n (%)
Present study [ Table/Fig-2 ] reveals the association between different socio-demographic profile and perception of need of sex education among adolescents; it shows that majority of adolescents 695 (93.5%) favour sex education. However, boys 374 (97.1%) were more likely to favour sex education as compared to girls 321 (89.7%). It was found that adolescents with higher age group, belongs to urban area and private school with higher SES favours sex education in school. It was considered statistically significant.
Perception of sex education according to their socio-demographic profile of adolescents.
Variables | Yes | No | Total | χ (p-value) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Age group (years) | ||||
13-14 | 138 (87.3%) | 20 (12.7 %) | 158 (100%) | 18.206 (p≤0.001) |
15-16 | 273 (92.9%) | 21 (7.1 %) | 294 (100%) | |
17-18 | 251 (97.7 %) | 6 (2.3%) | 257 (100%) | |
>19 | 33 (97.1%) | 1 (2.9%) | 34 (100%) | |
Sex | ||||
Boys | 374 (97.1%) | 11 (2.9%) | 385 (100%) | 18.1 (p≤0.001) |
Girls | 321 (89.7%) | 37 (10.3%) | 358 (100%) | |
Type of school | ||||
Government | 406 (91.0%) | 40 (9.0%) | 446 (100%) | 11.617 (p=0.001) |
Private | 289 (97.3%) | 8 (2.7%) | 297 (100%) | |
Place of school | ||||
Rural | 332 (91.7%) | 30 (8.3 %) | 362 (100%) | 3.899 (p=0.048) |
Urban | 363 (95.3%) | 18 (4.7%) | 381(100%) | |
Class | ||||
9 | 121 (84.6%) | 22 (15.4%) | 143 (100%) | 33.899 (p<0.001) |
10 | 184 (91.1%) | 18 (8.9%) | 202 (100%) | |
11 | 198 (98.0%) | 4 (2.0 %) | 202 (100%) | |
12 | 192 (97.9%) | 4(2.1%) | 196 (100%) | |
Type of family | ||||
Joint | 344 (91.7%) | 31 (8.3%) | 375 (100%) | 4.088 (p=0.043) |
Nuclear | 351 (95.4%) | 17 (4.6 %) | 368 (100%) | |
Socio-economic status | ||||
I | 83 (98.8%) | 1 (1.2%) | 84 (100%) | 30.022 (p<0.001) |
II | 153 (98.0%) | 3 (2.0 %) | 156 (100%) | |
III | 198 (93.8%) | 13 (6.2%) | 211 (100%) | |
IV | 96 (90.6%) | 10 (9.4%) | 106 (100%) | |
V | 165 (88.7%) | 21 (11.3%) | 186 (100%) |
[ Table/Fig-3 ] reveals the reason for sex education among adolescents, out of 695 adolescents who are in favour of sex education, 600 (86.3%) said sex education can prevent the occurrence of AIDS, whereas 396 (57.0%) removes myth, 373 (53.7%) believe knowledge of sex makes future life easy, 275 (39.5%) thought that protects from other diseases and 102 (13.7%) don’t give any reason for sex education.
Perception of the reasons of sex education among adolescents (n=695).
Reason for sex education | Boys | Girls | Total* |
---|---|---|---|
Prevent the occurrence of AIDS | 344(49.5%) | 256(36.8%) | 600(86.3%) |
Protect from other disease | 158(22.7%) | 117(16.8%) | 275(39.5%) |
Knowledge of sex makes future life easy | 209(30.1%) | 164(23.6%) | 373(53.7%) |
Remove myth | 236(34.0%) | 160(23.0%) | 396(57.0%) |
Need of their age | 156(22.4%) | 119(17.1%) | 275(39.5%) |
Not stated | 20(2.7%) | 82(11.0%) | 102(13.7%) |
(*Multiple responses)
[ Table/Fig-4 ] reveals that majority of adolescents thought 615 (86.9%) sex education and STDs, 581 (82.2%) menstruation and its hygiene, 512 (72.3%) changes occurring during puberty and 503 (71.0%) drug abuse was the most common topic that should be discussed in class. However, 349 (49.4%) urban adolescents thought menstrual and its hygiene topic and about 280 (39.5%) rural adolescents sex education and STDs related topic should discuss in class.
Perception of students about content of sex education.
Topic should discuss in class | No. of responses | ||
---|---|---|---|
Rural | Urban | Total * | |
Changes occurring during puberty | 178(25.1%) | 334(47.2%) | 512(72.3%) |
Menstruation and its hygiene | 232(32.8%) | 349(49.4%) | 581(82.2%) |
Birth spacing and contraception | 217(30.7%) | 249(35.2%) | 466(65.9%) |
Maternal and child health | 261(37.0%) | 201(28.5%) | 462(65.4%) |
Sex education and STDs | 280(39.5%) | 335(47.3%) | 615(86.9%) |
Drug abuse | 259(36.6%) | 244(34.5%) | 503(71.0%) |
[ Table/Fig-5 ] shows the area wise distribution of respondents according to their preference for getting sex education. It was found that majority 680 (91.5%) of adolescents prefers doctors should give them sex education followed by 617 (83.0%) school/teacher and least preference was parents 277 (37.3%). However, in urban adolescents most common preference for sex education was school/teacher i.e., 357(48.0%) and in rural area 347 (46.7%) doctor was the most common preference for getting sex education.
Distribution of respondents according to their preference for getting sex education.
This study has tried to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices regarding reproductive health and sexual problems, to assess the perception regarding reproductive and sexual health among adolescents and to identify the need of imparting sex education in school going adolescents (13-19 year) from urban and rural area of district Ambala Haryana.
Regarding the need of sex education among adolescents, it shows that majority of adolescents (93.5%) favour the sex education. However, boys (97.1%) were more likely to favour sex education as compared to girls (89.7%). A similar study was conducted by Jaideep K et al., in Chandigarh found that 95% of students were in favours of mainstreaming of sex education [ 12 ]. Another study done by Benzaken T et al., shows 90% favours sex education and study by Thakur HG et al., shows that 90% and 97% favours sex education, among boys 82.9% and among girls 75.6% respectively [ 13 , 14 ]. A study done by Dorle AS et al., from Karnataka found only 48% of student favours sex education in higher and senior secondary school and it was lower than our study it might be because of regional and cultural difference and also study was conducted five year back [ 15 ].
To find out the reason of sex education, 86.3% participants said that sex education can prevent the occurrence of AIDS, whereas 57.0% remove myth, 53.7% knowledge of sex makes future life easy, 39.5% protect from other disease and 102 (13.7%) don’t give any reason for sex education. A study done by Mueller TE et al., reported that majority of adolescents said sex education reduce the risks of potentially negative outcome from sexual behaviour such as fear and stigma of menstruation, unwanted and unplanned pregnancies and infection with STIs including HIV [ 16 ]. To know the preference for getting sex education, present study found that majority 680 (91.5%) of adolescents prefers doctors followed by 617 (83.0%) school/teacher and least preference was parents 277 (37.3%) respectively. A similar study was conducted by Jaideep K et al., in Chandigarh found that 76.74% students choose the teacher as the best source to provide sex education [ 12 ]. Similar observation was found by Wong WC et al., in Hongkong and Zhang L et al., in China [ 17 , 18 ]. All these variation might be because of regional and cultural difference. A study done by Dorle AS et al., from Karnataka found girls favours parents and boys favours friend as a source of information about sex [ 15 ]. A view point given by Datta SS et al., favours school and college should give sex education to adolescents [ 19 ].
This study suffers from the usual limitation of a cross-sectional study. We only include the co-education school so it cannot be generalizes to all school adolescent. As sex education is a sensitive topic, we cannot guarantee about the honest answers as it covered the sensitive issue i.e., recall bias. Participants may agree with statements as presented to them, especially when in doubt i.e., acquiescence bias and also social desirability bias.
Sex Education must be introduced in the school which should start from the primary school and brings about the age appropriate topics as they go through the high school. It should contain a package of information about life skills, reproductive health, safe sex, pregnancy and STI’s including HIV/AIDS. A socio cultural research is needed to find the right kind of sexual health education services for boys and girls separately from the teacher of same gender. It is the responsibility of parents, teachers, social workers, politicians, administrators, medical and paramedical profession so that adolescent girl or boy got legitimate due to education and empowerment and change over to adult men or women is smooth and streamlined with nil or least medical, social or psychological problems.
In this present study knowledge and perception of sex education was good, majority believe that sex education should implemented in school curriculum and majority of them gave good reason for sex education implementation in school. The most common preference for getting sex education was from doctor and teacher/school followed by friend respectively. Sex education and sexuality is unaccepted in many communities and also among some parents, adolescents feel shy and scared to talk about sex education, some adolescents hesitate to reply about sex education especially girls.
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Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) "plays a central role in the preparation of young people for a safe, productive, fulfilling life" (p. 12) [ 17] and adolescents who receive comprehensive sex education are more likely to delay their sexual debut, as well as to use contraception during sexual initiation [ 18 ].
Since then, rigorous research has documented both the lack of efficacy of AOUM in delaying sexual initiation, reducing sexual risk behaviors, or improving reproductive health outcomes and the effectiveness of comprehensive sex education in increasing condom and contraceptive use and decreasing pregnancy rates [7-12].
School-based sex education plays a vital role in the sexual health and well-being of young people. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence for the effectiveness of comprehensive sex education.
The United States has one of the highest teen birth rates among rich countries (), a distinction that has long sustained the interest of academics, politicians, and the public (2 -4).Teen births are also much more likely to be reported as unintended than births at older ages ().The federal government has responded, in part, by funding two types of sex education for America's teens ...
The paper was released at the 24th congress of the World Association for Sexual Health, in Mexico last October, where representatives from more than 100 organizations working in the field of sexual health and rights, came together to promote sexual health throughout the life span, through a focus on education and health promotion. Research for ...
Abstract. This paper reviewed 33 empirical studies which assessed the effectiveness of sex education. Methodological issues were considered within six sections: (a) populations, (b) instructors ...
This paper presented a systematic review of published research on universal school-based relationships and sex education (RSE) for children aged 4-18 years. After a rigorous searching and screening process, we included 134 papers that address at least one of our four research questions: 1.
Comprehensive sex education (CSE) is preferred over abstinence-only sex education for obvious reasons. CSE is much more than just "how we have babies" and "birth control"; it focuses on healthy decision-making, respect for the opposite gender, safe sex, ability to consent, and sexual rights. The United Nations Educational, Scientific ...
The adolescence is the time. during which the personal and sexual identity develops [. 1. ]. Sexuality takes into account. aspects such as sex, gender identity, gender roles, sexual orientation ...
The limitations in the quality of research in sex education have been highlighted by several authors in the past two decades (Kirby and Baxter, 1981; Card and Reagan, 1989; Kirby, 1989; Peersman et al., 1996). Due to these deficits in the quality of research—which resulted in a reduced number of studies that met the criteria for inclusion and ...
School-based sex education plays a vital role in the sexual health and well-being of young people. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence ...
This presents that majority of the senior high school students have no sexual partners with a frequency of 684 out of 846 and a mean percentage of 80.85. Moreover, there are 93 (10%) respondents who had 1-2 sexual partners followed by. 45 (5.32%) who had 3-5 and lastly 24 (2.84%) who had more than 5 sexual partners. 3.
sexuality education "is a lifelong pro cess of acquiring. information and forming a ttitudes, beliefs, and values. about iden tity, relationshi ps, and intimacy. It encompasses. sexual ...
1.1. Sex Education. Sex education refers to "an age-appropriate, culturally relevant approach to teaching about sex and relationships by providing scientifically accurate, realistic, non-judgmental information" [] (p. 69).This definition acknowledges that the aim of sex education extends beyond the transfer of knowledge on human physiology, reproductive system, or the prevention of STIs.
Research shows that social and emotional learning (SEL) skills positively influence academic results and classroom-based sex education has been shown to improve SEL, e.g., increased empathy, respect for others, managing feelings, positive self-image, increased sense of self-control and safety, and establishing and maintaining positive ...
In this paper, we use a new cross-country dataset to explore the extent to which laws on sex education affect teenage pregnancy rates in developed countries. We find some evidence that laws mandating sex education in schools are associated with higher rates of teenage fertility. Parental opt out laws may minimise adverse effects of sex ...
A Research Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the ... SIECUS has examined the research on sexuality education and devised guidelines for comprehensive, school-based sexuality education. ... adolescent peer norms are likely to be accepted by teens as their standard for sexual behavior because of the lack of standards being taught in many ...
Interestingly, in majority of these countries, sex education begins at the primary level of schooling whereas in our country, concept of sexuality education is considered only from secondary school. We lack a uniform policy for conceptualization, planning, and implementation of comprehensive sex education.
Abstract. According to the National Association for the Education of Young Children, early childhood also includes infancy, making it age 0-8 instead of age 3-8. At this stage children are learning through observing, experimenting and communicating with others. Childhood is the age span two years to adolescence.
Purpose: School-based sex education plays a vital role in the sexual health and well-being of young people. Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence for the effectiveness of comprehensive ...
This paper's aim is to stimulate research in sex education and sexual violence perpetration by connecting these previously separate bodies of research (Figure 1), all of which already had systematic reviews and analyses. A further limitation is the focus here on cisgender, heterosexual men and women.
The study was published June 17 in The Journal of Sex Research. ... Of more than 800 survey respondents, most participants reported a lack of LGBTQ+ content in their sexual health-education experiences. In order to be educated on sexual health, most were using extracurricular sources including online spaces, friends and personal experiences ...
Europe leads the 2024 regional gender gap rankings, having closed 75% of its gap in 2024, with an overall improvement of +6.2 percentage points since 2006. The top five European economies - Iceland, Finland, Norway, Sweden and Germany - all rank in the global top 10. However, while 21 out of the 40 economies in the region have closed over 75% of their gender gap, the distance between the ...
Furthermore, research has shown that the benefits of single-sex education may vary depending on the context and implementation. For example, a study published in the Journal of Educational Psychology found that the benefits of single-sex education were more pronounced in schools with high levels of gender stereotyping.
Lack of GSMY-inclusive information also led to an increase in ... This paper reviewed how sexual health education has been presented in schools over the past ten years. ... gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning youths' perspectives of inclusive school-based sexuality education. Journal of Sex Research, 51 (7), 788-800. 10.1080 ...
Research suggests that a lack of culturally sensitive screening tools that detect mental illness, coupled with structural barriers could contribute to underdiagnosis of mental illness among people ...
Present study [Table/Fig-2] reveals the association between different socio-demographic profile and perception of need of sex education among adolescents; it shows that majority of adolescents 695 (93.5%) favour sex education.However, boys 374 (97.1%) were more likely to favour sex education as compared to girls 321 (89.7%). It was found that adolescents with higher age group, belongs to urban ...