Sexual Education In Elementary Schools – Safe Sex In Adolescence

Tamera Kreinin, the president of the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, who is also an active advocate for comprehensive sex education, once stated, “Young people are going to learn about sex, and our question has to be where do we want them to learn? From the media? From their friends? Or do we want them to learn from an educated, responsible adult?” The Government and school districts should be responsible for all forms of education because the most brilliant people in the community are educating the children. Countries like Germany and the United Kingdom are just a few places that already mandate sex education on the primary level. Elementary school is where young people begin to ask questions about their developing bodies and individual personalities. Although the vast majority of parents would like to think otherwise, children are usually more aware of topics such as sex than most realize due to exposure to certain movies, conversations, and music. Young people are already naturally curious about things surrounding sex and their bodies, therefore implementing sexual education in elementary schools would be useful and beneficial to students. If public schools required elementary students to enroll in sexual education courses, then it will positively affect the youth and teach them to make healthy sexual decisions at an early age.

Students that are enrolled in sexual education courses will at least have a fundamental understanding of themselves and others, and they will most likely make positive and healthy sexual decisions in the long run. In most American schools, sexual education is not a course that is usually offered on the primary level. Instead of the course being instructed to elementary school students, it is exclusively provided to secondary school students. Even in high school, sexual education is a broad course that is scarcely covered because abstinence is strictly enforced, with abstinence being the main focus in these courses curious and uneducated. Unlike the U.S., countries like the United Kingdom and Germany extensively educate their primary school students about topics like sexual health and consent. These countries care about their youth and want to see them make healthy decisions as they become adults. Sexual education is supposed to provide students with knowledge about their bodies, sex, and how to practice safe and consensual intercourse for their future, not brainwash them into thinking that sex is a dishonorable act for anyone other than married couples. In a journal by James A. Michener he proposed the following, “Ideally, children will get all of the information they need at home, from their parents, but the school also should be an important source of information”. Learning about sex and sexual health should not just end at home, it should extend to the classroom.

In the United Kingdom, there are more than 200 schools that offer sex education as a required course to primary level students. The “All About Me Sex Education Program” is designed for students between the ages of six years old through ten-year-olds. This program discusses many age-appropriate topics with the children, including relationships, thoughts, feelings, the body, choices, boundaries, and even self-stimulation. Teachers from this program have shared, “These themes cover the physical changes of puberty; the similarities and differences between boys and girls bodies, including giving the correct names to their body parts (as we know this is a huge factor and helps to keep children safe)...” Courses like these have a positive effect on children because they are more comfortable discussing these kinds of topics with their teachers and peers. There is no harm in briefing students on the inevitable and wanting to properly prepare them for the future. In an article by the Texas Freedom Network Education Fund, they stated, “Giving a condom to a teen is just like saying, Well, if you insist on killing yourself by jumping off the bridge, at least wear these elbow pads.” Sexual education in the U.S. is setting students up for total failure, but providing a little cushion for their fall. If sexual education was made a mandatory requirement for elementary schools they would be helping students succeed instead of trying to cushion their fall.

Germany made sexual education a mandatory curriculum requirement for primary school students in 1992, starting at the age of five. Germany’s sexual education courses cover all subjects concerning the process of growing up, bodily changes during puberty, emotions involved, the biological process of reproduction, sexual activity, partnership, homosexuality, unwanted pregnancies and the complications of abortion, the dangers of sexual violence, child abuse, and sex-transmitted diseases. The advantage of offering such info to kids ensures that the number of teenage pregnancies is kept low. For every 1000 girls aged 15-19, in Germany 16 get pregnant while in Kenya it’s 103. Some schools in Germany find it fit to get parents involved and meet with them before students begin taking the course. This way, parents can get their questions and concerns answered and addressed. Schools will even go as far as to allow the parents to make suggestions to what is taught. Unlike the U.S, Germany wants to take the time to get willing parents involved in their children’s education. This approach to teaching sex education is an effective one because it does not leave much room for criticism.

Some parents not only in the United Kingdom and Germany but also in the U.S. would agree that sexual education is very beneficial to their children. In a survey about parent’s feelings toward sexual education conducted by McKay, Pietrusiak, and Holowaty, about 89% of parents strongly agreed that sex education needs to change. Most parents do not provide “adequate sex education” at home to their children. With the help of this course, parents do not necessarily have to worry about having an uncomfortable talk with their children if they do not wish to, and they can let the teacher explain to the students exactly what they need to know. This method is effective because students generally do not want to upset their parents about the subject. Most parents believe that exposing their children to the inevitable is needed so that when the time has come for them to face sex, they are not scared or misinformed about what is to come in the future. It is always great to prepare your children for these kinds of things because students are starting to engage in sex earlier than previous generations, and it is wise if the school system would teach students to stand on their own and not to follow their peers.

Alternatively, Some parents in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the U.S. are totally against the teachings of the course for their children. “These classes go way beyond the guidance the Government is producing and is effectively sexualizing very young children.” “This sexualization of our children is just totally inappropriate.” These are just a few comments that were made by parents in the U.K. in regards to the “All About Me Sex Education Program.” “It is important to note that in half of the countries, sexual education is (still) a sensitive and sometimes heavily disputed issue.” And parents are among the main reason that students do not receive proper sexual education. Skeptical parents are worried that the course will encourage sexual activity early, but that is not always true.

In conclusion, sexual education is a beneficial course that does more than preach abstinence is the most effective way to teach students about sex. Even though some families would rather their children not partake in sex education in school due to many reasons such as moral beliefs. It is still great to have a school properly educate the young adults and make sure that they grasp the concept of sex and everything that goes along with it. Sex education is a helpful course that could potentially help to lower sexual health risks among students, which is positive for the young adults that attend public schools not only in the U.S but on a global scale. Sexual education is crucial for public school students because it promotes students to make healthier and safer decisions when it comes to their bodies. The U.S. could take a few notes from Germany and the United Kingdom. These two countries extensively discuss sexual education and even go as far as to involve the student’s parent, so that there is not a whole lot of room for criticism. Germany starts educating students as young as five years old about their bodies and body parts and expanding on the subject as the children get old and can understand. In the United Kingdom, it is typical for primary school students’ enrollment in sex education courses. The “All About Me Sex Education Program” helps young children to become informed about their bodies as well as if they decide to explore themselves. They teach the children that it is nothing wrong with the emotions that they feel and how to be in control of them. If public schools required elementary students to enroll in sexual education courses, then it will positively affect the youth and teach them to make healthy sexual decisions at an early age.