Most countries have been lagging behind in terms of Sex Ed. There is this is usual stuff like how to put on a condom, sexually transmitted diseases, and knowing about both genitals. However, there is no consistent standard about what is taught in schools about sex education. Private schools can legally teach whatever they want, and it is not even mandatory.
The times have changed a lot and there are new things that the students should know. Here are a few of those.
- Not all people are straight, and that’s okay
A majority of Australian LGBTQ students reported bullying, and more than 80 percent of this takes place at school.
Students are mentioned about how people are homosexuals, or asexual, they are yet framed as outcast.
LGBTQ teens suffer a lot from depression, anxiety, self-harm, and even suicide. In such cases, other students should know that it’s cool if people are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or trans. And what these teens should do to practice safe sex.
- What is consent?
63 percent of women in a survey admitted that they were not taught about consent in Sex Education in their school. Only 10 out of 24 states in the United States and the District of Columbia mandate “consent”, “healthy relationships”, or “sexual assault” in curriculum.
Children need to know that silence does not mean consent. There is something called “affirmative consent”, in which the partner agrees to have sex for the whole duration.
- Dick Pics are not cool
No doubt Sex Ed has not kept up with technology, and a few rules about sexting or approaching people online.
Unsolicited dick pics are never okay. People should not learn what’s digitally acceptable or not through memes.
- Sex is not like porn
Teenagers are watching more and more porn, all owing to the faster internet speeds and unlimited bandwidth plans.
They learn a lot from these videos, but it is not always good.Orgasms are not that instantaneous, and sex is not that much aggressive or demeaning (except BDSM).
We need porn literacy so that students develop a critical eye when it comes to the pornography industry. When students are just exploring how sex might feel like, it is much helpful to discuss how it really feels or looks. For example, it is difficult for women to have orgasm, and mere penetration can’t do anything.
- Healthy relationship
While teens grow, the biggest contributor to learning the operation intimate relationships has been TV soaps.
But unlike these dramas in the TV, we are never taught in school how to navigate conflict in relationships in school.
If students were taught how to keep calm and manage frustration in relationships could help reduce rates of family and domestic violence.
There should be more sensitization about the role of men and woman in a relationship, and busting all the sexist assumptions that come in heterosexual partnerships.
Students often get terrible advice online in their pursuit of seeking information. Schools are meant to prepare kids for their future and sex & relationships should be part of our educationm.
