Education plays a crucial role in building the character as well as the overall personality of a person. Every school teaches students about various subjects in academics but it refrains from teaching students about comprehensive sex education. It is no doubt that the introduction of sex education in schools contributes to preventing school children from falling prey to sexual exploitation in their adolescent age. However, not equal preference is given to sex education in the schools as is enjoyed by other subjects. And there are several reasons for this attitude in schools.

One of the most important factors which are working against the spreading of knowledge related to this topic is the ignorant attitude of parents. Most of the parents think that if they give permission to their child to opt for “sex education” in his school curriculum then he/she would indulge in indecent habits. But actually, the opposite is true in reality. In this post, we will through light on the objectives of sex education, what is the importance of sex education for youth and how to share information regarding this topic with the students.

Importance of Sex Education for teenagers

In the adolescent age, children experience psychological as well as physiological changes in themselves. Their body structure changes during teenage and their behaviour also changes during this course of time. So, here arises the need for sex education for teenagers. The main objectives of sex education are to make teenage children aware of the changes in their body structure and give them knowledge about the differences as well as similarities between the two genders.  It is important to share knowledge about the concept of “sex” with adolescent students as it is important for their interpersonal relationship with other students of their age.

Need to Talk About Sex

Not many people prefer to talk about the topic of “sex” and hence fails to make their children understand the true concept regarding this. It is the role of teachers as well as the parents to give comprehensive sex knowledge to their adolescent children. They can choose various means or methods to talk on this very topic. Before the teachers, it is the prime responsibility of every parent to introduce his child to the concepts regarding the same. The mistake which parents make is to avoid talking on the topic of sex as they fear their child would indulge in indecent things. But this is not at all true. In fact, those who do not receive sex education fall victim to sexual harassment at the various stages of their life.

Role of Parents in giving Sex Education to Children

The earlier the teenage children get sex education, the better will be their future. It is said that the mother plays a vital role in guiding her children regarding the changes in the mind as well as the body during teenage. But this is not completely true as the father’s role is equally important to give guidance to their children about the same.

Parents need to first understand the level of their child’s brain in comprehending such concepts. They need to choose the right medium to convey their knowledge. A girl can learn from her mother and when it comes to sex education for boys, then it is the responsibility of a father to talk to his son regarding this topic. Also, girls can learn from their father about the responsibilities of the opposite gender and it would help them in building strong interpersonal relations with others in the society.

Comprehensive Sex Education in Schools

When it comes to opting for sex education in schools, parents don’t enroll their child under various programs on this subject. It is the ignorant attitude of parents that becomes a hindrance for the holistic development of their child. They give excuses for family values, religious beliefs, and justify their point by citing other morals as well as self-invented beliefs.

What they forget is that information about sex is available on the internet very easily. Also, there are many raunchy magazines and indecent websites which talk about such a topic. It is better to discuss with the students about sex individually rather than seeing them getting false knowledge on this topic.

Also, schools also do not take this topic very seriously. Only there is some finite number of schools which understands the importance of sex education in schools. Comprehensive sex education in public schools should be made mandatory for every child as it is the need of the hour to ensure the overall development of students. Also, students will come to know various tactics to prevent themselves from falling prey to indecent as well as criminal elements in the society.

Methods of Sex Education in Schools

Due to the eerie nature of the topic of sex, teachers need to opt an intelligent means to spread sex education to students in schools. The first thing they need to inculcate is a friendly relationship with the students. Also, they need to understand the intellectual level of the students and use the language as well as examples accordingly. In today’s time, the flow of information is very fast and there are various mediums available to share knowledge with students.

• Sex Education Programs – With the help of school sex education programs as well as online sex education means teachers can give tasks to students to make them focus on the right knowledge of sex. This would help the students to build the right concept of sex which would help them in realising their self-worth as well as protecting themselves from indecent elements throughout their lives.
• Choice of Education Material – The right quality of sex education materials needs to be prepared and there should be proper feeding about the concepts of sex at various stages of student life. Teachers can also take help from parents and give guidance for the important things about giving knowledge to the students at home.
• Right Attitude of Teaching – One of the most important things which every teacher needs to take care of is not to use command or order attitude. It is better to teach students in a friendly manner rather than giving a sermon on this topic.
• Honest Approach – An honest approach should be followed by teachers and parents. They should answer the children/students clearly and genuinely. Also, a kind and patient attitude must be adopted by parents as well as teachers. They should first listen to the questions of growing children and then check their knowledge about sex education before explaining anything.
• Focus on Holistic Development – Parents, as well as teachers, should first check the thinking of their children about sex. Then only, they should follow the suitable approach to form the right concepts of sex in their children’s mind. Teaching should be based on the holistic development of a child and it is the mutual understanding which comes into play in this case.

As we discussed above the need for and the importance of sex education at the right time in a child’s life. So, comprehensive sex education should be made compulsory for every student in the schools and professional teachers need to be employed to teach students about the same. The intention of spreading knowledge about sex through various sex education programs is not to hurt the sentiments of people but to help the students in overcoming various challenge during the teenage as well as the rest of their life.