and make teenagers aware and careful of the their own body.
II. Body
A. The Counterclaim
•Summary of the Counterclaims
The Counterclaims over the best way to teach sexual Education a the school continues to rage on, but student voice is often left out of the conversation when schools are deciding on what to teach.
•Supporting Information for the Counterclaims
Sex education teaches that not having sex is the best way to avoid STIs and unintended pregnancies, but it also includes medically accurate information about STI prevention, reproductive health, as well as discussions about healthy relationships, consent, gender identity, LGBTQ issues and more. What is sexual risk avoidance education? Sexual risk avoidance education is also known as abstinence only or abstinence-leaning education. It generally teaches that not having sex is the only morally acceptable, safe and effective way to prevent pregnancy and STIs -- some programs don’t talk about birth control or condoms-- unless it is to emphasize failure rates.
•Refuting of the Counterclaims
“Comprehensive sex ed” is based on the idea that public health improves when students have a right to learn about their sexuality and to make responsible decisions about it. Research shows it works to reduce teen pregnancies, delay when teens become sexually active and reduce the number of sexual partners teens have.
•Giving Evidence for the Arguments
Some people, particularly parents and religious groups, take issue with comprehensive sex ed because they believe it goes against their cultural or religious values, and think that it can have a corrupting influence on kids. They say that by providing teens with this kind of information you are endorsing and encouraging sex and risk taking. Some opponents also argue that this type of information should be left up to parents to teach their kids about and shouldn’t be taught in schools.
B. Arguments
Opinion
•Assertion of claim no.1
-Many believe parents should be the ones informing their children of sex, not the teachers
Schools have no right teaching sex education to children
•Assertion of claim no.2
-Parent's organizations formed as a result consist of: Sanity of Sex (S.O.S.), Parents Against Universal Sex Education (PAUSE), and the Movement to Restore Decency (MOTOREDE).
•Assertion of claim no.3
-Teachers are eager to seduce young children into a life of immortality (Digg, 1969).
Classes are too specific, too early, and too stimulating for young children.
However, in 1998, the National Survey of Americans on Sex and Sexual Health surveyed the a random sample of general public and parents through two nationwide telephone surveys and majority believed that students should be taught abstinence, pregnancy and STD prevention in schools.
Support
1. Most parents are not comfortable with discussing sex.
2. Most parents hope their child is learning about sex through other sources such as television, movies, friends, and school (Paul, 2007).
Interview of child psychologist.
3. World Health Organiztion studied 35 sex education programs and found no evidence that the programs encourage kids to engage in sex (Paul, 2007).
lll.Conclusion
• Restating of Arguments
Sex education in schools has been a long debated subject among parents, teachers, government officials and students. The need for sex education has increased due the higher numbers of teen pregnancy and STD cases among school age kids. The pregnancy rate has more than doubled and teens have the highest rate of STD cases among all of the age groups (DeCarlo 1). The major questions are the type of material that should be discussed and whether the programs are actually helping the problem or adding to it. There are a lot of other questions that branch off from the major ones also. Since sex education has already been around for decades, it is very necessary for us to determine the effects of the educational programs over the years. This will help us to verify the quality of lessons being taught in the classes.
The need for sex education is very questionable in today’s society. An article by Pamela DeCarlo, from the Centre for AIDS Prevention Studies, discusses why sex education is needed in schools. She asks why education on this subject is needed and if will help or hurt today’s children. Her view of the issue is that kids do need to have education to help to protect them but that it isn’t enough to prevent them from receiving STD’s and becoming pregnant. “Knowledge alone is not enough to change behaviors.” DeCarlo also says that, “Programs that rely mainly on conveying information about sex or moral precepts-how...students shouldn’t learn these serious topics until things that would be discussed start happening to them (Kilander 57). The problem with that theory is that once they have started it will be harder to coax them away from it later (Moran 115).
The issue of sex education in schools is going to be there for many years to come. The problem is that people want answers that can’t be talked about until more research is done on the effects of sex education. Parents, teachers, schools and students all have on common goal and that is to find a way to accurately discuss sex education in schools. There are problems with that because of all of the arguments surrounding the issue and all the problems with trying to come to a conclusion about it. Since the teen pregnancy rates have more than double and STD cases are the highest among teens we obviously see a need for it, but don’t know how to go about it.
•Providing Plan Action
Sexuality education
The action plan states that knowledge about sexuality forms the basis for a healthy sexual life. This includes schools paying sufficient attention to comprehensive sexuality education, including safe sex and contraception. This ensures that fewer STIs and unwanted pregnancies occur. There is also a structural focus on unacceptable sexual behaviour in schools and in healthcare. This helps to prevent sexual violence. The focus is on (additional) training of professionals in healthcare and education.
STI and HIV
The action plan lists important goals to further reduce STIs and HIV. One of these is to increase knowledge about long-term effects of infection with chlamydia. In addition, the ambition is to reduce the occurrence of syphilis, gonorrhoea and HIV every year by half. Another aim is that in the Netherlands in 2022 people will no longer die from AIDS. Moreover, that 95 percent of people with HIV know that they have the disease.
National Action Plan
The National Action Plan for STI, HIV and Sexual Health 2017-2022 was developed under RIVM National Institute for Public Health and the Environment direction, in collaboration with the main organisations in the field of STI and HIV control and sexual health. We will publish an English version of the National Action Plan in June.
My learnings as a Researcher:
A study like this embraces all areas at our learnings in Secondary schools most Importantly at Aurora Senior High School . Sex education is a very broad topic. It is necessary for everybody not just student or adolescents, however. This is limited to the teaching of sex education in junior secondary school curriculum.
Must Read:
SEXUALLY TRANSMITTED DISEASE: Disease contacted through sexual intercourse e.g. HIV, AIDS
SEX: A fundamental driving force in relationship between the biological needs to produce curture, influence, love, affection etc. in human life.
SEXUAL RELATIONSHIP: These also has something to do with having canal knowledge of both sex or each other
SEX ORGANS: Structure responsible for reproduction e.g. penis in male and vaginal is female.
EDUCATION: This is the act of acquiring knowledge, skills, attitude that intends to produce a positive result. It is a process of changing the behaviour of a person.
PROMISCUITY: In discriminate sexual relationship that occur outside marriage life.
TEENAGERS: This is the stage of development in human being between 10-17 years.
SEX EDUCATION: This comprises of the knowledge of male and female anatomy or part of the body the basic process of human reproduction and development sexual intercourse, consequences and responsibility, contraceptives or pregnancy, prevention and where or how to get counseling.
ABORTION: Process of terminating pregnancy.
PELVIC: Hip bones
TEACHING: This is the act of impacting knowledge, skill, attitude, morals in order to be useful in the society.
KING JHAMES S. MANGANAAN
A STUDENT FROM 11-CORAL
