School Counselor in Charge of Presenting a Sex Education Course to Parents of School Aged Children - Term Paper Example

School Counselor in charge of presenting a sex education to parents of school aged children Inserts His/Her   InsertsGrade Course Customer Inserts Tutor’s Name Customer inserts Date Sex education has been emerged as a serious discipline in the modern era that it equally attracts the attention of the educationalists as well as psychologists. Giving sexual education or counseling to parents of school aged students are equally important like making the students aware of sexuality. It may not always be possible for all the parents to discuss about the facts of life as they have been born and brought up in a different atmosphere. Some parents may either get confused about the right answers to be conveyed or they may not have proper amount of information to offer. But majority of them support sex education. “Over the past 20 years, in survey after survey, local, state or national, 80 to 85 percent of parents indicate they want their children to receive comprehensive, medically accurate, age-appropriate sex education.” (Parents as Advocates for Comprehensive Sex Ed in Schools , 2008). They need their children to come to know about delaying the inception of intimate sexual relationships when they become mature and responsible. The duty vested on parents also includes sharing the skills and information with their children for using condoms and other contraceptives when they are likely to be sexually active. A school counselor has to consider many factors when counseling the parents of the school aged children. As sex education is a broad field that includes the study of human sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, reproductive health abstinence, contraception and other aspects like human sexual behavior, a counselor has to make the parents aware of these factors. It is common knowledge that majority of the parents are embarrassed to talk to their children or teenagers about sex. A counselor can assume a vital role in sex education by encouraging the parents to share such matters with their children. Parents should understand the fact that their children will listen to them carefully, if they will only talk. It has been identified that the communication gap between parents and teenagers often causes for many issues related to children. A counselor should make the parent aware that a parent should always be ready to extend the hand of help, when a child seeks for it. It would be better for a parent to talk to a child around the age they first become sexually active, or when they are getting to that point (Parents and sex education, n.d.).They should be revealed of what can happen and the methods of birth control. One of the difficulties of parents in revealing or discussing sex to their children is that they afraid that such communication will promote early sexual experience. Analyzing various studies overtime, it has been clearly divulged that early sexual education may lead the child to immoral sexual activities or increased likelihood of adolescent sexual behavior. Moreover, adolescent children who openly, positively and frequently communicate with their parents about sex are more likely to have fewer sexual partners and later and less frequent sexual activity than teenagers who do not talk to their parents about sex (Crooks, Robert & Baur, Karla, 2008). Different studies have identified that the elite role of parent-adolescent communication about sex. One of the studies clearly indicates that adolescents who are in a firm contact with parents and family were more likely than other teens to delay initiating sexual intercourse. This is applicable to adolescents not only in their sexuality but even in matters like the usage of drugs they express less emotional distress than their peers. (Fayette Tenns Issues Coalition, 2010). Counseling to parents would be really effective, if the counselor attempts to converse with the parents that their communication will bring some psychological autonomy school students, and it will be helpful to lessen their depression and anxiety. It may also inculcate self-reliance and self-esteem than teens whose parents fail to demonstrate these elements. Sexually experienced African American female teens living with their mothers in a perceived supportive family were 50 percent less likely than teens in non-supportive families to report unprotected sex in the past 30 days and to report sex with a non-steady partner in the past six months (Parent-Child Warmth and Communication Promote Health and Achievement., 2008) The same case can be visible with the teens who have been instructed by their mothers about condom use. Studies have identified that the number of the teens who have received such instructions were three times likely to use condoms than the teens who were either not been instructed or being instructed by their mothers after they have become sexually active. Another significant feature of it is that these teens are reported using condoms hereafter. “…teens who used condoms at first intercourse were 20 times more likely than other teens to use condoms regularly and 10 times more likely to use them at most recent intercourse” (Parent-Child Communication about Sexuality Promotes Healthy Behaviors, 2008). A good counselor should inform the parents that sexual education can lessen the percentage of sexually transmitted diseases like HIV/AIDS. It is notable that 50% of new infections in the U.S. are among people under the age of 25, and at least one American under the age of 20 becomes infected with HIV every hour of every day (Youth At Risk - AIDS/HIV Statistics, 2009). Different studies have recognized that sexually educated teens were likely to feel communicate with a partner about vulnerable diseases. Parents should be counseled to teach their students first about the sexual anatomy which will enable the teens to love their bodies and value their sexual health. With the proper guidance from their parents teens can recognize sexual reproduction and sexual intercourse which provides them the insights to sex and pregnancy. As the emotional appeal of sex has also been discussed, emotional relations assume elite role in forming the psychological well being of the teens and it helps them to understand physical changes and aspects of sex. Healthy relations between teens and parents will be beneficial for the teens to understand reproductive rights and responsibilities, methods of contraception and so on. A sex educator can guide the teens, through their parents, the right ways on how to live safely and rightly. By including current issues during conversations, they can relate to what really is happening in the world where sex is involved (How To Provide Sex Education Counseling for Teens, 2009). The ‘top down’ method of parents during such conversations should be avoided. An overlook reveals that such communication style will deny the teens the opportunity to share their own thoughts, feelings, and desires or they may be incapable of making a link between their own and their parents’ perspectives. A sex education counselor can inform the parents that by discussing sexual problems, they can also find out the problems their kids are facing in daily life. It will be helpful in building up good relationships between them and these relations will lead to communications and better solutions. Counselor should understand the real problem of parents in openly talking sexuality to their children. One of the problems identified by many that most of the parents were born at a time when sexuality was regarded as a thing that should be entirely covered from the general public. Proper guidance should be given to such parents to begin to talk to their children from the time when the child can ask any questions at all about his own body, the parent’s body, what he’s like a person, who he is as compared to males and females (Orange Coast Magazine, Apr 1985). Counselors can also insist parents to attend courses offered by different groups which enable them to have a meticulous knowledge about sexuality. Though there are criticisms against Planned Parenthood—they encourage teenage sex by supplying pills and contraceptives to teenagers, counselors like, Cheryl Richard, director of Education and Orange County Planned Parenthood observes that they could not find out any teenager below 15 years old get pregnancy treatment, though the group is following a state law that allows girls 12 and older to get pregnancy treatment (Orange Coast Magazine, Apr 1985). Giving strict instructions to parents about birth control prescriptions will considerably lessen the number of teenage parents. It has been observed that the school psychologists can play an integral role in the primary prevention activities among the teenagers. These psychologists can act as a link between the parents and their children to counsel adolescents concerning sexual issues. As part of the counseling, the counselor is supposed to begin the primary prevention programs in elementary school. Teenage pregnancy results in risks to both the adolescent parents and the child. The adolescent parents are faced with social and emotional issues. The child is at multiple risks physically, socially, and cognitively (Sandoval, 2002). The parents should be aware of these factors and they should attempt their best to prevent teenage pregnancy. Another thing that the parents should focus or beware of is sibling sexual abuse. When analyzing the sibling sexual abuse, one can understand that it is also is an abuse of power. In such kind of abuse what is commonly found in it is that a sibilant “who may be older or stronger, bribes or threatens a weaker sibling into sexual activity that is called sexual abuse. The abuser usually wins the trust of the victim first, and then violates that trust in order to commit the abuse. The abuser may use force, the threat of force, a bribe, the offer of special attention, or a gift to make the victim keep the abuse secret.” (Sibling Sexual Abuse - A Parents Guide, 1994). Regarding such kind of abuse, both the victim and the abuser will be sibilants. It may be a helpful factor for fostering sexual abuse. Here the abuser adopts different ways like forcing the children to watch sex videos or sexual activity. As it is the result of, either the carelessness of the parents or their trust in one of their children, a counselor should be so cautions in reminding parents to such kind of sexual abuse. Counselor should stress the need of communication between parents and children concerning sexual matters, which can, to an extent, alleviate or put an end to such kind of abuse. A school psychologist can reveal the harmful effect of sibling sexual abuse to parents. They should be bothering of its worst effect in the mental condition of the victim that it may even cause for depression or the victim may feel pressured. It may rouse the feelings in the victims that they are betrayed and usually feels powerless. But in reality, most of the parents are not well aware sibling sexual abuse which often causes more damage than abuse by stranger. (Sibling Sexual Abuse - A Parents Guide, 1994). Counselor should give enough training for parents to observe their children who show abnormal behaviors concerning sexuality. If a child asks questions even after reasonable answers, a parent should be vigilant. As part of sexual education, counselor insist parents to participate their children in various kinds of presentations like discussions, pictures, short videos, and developmentally appropriate role plays. This program will embolden the children to react or say no to unwanted touch. The children are also given the opportunities to clarify their doubts (Dupper, 2002). To conclude, one can infer that sex education has a vital role in the growth of a healthier generation. School psychologists and counselors can bring great changes in the concepts of parents and the children towards sexuality through proper sexual education. Parents discussing the facts of life will enable a child to regard sexuality as essential part of human life and which will help them to prevaricate from all types sexual abuses, though there are criticisms about it. After the study the counselor has understood the fact that most of the parents are supportive to sex education, even if they are embarrassed. Nowadays many parents actively participate in counseling programs. The knowledge they receive from the counselors really enable them adopt birth control and creating a less emotional distress among the teenagers. One of the notable features of counseling to parents of school aged children is that it helps for controlling the sexually transmitted diseases by making the children aware of the proper usage contraceptives. The study comes to the conclusion that sex education to parents of school aged children are essential to reduce sexual abuses and sex education should be included in school curriculum for assuring healthy sexual relations. Bibliography Crooks, Robert & Baur, Karla. (2008). Our sexuality, Cengage Learning 345 Dupper, R. David (2002). School social work: skills and interventions for effective practice, John Wiley and Sons. 145 Fayette Tenns Issues Coalition. (2010, Feb 27). Retrieved Feb 27, 2010, from Taliking to kida about sex: http://www.ftic.org/talkingtoyourkidsaboutsex.html How To Provide Sex Education Counseling for Teens. (2009). Retrieved Feb 23, 2010, from How to do things.com: http://www.howtodothings.com/education/advantages-of-providing-sex-education-counseling-for-teens Orange Coast Magazine (Apr 1985). Emmis Communications Parents as Advocates for Comprehensive Sex Ed in Schools . (2008). Retrieved Feb 23, 2010, from Advocates for youth: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=158&Itemid=179 Parents and sex education. (n.d.). Retrieved Feb 23, 2010, from Indianchild.com: http://www.indianchild.com/parents_zone.htm Parent-Child Communication about Sexuality Promotes Healthy Behaviors. (2008). Retrieved Feb 27, 2010, from Advocate for youth: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=442&Itemid=336 Parent-Child Warmth and Communication Promote Health and Achievement., (2008) Retrieved Feb 27, 2010, from Advocate for youth: http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=442&Itemid=336 Sandoval, Jonathan (2002). Handbook of crisis counseling, intervention, and prevention in the schools, Routledge 330 Sibling Sexual Abuse - A Parents Guide. (1994). Retrieved Feb 23, 2010, from Family Services of Greater Vancouver: http://www.sasian.org/guide/aguide_en.htm Youth At Risk - AIDS/HIV Statistics. (2009). Retrieved Feb 27, 2010, from Teens & Sex : http://www.menstuff.org/issues/byissue/teensex.html#parents Read More