The Need for Sex Education -Tavishi

The World Health Organization and The Conference on Population and Development always ensure emphasizing the importance of healthy sexual development to a person’s overall mental and physical well-being.

So, despite the decently recognized importance of sexual health, why is it still such a sensitive and even controversial issue to promote?

The social conflicts that surround sex education programs revolve around

disagreements about the role of the government in family life and sex education, core values to be induced in sex education such as gender equality and parental responsibility and fundamentally in what ways can we teach our children about this topic.

According to UNESCO, the answer to the question ‘why do young people need a comprehensive sexuality education?’ is:

1. Too many young people receive confusing and conflicting information about relationships and sex, as they make the transition from childhood to adulthood. This has led to an increasing demand from young people for reliable information, which prepares them for a safe, productive and fulfilling life.

2. Our children would learn to say no. The more kids know, the more likely they are to say no. Teenagers aren’t stupid! So, giving them an accurate picture of the risks of the different types of sexual behaviors can help them make an informed decision about their sexual relationship.

Coming to the question, why a topic like sexual education being introduced in school becomes a controversial and sensitive one in society. This is because a major part of the population thinks that sex education would mean encouraging sex in the adolescents. However, in reality, they give students realistic and factual information about the safety of various sexual practices.

Introducing a topic like sex education should not only be limited to schools. It is not a topic which would be clear in the mind of a child only when it is introduced in a biology curriculum. Rather, it is also for the parents to take full charge and responsibility of clarifying and answering all the questions that arise in a child’s mind at the adolescent age. Hence we propose that clarifying the distinction between sex education and sexual socialization will help resolve some aspects of the controversy. We must advocate sufficient sex education to ensure our youth grows up sexually, and thereby, mentally and physically self-aware.