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Tag: sex education

  • California set to overhaul sex education guidance for teachers

    California is close to overhauling its guidance for teaching sex education in public schools, offering teachers a framework for talking to kindergarteners about gender identity, discussing masturbation with middle-schoolers and recommending books that teach healthy practices for LGBT high schoolers.

    The proposal the California State Board of Education is scheduled to consider Wednesday offers advice on teaching health topics including nutrition, injury prevention and alcohol and tobacco use. But it’s the part about sex that has angered some parents and conservative groups and is expected to bring a large crowd to the meeting.

    “This stuff should be taught at home,” said Stephanie Yates, a mother of three who started a Facebook group to protest the changes. “It’s not the birds and the bees. It’s not biological anymore. It’s not sex ed. It’s sexuality education.”

    But that’s exactly why many parents support the changes, according to Samuel Garret-Pate, communications director for Equality California.

    “Too often LGBTQ students in particular don’t receive information during sex education that teaches them about healthy practices,” he said. “There is nothing obscene about providing accurate and comprehensive information to students at an age-appropriate level about how to have safe sex.”

    California’s education standards tell school districts what students should know about a particular subject at the end of every grade level. The state’s curriculum framework gives teachers ideas on how to do that. The state updated its health education standards in 2008. But because of a budget crisis, state officials never gave schools a framework for how to teach them.

    That could change Wednesday when the California State Board of Education is scheduled to vote on a major revision to its health education curriculum framework.

    The more-than-700-page document compiled over three years does not require schools to teach anything, but it is designed to expose teachers to current research about health education and give guidance about how to teach it. It’s also influenced by a 2015 state law that made California one of the first states to address LGBT issues as part of sex education.

    The framework tells teachers that students in kindergarten can identify as transgender and offers tips for how to talk about that, adding “the goal is not to cause confusion about the gender of the child but to develop an awareness that other expressions exist.”

    “I think that people hear the word ‘transgender’ or ‘gender identity’ in guidance for kindergarten through grade three and they think the worst,” said Stephanie Gregson, director of the Curriculum Frameworks and Instructional Resources Division at the California Department of Education. “It’s really about civil rights issues, understanding that each and every one of our students have rights and our students come in all different shapes, sizes and unique personalities and characteristics and we need to value and respect every one of those differences.”

    The framework gives tips for discussing masturbation with middle-schoolers, including telling them it is not physically harmful, and for discussing puberty with transgender teens that creates “an environment that is inclusive and challenges binary concepts about gender.”

    Much of the pushback has focused not on the framework itself, but on the books it recommends students read. One suggested book for high schoolers is “S.E.X.: The All-You-Need-to-Know Sexuality Guide to Get You Through Your Teens and Twenties.” It includes descriptions of anal sex, bondage and other sexual activity — depictions California Family Council President Jonathan Keller described as “obscene.”

    “The state of California is really forcing parents to choose between what the state says is the universal right to free public education and their children’s innocence,” Keller said.

    Gregson said state officials recommended the book because “it’s an award-winning book that speaks to all of the different types of relationships that our students are engaging in.”

    “We have gay and lesbian and transgender high school students that are in relationships,” she said. “Resources help them navigate those types of relationships.”

    (nypost.com)

  • Sex education key to ending sex abuse among children – Mothers

    Some women in Kaduna metropolis on Monday described sex education as crucial to ending sexual abuse among children.

    The women said in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna said that sexual abuse on children would drastically reduce if parents teach their children about sex and body parts early in life.

    One of the women, Mrs Mariam Danjuma, a mother of three, said that children are more exposed to sexual abuse if they do not know anything about sex and their body parts.

    “Most children don’t know much about sex and which part of their body is private and shouldn’t be exposed to their siblings or touched by friends or anybody.

    “But if they know about sex and their private parts, they will know when someone is crossing the boundary and raise alarm quickly to draw attention.

    “Parents should talk to their children about sex and their body parts irrespective of their age to prevent them from being abused due to ignorance.

    “I tried as much as I can to educate my girls about these issues and I advised all parents to do same.

    “If you relate well with your children at that level, they will be free to share their experiences with you and you will know how best to help them,” Mrs Danjuma said.

    She advised parents against trusting anyone with their child, male or female, stressing that some of the perpetrators could be relations and next door neighbours.

    READ ALSO: ‘Include sex education in school curriculum’

    Similarly, Mrs Nanshin Ephraim equally said that when children understand what constitute sexual abuse, they would know what to do in such circumstances.

    According to her, most children keep mum when they are abused because they find it difficult to start such conversation with parents who view such discussion as `a no-go area’.

    “Children need to know what sexual abuse is and what abusers are likely to do. This will create the needed atmosphere for children to inform their parents if anyone crosses the line,” she said.

    On her part, Mrs Shakira Abdulghafar said that parents must not only educate their children about sex abuse but equally teach them how to defend themselves.

    “Equip you children with the needed information and they will resist anyone that makes advances on them, including fathers, uncles or trusted friends,” she said.
    Meanwhile, Mrs Ifeoma Celestine, urged parents to closely monitor their children and who they play with, stressing that some of the culprits could be their friends or neighbour’s kids.

    “If you don’t teach them about sex and how they could be sexually abused, they will explore and teach themselves and may practicalised it with your neighbours when opportunity presents itself,” she said.

  • ‘Include sex education in school curriculum’

    The Lagos State Government in collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA) and some key stakeholders in sex education have called for the inclusion of sex education in the curriculum of non-formal vocational training.

    This proposal was made during an advocacy programme  by the Lagos State Ministry of Youth and Social Development. The programme was sponsored by the Nigerian office of UNFPA.

    The Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Mr. Hakeem Muri-Okunola, who spoke at the event at the weekend, reiterated the need to include Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) (using the Family Life and Health Education Textbook) by Action Health Incorporated into non-formal vocational training.

    Stressing the importance of CSE, Muri-Okunola maintained that there are 1.8 billion young people worldwide with different needs and identities shaped by a number of cross-cutting factors including gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, class and disability

    This demographic reality, according to him, requires governments, decision-makers, educators, health providers and parents to make it a duty to enable young people realise their rights.

    The government, he said, should implement CSE inside and outside schools as a matter of necessity and not as a political choice.

    UNFPA representative in Lagos Dr. Sofemu Esther, said the teaching on sexuality should not be left to the formal setting alone as uneducated young persons are also at larger risk of unwanted pregnancies and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs).

  • ‘Engage your children in sex education’

    ‘Engage your children in sex education’

    A medical expert, Dr Tesleem Ajiboye has advised parents to give proper sex education to their children to reduce the increasing incidence of rape and other vices in the society.

    Ajiboye told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Ilorin that awareness of puberty in teenage children was essential to their physical and psychological development.

    “Some children experience confusion and they feel something is wrong with them when they experience some changes in their bodies during adolescence.

    “This is simply because they were not prepared for the changes physical, emotional and psychological.

    “A very important part of parenting is in the management of teenagers, parents should talk to their children, especially the girls about menstruation and the boys about wet dreams.

    “These things are normal, and letting them be aware of their sexuality, we should be careful not to scare them or make them curious.

    “Explain to them in simple terms and let them know especially the dangers of unwanted pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infections in unsafe and unprotected sexual intercourse,’’ he said.

  • Anti-sexuality education: NAPPS decries parents’ low turnout in FCT

    Anti-sexuality education: NAPPS decries parents’ low turnout in FCT

    The ‎National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools (NAPPS)‎ has decried the low turnout of parents in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the walk out campaign against comprehensive sexuality education ‎in the territory.

    The President of the association Mrs Samira Jubir, made the remark in Abuja on Saturday during the campaign.

    Jubir said the parents were expected to turn out in large numbers and raise one voice against child abuse and comprehensive sexuality education in the territory.

    The president explained that the walk out campaign became necessary so as to inculcate values in the Nigerian children “because they are the leaders of tomorrow”.

    “We want the parents to be part of efforts to control what their children watch on Television.

    “How their children use the social media and the need to protect their children and the kind of books they read.

    “We need to raise one voice of protecting the Nigerian children against the exposure to uncensored technology, social media, child abuse and contents of comprehensive sexual education that are not worth it,’’ she said.

  • Parents advocate early sex education for kids

    Some parents in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have recommended sex education for children between the ages of five and 10 years to ensure they learn from the right sources.

    A cross section of parents who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews  on Thursday said children these days were fast learners and could learn the wrong things if not exposed to sex education at a tender age.

    Mr Emmanuel Leramoh, a public servant with Supreme Court, said he would start teaching his daughter who is presently three years sex education at the age of nine.

    Leramoh said at the age of nine, his daughter would have started developing some features as a girl.
    “It is better to teach her at the age of nine when she would have started developing as a woman.

    “Although there are some things that I need to start telling her even before she gets to that age, but the actual time to fully educate her is when she clocks nine years,” he said.

    Mrs Harriet Osenyi, a textile dealer, said that learning and teaching was a continuous process but she would officially give sex education to her kids at the age of ten.

    Osenyi added that it was the period most children gain admission to secondary schools and got exposed to the larger society different from the primary school environment.

    “At the age of ten, the children are entering secondary school and they mix up with other children from different backgrounds.

    “That is the right time to tell them what is obtainable in the larger society and the implication of their actions,” Osenyi said.

    Florence Nnaji, a foodstuff vendor in Kubwa metropolis said it was challenging to train children nowadays with the current exposure to adult contents on the internet.

    Nnaji, however, said she would try to teach the best she could, in spite of the worrisome trend of peer influence.

    “These days internet facility is everywhere and these children see a lot of things that we the parents don’t even have access to.

    “It is always better to start teaching them at least from the age of five because at that stage they are already inquisitive about the opposite sex.

    “Back in the days, there were inaccessible internet services to the average person, so it was hard to see children with mobile phones and gadgets.

    “It was easier for parents in those days to monitor what their children do and the level of vices in the society was minimal,” she said.

    Nnaji, however, cautioned parents on exhibiting negative attitude around the kids as they were bound to learn from their “role models’’.

    Mr Stanley Lucas, a Guidance Counselor with Junior Secondary School Dutse said children should be exposed to sex education once they began to differentiate the good from the bad.

    “Sex education is not something to keep from a child till the age you feel like, especially in this jet age when they can access so many things on the internet.

    “As soon as the child knows what is good and bad, then sex education is required.
    “The moment they start playing with the male counterparts, don’t hesitate to give sex education because while waiting till they get older, you don’t know what they do while playing in your absence.

    “It is also important that once they start asking strange questions parents should give the correct response and not distort the facts,” Lucas said.

    The counselor further advised parents to give their wards and children a very good moral upbringing to guide them early in life.

  • Pupils talk sex education at debate

    It was a heated debate among participating schools at this year’s interschool’s debate organised by an educational consultancy organisation, Silverlining Concepts.

    It was interesting how much the teenagers already knew about sex from their research, peer group information and parents.

    The pupils argued for and against the topic: ‘Should sex education be taught in schools?’ at the event held in Ogba, Lagos State.

    The keynote speaker, Mrs Yetunde Adeshile, corrected the children’s misconceptions about sex education,  charging parents to set out time for sex discussions with their children, rather than shy away from the subject.

    Mrs Adeshile, who is Founder of Next Chosen Generation, said: “Sex education is very good for teenagers. It is different from biology. Nigerians don’t really talk about sex. Rather, what we do in school is biology. Biology teaches intercourse, not sex, which can simply spur the imagination of the youths and lead to immoral acts. Biology teachers are not responsible for sex education. The responsibility for sex education lies with the parents. Sex education is broad and no school has the time to go into it properly.”

    Sponsor of the event, Chief Oluomo Gbenga Owolabi said it was vital for parents to educate their children about sex.

    “Most of our young people are not responsible enough to make informed decision, so educating them about sex is really vital. It is your role as a parent to give your children the facts of life, which include sex. You are actually helping them to develop physically, mentally and emotionally. If you are really educating, you don’t have to instill fear, but nurture them through their daily activities. Let them know the consequences of doing things,” he said.

    He urged Federal Government to include sex education in the curriculum, saying: “The Federal Government should make sex education compulsory even in primary schools. Having different age groups and teaching them what they should know at different stages. The teachers have to be factual about the information and let the children know there is nothing to be ashamed of. If you approach these young ones with facts and the truth, the aim will be accomplished.”

    At the end, Early Heights College, Akute won the contest, Normal College, Ogba followed and Triple Cross College, Ogba placed third. Noble College, Ojodu, Berger was fourth.

     

  • How to handle sex education

    AT what age should we start talking to our children about sexuality, relationships and sex? Thanks.

    Mrs. Josephine A.,

    Lagos.

     

    TALKING to children early about sexuality, relationships and sex will help them to be able to face all the challenges that are related to them. Today’s children are exposed to so many information about sexuality, relationships and sex, so if parents don’t give the right information, they will definitely pick up messages from their friends, the internet, television and magazines. However, this information in most cases is misleading, inaccurate and confusing. Therefore, sex education remains an important job for parents. Research over time has also shown that young people would like their mums, or dads, or guardians to be the first person to talk to them about their body changes, feelings, relationship and sex.  The followings are the benefits of talking to children about sexuality, relationship and sex:

    1. Children will be able to understand the natural physical and emotional changes that they will be experiencing or they are experiencing for those who are teenagers.
    2. Knowing what is a healthy relationship and unhealthy relationship
    3. How to respect their bodies and others
    4. What they should know about sex
    5. It will help to reduce the rate of teenage pregnancies and abortion.
    6. Lower the rate of sexually transmitted infections (STI)
    7. Teach them how sexuality, relationship and sex fit in with their own cultural and religious beliefs
    8. Help them feel more confident talking about sex with their friends and partners when they are older.

    Myth about sex education:Some people have this belief that talking to children about sexuality, relationships and sex is a way of encouraging the children to experiment or rather engage in sex. Just because they are curious about sex does not necessarily mean that they are interested in having sex, even research has also shown that it has quite the opposite effect. We understand that talking to children about sexuality, relationship and sex can be scary, but if you keep it at their level of understanding, it wouldn’t be as difficult as you think.

    At what age should we start talking to our children about sexuality, relationship and sex? This is one of the main questions many parents ask.

    You will find it less embarrassing, if you start talking about sexuality, relationships and sex when your child is very young because young children don’t need very detailed information.  Three to four years is a good age to start. At this stage, children are aware and curious about the differences between the sexes (male and female). They may peep under each other’s clothes, like to undress their dolls. They may enjoy playing daddies and mummies. Some start asking questions such as: Can daddies have babies? Where do babies come from? How does the baby get in? Give them a short, simple, truthful answer as detailed explanations go over their heads. Often a child just needs the name of something. Teach them parts of the body. Use the right names and emphasise on self-respect and respect for others. Explain to them what friendship at their level is all about. Tell them about touches that must be reported concerning their bodies. Build their confidence and encourage them to tell you everything.

    Furthermore, from age five to eight. At this age, children start to learn what their bodies can and can’t do and like to find out how things work and how they are made. They are curious about their own and other people’s body, pregnancy and child birth. They continue to play daddy and mummy game, doctor and nurse. This is all normal. As a result, it is a good time to build on what you have already begun to teach your child about growing up. Remember some girls start having a period at eight years old, so it is best to tell boys and girls about periods by this age. Don’t make a big deal of it while talking to them. For example, when out shopping, take your child past the tampons and towels section, then start the conversation in case you don’t know how to start talking to them about sexuality. It is important to tell boys about period as well. Children need to know that their bodies will be changing. If you talk to your child you will find out what they already know and what they want to know.

    Talking to older children: Once children are a bit older, they may pretend they know all about sex  in reality they probably don’t. The only way you  can be sure of what they know is to ask them questions to know exactly what they know about sex and fill in the gap if need be. Find out if there is anything else they want to know. Help them by making it easy for them to ask you questions. They may not ask much, but you will have shown that you are understanding, approachable and a good listener. Teenagers often find it much harder to talk to their parents or guardians about sex and relationship than younger children so it helps if you talk to children when they are much younger. This will help them know you are always ready to talk to them, if they want to. It is never too late to talk if you have not started. Remember what it was like when you were growing up so tell them all that there is to know.  Give them the right information about the physical and emotional changes, healthy and unhealthy relationship, consequences of pre-marital sex (pregnancy, abortion, sexually transmitted diseases). Help them exercise responsibility, regarding sexual relationships, including abstinence.  Make them understand the importance and value of their education at this stage of their life. In addition, talk to them on not giving into peer pressure and to avoid distractions. Let them know that there is time for everything.

     

    Harriet Ogbobine is a counsellor and a motivational speaker. Send your questions and suggestions to her on bineharriet@gmail.com or txt message only 08054682598. You can also follow her on twitter: @bineharrietj