Should We Teach Kids Sex Education from An Early Age in School - Coursework Example

Sex Education al Affiliation: Sex Education Research indicates that the highest number of people being infected with sexually transmitted diseases compose of the young generation (Weaver, Smith, & Kippax, 2005). Initially, sex education was left for the parents. However, with the toughening economic conditions, parents are spending very little time with their children. Instead, they are leaving their children with house helps, some of whom have been accused of teaching the children about sexual activities. Many of the children have ended up using the online platform in order to get information concerning sexual matters. However, some critical information is missing in these platforms. This paper will therefore, discuss the reason why we should teach kids sex education from an early age in school. Many of the children engage in sexual activities as a way of experimenting. Mainly, they get information from their peers. As a result, they get an urge to have a firsthand experience (Weaver, Smith, & Kippax, 2005). This has been playing a significant role in increasing the number of adolescents who are affected by early pregnancy and other sexually transmitted diseases. Teaching children about sex and its repercussions can minimize their urge to engage in it. This could save them from the burdens associated with sexual activities at an early age. Moreover, it would enlighten the children on importance of abstaining and avoiding being lured by peers to engage in sexual behaviour. Children who are at adolescent age are likely to be swayed easily by their peers. Many of them like someone to associate with at this stage (Mueller, Gavin, & Kulkarni, 2008). With parents being occupied by their jobs, children are likely to do anything to win the love of their peers, an aspect that leaves them exposed. Many of these children realize the mistake they have done when it’s too late. Some of them end up being parents, an aspect that hampers their dream and ambitions as their attention shifts towards taking care of the children. Therefore, educating the children at an early age would play a significant role in enabling the children to be more cautious when engaging with their friends. In addition, it would enlighten them on the protection measures that are necessary to avoid infections and early pregnancies. Currently, children have access to the internet and social media where a lot of information concerning different topics is being exchanged. A lot of information found on these platforms cannot be verified and can be misleading. During the adolescent age, the body of these children experience a lot of changes. In addition, they become overactive. However, some children become reserved and their confidence is affected. As a result, they look for company from their peers or prefer to use social media and the internet to get information on how to cope with these changes. In many cases, they are misled and end up engaging in sex as a way to prove their worth (Weaver, Smith, & Kippax, 2005). This puts them at a high risk of being infected with HIV/Aids and other sexually transmitted diseases. However, sex education erases any concerns and teaches the children on how to handle their body during the transformation period. As a result, they are aware of the changes and how to cope with them with in order to avoid being put under pressure to give in to their peers’ sexual desires. Teaching children about sex during early ages makes them confident and have a healthy attitude about sex. Research indicates that these children go on to develop happy and respectful relationships in later life. Many of the parents shy away from the topic as they feel that the children will shy away from talking to them or they will lose the respect of their children if they talk about the topic (Schaalma, Abraham, Gillmore, & Kok, 2004). However, experts believe that sex education in school is very critical because the teachers are able to address questions that parents might find difficult to answer. In addition, more children are finding it easy to open up to their teachers rather than their parents. As a result, sex education at an early age would be critical in preparing the children for the sex life in the future. Cases of rape by young people have increased tremendously. Many of these people try to experiment what they have learnt from the internet on young children or their peers. This is because they were not guided and informed the importance of abstaining and avoiding sexual behaviour at very early ages (Weaver, Smith, & Kippax, 2005). Currently, majority of the young children are no longer free to open up to their parents. Parents are tied up in their work places. Therefore, they lack ample time to give to their children in order to discuss any outstanding issue concerning sexual life. During the early childhood stages, the level of curiosity is very high. If the information is not disseminated effectively to this generation, they are likely to use all means available to get it. Therefore, in order to contain this urge for information, early sex education is very significant. The current generation of adolescents is characterized by partying. Many of the young girls and boys are at a very high risk of being raped, infected with HIV/Aids and getting unwanted pregnancies (Harris & Emberley, 2014). Drinking during parties is a common practice. Many young people do not know how to avoid circumstances that can double the risks. Therefore, besides sex, sex education at early age trains the children about moral values and how to carry them in order to avoid places with high risks of rape. Girls are also taught how to manage their body and ensure they are well dressed especially when attending some of these occasions. Such education minimizes chances of unwanted sexual behaviour. This is very critical in reducing the spread of HIV/Aids and unwanted pregnancies in the society. Currently, the educational system has become more vigorous and demanding. As a result, children are spending much of their time in school than any other place. Initially, religious groups, parents, and relatives were very critical in educating the children on sexual issues. However, this time is no longer available (Weaver, Smith, & Kippax, 2005). When children are not in school, they are likely to spend their free time playing video games or chatting with friends through the internet. Therefore, introducing sex education in early child education is very critical in ensuring that information concerning sexual behaviour and their consequences are passed to the young generation at the perfect time. This is to prevent their curiosity from leading to their sexual acts which might affect their later life. Education about sexuality should start at very early age in school and flow along with the physical and cognitive development of the child. Research indicates that many parents do not know the critical stages of their children’s growth (Campos, 2002). As a result, they are not able to intervene effectively through teaching the children about sex education. Many of them leave their children on the hands of the older generation which is not well trained on how to handle both the physical and cognitive development of the children. As a result, they end up misleading the children, an aspect that exposes them to various risks that are associated with sexual behaviour. According to information by paediatricians, information about sexuality and safe sexual practices has to meet the needs and limits that is mainly presented by the children’s physical and emotional development. They warn that any synchrony between the physical and emotional development can increase the risks for adolescents. Teachers have been trained on how to handle sex related topics. In addition, they are being trained frequently in order to update them on the new needs by the children. As a result, they should be given an opportunity to teach the children on various ways of handling the changes that are happening in the bodies which might affect the sexual life of the children. Sex education during early school days is significant in teaching the children on the need to abstain (Bruess & Greenberg, 2004). Currently, young minds are being bombarded with information concerning the topic in mainstream media. At this tender age, the children do not have the ability to separate significant information about sex life. In the meantime, pornographic videos are easily available on the internet. When children get access to this information without any training, they are likely to try what they have watched. This may increase the risks to be infected by diseases or early pregnancy. Early training is therefore very significant in warning the children against visiting some of these sites and the importance of abstaining until marriage. In conclusion, sex education has become significant especially with the increasing cases of new HIV/Aids infections, rape, and early pregnancies. Parents are no longer available to teach the children about the sex topics. In addition, some of them shy away because they are not well trained on how to handle their children especially at this critical age. However, teachers are well trained and schools can seek external help from paediatricians to teach the children about sex life. This will be critical in preparing the children and equipping them with knowledge on how to avoid sexual behaviour especially at the adolescent stage. References Bruess, C. E., & Greenberg, J. S. (2004). Sexuality education: Theory and practice. Sudbury, MA: Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Campos, D. (2002). Sex, youth, and sex education: A reference handbook. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. Harris, R. H., & Emberley, M. (2014). Its perfectly normal: Changing bodies, growing up, sex and sexual health. Mueller, T. E., Gavin, L. E., & Kulkarni, A. (2008). The Association Between Sex Education and Youth’s Engagement in Sexual Intercourse, Age at First Intercourse, and Birth Control Use at First Sex. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42(1), 89-96. Schaalma, H. P., Abraham, C., Gillmore, M., & Kok, G. (2004). Sex Education as Health Promotion: What Does It Take? Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33(3), 259-269. Weaver, H., Smith, G., & Kippax, S. (2005). School‐based sex education policies and indicators of sexual health among young people: a comparison of the Netherlands, France, Australia and the United States. Sex Education, 5(2), 171-188. Read More