Implementation Of Sex Education - Prevention Sexual Abuse
Although sex education can be taught by parents at home and it can only arouse sexual interest, sex education should be implemented in secondary level to have a scholastic and proper guidance on sexual matters, to be aware of potentially negative outcomes then to reduce the risks of these outcomes, and to help prevent sexual abuse.
Introduction
Sex education is the provision of information about bodily development, sex, sexuality, and relationships, along with skills-building to help young people communicate about and make informed decisions regarding sex and their sexual health. Because of Netherland’s approach to Sex Education, the teen pregnancy rate in their country is one of the lowest in the world, five times lower than the U. S. Rates of HIV infection and sexually transmitted diseases are also low (World Bank, 2015). According to the health ministry and the United Nations, the Philippines has registered the fastest-growing HIV/AIDS epidemic in the Asia-Pacific in the past six years with a 140-percent increase in the number of new infections and according to, Genesis Samonte, head of the health ministry’s public health surveillance department, said that two out of three new HIV infections were among 15 to 24 year-old men, who she said have insufficient awareness and knowledge of HIV, its symptoms and treatment.
Meanwhile in Davao City, there are 414 HIV–Aids cases in the city from January to November 2017 (The Reproductive Health and Wellness Center, 2017) and according to Dr. Jordana Ramiterre, head of the Reproductive Health and Wellness Center, an agency under the CHO in Davao City said that the community still lacks knowledge on reproductive health, prevention of sexually transmitted infections and HIV, responsible parenthood and peer pressure which will help aim preventing risky behaviors and the integration of those information to schools are also lacking especially on the adolescents. Although sex education can be taught by parents at home and it can only arouse sexual interest, sex education should be implemented in secondary level to have a scholastic and proper guidance on sexual matters, to be aware of potentially negative outcomes then to reduce the risks of these outcomes, and to help prevent sexual abuse. Pro Arg 1Sex education should be implemented in secondary level to have a scholastic and proper guidance.
From the Sex Information and Educational Council of Canada, there are also extensive evidence-based guidelines regarding to structure sex education. Gary Wheeler an Ontario Education Ministry spokesperson said in an email, “The ministry considered research, inter-jurisdictional benchmarking, and advice from the academics and experts in many fields of study including mental health, public health, sexual health, physical education, and kinesiology. Current research and our extensive consultations indicated that the focus should be on providing factual and straight-forward information to students and de-stigmatizing concepts associated with sexuality. ” (Jolly, 2015).
Almost all young people are online: Some are being exposed to sexually explicit material. Sexual material available on the Internet is often graphic and not sexually healthy. We can allow sexually explicit material online to be the sexuality educator of youth today or school can be the sexuality educators and teach youth about it. Addressing this topic in schools to provide students with tools and facts so that they can begin educated and proper discussions with the students about the information that they may be exposed to in the media. Providing youth with tools to critically analyze the material they may encounter online will better to prepare them to engage in respectful, healthy, and happy relationships, sexual and otherwise (Emmerson, 2013).
19 states and the District of Columbia require that, sex education must be factually, medically, or technically accurate. State definitions of “medically accurate” vary, from requiring that the department of health review curriculum for the accuracy, to mandating that curriculum be based on information from “published authorities upon which medical professionals rely. ” (DeWitt, 2015).
Sex education should be implemented in secondary level for students to be aware of potentially negative outcomes and to reduce the risks of these outcomes.
Sex education in Netherlands garnered international attention, because most of the Dutch boasts some of their major results when it comes to teen sexual health. Generally, at an earlier age teens in the Netherlands do not have sex unlike in other European countries or in the U. S. The teen pregnancy rate in the Netherlands is one of the lowest in the world, five times lower than the U. S rates of HIV infection and sexually transmitted diseases are also low, according to the World Bank. When taught effectively, comprehensive sex education allows young people to “explore their values and attitudes, and to practice the decision making and other life skills they will need to be able to make informed choices about their sexual lives. ” (United Nations, 2008). According to an independent health research agency that conducted a study of the Dutch program, in Netherlands students who had completed comprehensive sex education were also found to be better communicators and to be more assertive (DeMelker, 2015).
A book, Not Under my Roof: Parents, Teens and the Culture of Sex focuses on the United States and the Netherlands – two countries similar in wealth and education that have respectively, had the highest and (one of) the lowest rates of teen pregnancy in the Western World. It is written by Amy Schalet, an associate professor of Sociology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She has spent over a decade investigating the anxiety surrounding adolescent sexuality. She found that at 17 years old teenagers become sexually active in the Netherlands same age as their American counterparts. But American teenage girls are twice likely to have abortions, and eight times as likely to give birth as their Dutch equivalents, as of 2006. The issue goes beyond pregnancy. Schalet found that American teenagers collaboratively acquire not greater than 3 million sexually transmitted infections a year it is more than a quarter of all STIs in the country (Weisman, 2015).
Research from the National Survey of Family Growth assessed the impact of Sexuality education on youth sexual risk-taking for young people ages 15-19 and found that teens who received comprehensive sex education were 50% less likely to experience pregnancy that those who received abstinence-only. A 2012 study that examined 66 comprehensive sexual risk reduction programs found them to be an effective public health strategy to reduce adolescent pregnancy, HIV, and STIs (Lickona, 1993).
Sex education should be implemented in secondary level to help prevent sexual abuse.
Sex education teaches not only the basics of puberty, anatomy of body, and its development, but it also instills in young people that they have the right to decide what behaviors they engage in and to say no to unwanted sexual activity. Sex education In America 8% of high school students have been forced to have sex, while some have committed sexual violence. Good sex education teaches young people what constitutes sexual violence, that sexual violence is wrong, and how to find help if they have been assaulted (Davis, 2008).
In Nairobi, the capital of Kenya they have this educational program called, “Your Moment of Truth” the class touches on sex education, positive gender roles and personal rights. It is where more than 1,200 male high school students spend 12 hours in a six week gender violence education program. After nine months, the males who participated in the program were more likely to report successfully stopping verbal harassment and physically threat than before, they reported to stepping in to stop sexual and other assaults 79% of the time. It also improved their attitudes about women (News24, 2015).
No Means No Worldwide's "IMpower" system of violence prevention training is an association that was created to provide classes to adolescents in a way that it would change their perspectives on gender which in return provided remarkable results. The curriculum of the study are gender-specific, that covers lessons for girls covering consent, confidence, and bodily autonomy. The study also includes self-defense to disable attackers, not just physical self-defense but also verbal self-defense. Following the standards and curriculum of the study, there has been a 51% decrease on the issues about rape in the year after completing the course. Interventions when witnessing an assault jumped from 26% to 74% (IZA World of Labor, 2017).
Concession Paragraph
Implementation of Sex education in secondary level here in the Philippines can have the benefits it can give, but some have argued that it is not beneficial for everyone and we can also say that sex education also has its own shortcomings.
Sex education can be taught by parents at home
It just does not make sense for the parents to hear something in their class that would contradict their beliefs which in fact they have already taught them that premarital sex, birth control, and abortion is not good (Greenwell, 2012).
Parents know their child far better than any school ever will. Parents spends more time with their child than any other persons so they know when, how and, what is right for their child. When it comes to sex education for them not every child retains or learns information in the same way;thus, an inability to compensate for this factor can have devastating effects(Family NZ, 2015).
The Parent Sexual Health Resources project was commissioned by the Department of Health in Western Australia (WA). This study concluded that there is a need for resources to support parents and family members as sexuality educators of their children. Raising sexually healthy children capable of engaging in respectful relationships was a prime concern for all parents. A number of fears and concerns underpinned some families’ values, for example, the effects of exposure to too much sexually explicitly information, or the threat of sexual predators. Others expressed a desire to protect their children’s innocence (Department of Health in Western Australia, 2010).
Sex education can only arouse sexual interest
There is this state, a motivational state that increases attention to sexual stimuli, subjective actions, and physiological arousal. (Basson & Schultz, 2007). Basson and Schultz stated that we can never escape this state, which is our desire, the desire to have sex and be physically active. The more we talk about it, the more we would increase the “desire” of oneself. Seeing and knowing the things we don’t know can increase one’s state and then would just increase our interest about it. Like what others would have said that, you will never know unless you try it (Fortenberry, 2013).
The Theory of Reactance states that when an individual feels forced into a certain behavior, they will rebel by doing the opposite of what they're told. This reaction is often exemplified by an increased desire for the behavior that is now restrained. Experiments shows that children/adults become more interested in something after they are put under severe rather than mild pressure not to do it; thus, restricting sexual matters and forcing the students not to engage on it will just lead to the opposite of what they're told which can only arouse their sexual interest (Grant, 2013).
According to Lou Harris Poll, commissioned by Planned Parenthood (a leading sponsor of comprehensive sex education), in his studies the students that were taught of sex education (including contraceptive education) were more likely to initiate sexual intercourse than those students who do not take up sex education; thus, he have concluded that students might take the advantage of the knowledge and use it for their interests (Alford,2008).
Summary
When we talk about sex education, the first thing that comes into our mind is “sex”. But it is more than just sex alone, in this kind of education we’ll also tackle about being in a healthy relationship, sexual health, and sexual abuse. It won’t only focus human anatomy, but we will also dig deeper into the things that are the problems of today like the rampant disease STD’s and the sexual abuses. The purpose of this study is to break sex as a taboo, and to properly and comfortably talk about it. Knowledge is for everyone, and sex education shouldn’t be limited to certain people because of their parents' views. Access to comprehensive, medically accurate sex education is a human right. To be honest, we actually do not know if sex education will really lessen or end AIDS, adolescent pregnancy, sexual exploitation, or prostitution, but not talking about sexual matters is not a good option either. Ideologically, ignorance is not an advantage when others have knowledge, especially knowledge misused, and people who know nothing of sex can take risks unknowingly and be taken advantage of (Cornog & Perper, 1996)
So What Paragraph
So what if sex education is already implemented? If we Filipinos don’t know how to respect other people or follow a simple healthy rule, the lessons in sex education will just be in vain. We are talking about how we could change the perspectives of each and every one about sexuality or the misleading information about intercourse. Since sex is a natural occurrence, the need to teach the proper information about it is a must, for young people to be equip in the future and to be informed in making healthy decisions when it comes to their sexuality. With sex education implemented in the Philippines, maybe we can achieve population control, we can lessen sexually transmitted diseases or sexual abuses, we can live a regretless life and most especially, we can be the better version of ourselves when it comes to sexual matters. Implementation of Sex Education can ensure the students that are our future generations will be well prepared to stand up against all the unexpected obstacles in their future when it comes to sexual matters. After all, “Education does not hurt, but ignorance does”.
