Parent Preparedness and Child's Sexual Education - Essay Example

?Running Head: Parent Preparedness & Child's Sexual Education Parent Preparedness & Child's Sexual Education [Institute’s Abstract The paper addressed the importance of sex education in adolescence. With the growing number of cases of sexual abuse, the matter is a pressing concern for schools and parents all over the world. Although people accept the importance of sexual health, very few actually agree to the idea of education system to promote it. Keeping in view the above, sex education seems to be a primary component of any education system in U.S and worldwide. Studies show that efficiently planned sex education programs have been successful in producing positive results. Right when parents begin to assume their responsibility in educating the child, the children seek an escape and thus, generate a communication gap that lead to lack of knowledge transmitted form parent to child. Another argument that sex education supporters raise is that the success rate of abstinence only program are low. One cannot observe any significant difference between individuals who enroll and who do not in this program. In order to frame a sex education program for school counseling, it is a recommendation that one starts with the most basic knowledge and then progresses to higher level of complexities. A very important perspective that needs attention here is the preparedness of parents in terms of educating their children. Experts believe that parents can play a crucial role in teaching children about sex. Introduction The paper aims to address the importance of sex education in adolescence. With the growing number of cases of sexual abuse and rapes, the matter is a pressing concern for schools and parents all over the world as it is their responsibility to educate the child beforehand. The paper also explores ways in which parents, who are confident to bring up issues and discuss it with their growing children, contribute towards effective development of personalities in their children in terms of sexuality and open-mindedness. The paper targets early adolescents aged 13-16 years old and presents a profound insight into ways sex education can be imparted to them. Sexuality is a crucial element in development of personalities of teenagers. Studies by World Health Organization reveal the contribution of healthy sexual development to overall well being of an individual. According to the U.S. Surgeon General, David Satcher, “sexual health is inextricably bound to both physical and mental health,” (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006). In terms of definition, sexual education refers to "education about human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health, emotional relations, reproductive rights and responsibilities, abstinence, contraception, and other aspects of human sexual behavior" (Klein, pp. 9, 1992). Although people all around the world accept the importance of sexual health, very few actually agree to the idea of education system to promote it. Main arguments regarding sex education programs involve role of government in family life; limitations to parent’s role in defining a sexual pattern for their children, subjectivity of values associated to sex for instance, gender and power etc and above all how does one define a mature sexual behavior for adolescent (Bruess & Greenberg, 2008). In addition, there are also questions as to how can one effectively communicate these ideas to adolescents, the content of such courses and mainly who is better suited to provide this guidance. Sex education has never been this critical an issue. Researches (Reintsma, 2007) reveal that there are 850,000 pregnancies and 9.1 million STIs (sexually transmitted infections) (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006). In addition, 70% females and 62% males have already experienced vaginal sex by the age of 18 in US. It has been a grave problem with little attention given. Moreover, as per U.S Department of Justice, every 2 minutes, a woman is raped. Only in the year 1995, 354,670 females encountered rape or sexual assault (Reintsma, 2007). Keeping in view the above, sex education seems to be a primary component of any education system in U.S and worldwide (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006). The course does not only open young minds to a completely new realm of sensibilities but also acquaint them with unfamiliar phenomenon and help them understand reality beforehand or in time so that in times of crisis, they do not lose their confidence and face things courageously. Studies show that efficiently planned sex education programs have been successful in producing positive results for instance, sex initiation in later years, lesser number of intercourses, lesser frequency of changing partners, increased use of contraceptives and fewer incidents of unprotected sex. It has also produced long-term results like lesser incidents of STIs and pregnancy (Bruess & Greenberg, 2008). However, at early adolescence, things are very much vague. Where on one hand, the body is going through essential changes and acquiring puberty, on the other individuals are beginning to face challenges in social setup. They begin to grow more self-reliant, seeks independence, and venture on a journey to explore themselves and their surrounding in a very mature way. They also begin to distance themselves from family and seek to create their own identity that helps in many ways but also create hindrances when it comes to gain knowledge through experience. Thus, right when parents begin to assume their responsibility in educating the child, the children seek an escape and thus, generate a communication gap that lead to lack of knowledge transmitted form parent to child. This is when sex education courses in school kicks in. With their innovative child-centered strategies and effective communication skills, students tend to get less awkward and pay more attention. Back in 1990’s, conservatives started focusing much more on teen sex than ever before (Bruess & Greenberg, 2008). They suggested that instead of sex education, schools should introduce abstinence-only sex education program that aimed to reduce illegitimacy. Abstinence-only sex education program focuses on refraining from sex and avoids the discussion on condoms or safe sex altogether. The 1996 legislation U.S (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006) clears out directly what this program can teach. It obliges state to educate the kids that ‘abstinence from sexual activity outside of marriage is the expected standard” (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006); that “abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and other associated health problems” (Moore & Rosenthal, pp. 23-27, 2006) amongst other clauses. The law also banned the use of grant money to spread awareness about contraceptives and STDs (Reintsma, 2007). People who support this type of sex education contend that it nips the bane in the bud. By marketing the conservative values, this program tells teenagers to say no to sex in the first place rather than regretting later. They also argue that sex is meant for adults only but by teaching about contraceptives, sex education promotes safe sex disregarding the fact that protection against STDs is not always 100% (Alters & Schiff, 2010). In addition, condoms have a significant failure rate for preventing pregnancy. Thus, it is not always about people involved in the act but also about a potential human being whose destiny is controlled by the individuals. On the other hand, those who support comprehensive sex education note that abstinence only programs are inefficient as per statistics, which show that adolescent engaging in early-age sex have increased in number rather than decreased. Interestingly, studies (Bolin & Whelehan, 2009) also show that it is the more use of condoms and not less people having sex that is leading to decline in pregnancy rates. Another argument that comprehensive sex education supporters raise is that the success rate of abstinence only program are low. One cannot observe any significant difference between individuals who enroll and who do not in this program. A study by another expert revealed that comprehensive sex education programs are not in any way responsible for promoting sexual activity. She affirmed that by talking or discussing HIV etc, there is no impact on frequency of sex or period when adolescents start having sex; it affects neither the frequency of their intercourse or changing of partners (Moore & Rosenthal, 2006). Reaching a consensus, most sex educators agree that the best solution is a combination of the two, comprehensive and abstinence only sex education programs. The emphasis of abstinence only on values and principles and that of comprehensive ones on safe sex and birth control makes a perfect blend of lessons that can enrich a teenager’s cognition on sexuality and enable to make better decisions in their lives. In order to frame a sex education program for school counseling, it is a recommendation that one starts with the most basic knowledge and then progresses to higher level of complexities. To start from the very basic concept of all, human anatomy should be the first step in sexual education course. As long as the individuals are not fully aware and comfortable with their own anatomy, understanding the concept of sex becomes a little difficult (Bruess & Greenberg, 2008). One can begin with the notion of two separate sexes and their design to give birth to the progeny. When individuals are completely aware of this, the reproduction system comes next. Elaboration on concepts of fertilization and conception leading to fetus and resulting into a full flash human requires great care and caution. The use of anatomy models and diagrams can facilitate the learning. Another very important concept is that of sexual pleasure and values. It is important to teach the young teenagers that it is completely natural to show certain responses like being ‘turned on’ or ‘wet dreams’ by seductive body images and improper media exposure available to them but this certainly should not override the hold of values and strong principles (Bolin & Whelehan, 2009). The whole purpose of teaching this is to impart the value of resistance and self-control. Finally, it is important to bring up the idea that things might not be as rosy as they appear to be. Rapes and STIs are some of the major mishaps that do happen to people. This part teaches the young individuals to take responsibility of their actions and be careful in their socializing. Here, it would be advisable to mention the use and significance of contraceptives its use as a preventive measure during an intercourse (Alters & Schiff, 2010). A very important perspective that needs attention here is the preparedness of parents in terms of educating their children to act smart in such matters. Experts believe that parents can play a crucial role in teaching children about sex. It is very normal for parents to feel embarrassed and shy to talk about it with their children. However, studies have revealed that involvement of parents in talking about crucial matters of life has undoubted benefits. If parents themselves approach the topic with open mindedness, it is likely that kids turn to them for moral support and advice in need (Bolin & Whelehan, 2009). There are few things that parents should remember and adopt in the process of sex education with their adolescent children. First, adolescence is the best age to bring such topics into discussion because this is when these young people are most drawn to sexual desires. Second, along with the intricacies of intercourse and complications of pregnancy, birth control is an important notion as well and parents should try to explain to their kids the use of condoms in the most comfortable way (Alters & Schiff, 2010). One thing that parents should remember is that they need not be afraid to talk about sex to their kids. Having talked to them assures that they will make well-informed decisions in times of crisis. Medical practitioner or family doctor can also help in case there is a huge generation gap between parent and a child. Concisely, sex education is an integral part of teenage lessons and every effort should be made to prepare our kids for these unspoken sensibilities a priori. Accidents like rapes and STDs ruin lives not only of individuals who suffer through them but also of their families and loved ones. Therefore, it is important that parents and sex educators take it up as their prime responsibility to educate our future generations with adequate information about their sexuality and impact of their decisions on their own lives and others. References Alters, S., Schiff, W. (2010). Essential Concepts for Healthy Living. California: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Print. (0763789755) Bolin, A., Whelehan, P. (2009). Human Sexuality: Biological, Psychological, and Cultural Perspectives. New York: Taylor & Francis. Print. (0789026716) Bruess, C. E., Greenberg, J. S. (2008). Sexuality Education: Theory and Practice. New York: Jones & Bartlett Learning. Print. (0763754951) Klein, S. S. (1992). Sex Equity and Sexuality in Education. New York: SUNY Press. Print. (079141034X) Moore, S., Rosenthal, D. (2006). Sexuality in Adolescence: Current Trends. New York: Taylor & Francis. Print. (041534462X) Reintsma, M. (2007). The Political Economy of Welfare Reform in the United States. Philadelphia: Edward Elgar Publishing. Print. (1843761335) Read More