Sex Education and Why It Should Be Increased in Schools Essay

Sex Education and Why It Should Be Increased in Schools - Essay Example Teenagers should be made aware about the issue of teenage pregnancy and its consequences by promoting sex education in their schools. Sex education is a term used to describe education about human sexuality. It includes the teaching of human sexual behavior, male and female anatomy, reproduction, contraception and sexually transmitted diseases. Sex is a subject to which teens are not properly introduced. People in their teens are only exposed to sex through their friends, media and sometimes through their parents. This makes them unaware of the details linked with sexual intercourse and reproduction. It has been seen that teen pregnancies are most common where the teenagers are not formally educated on the subject of sex. Schools play a very important role in educating the students as it provides an environment for learning. Such an environment is necessary if the teens are to be properly educated about sex. When they are properly equipped with the knowledge, it broadens their view a nd the students can form their own point of view regarding sex. It is also seen that places where education is less common tend to have a higher rate of teenage pregnancies. Contraception and sexually transmitted diseases are the subjects which need most highlighting. ... Hence the sex education teens receive at the hands of their parents is inadequate. This makes it ever so important to include special classes in schools to enlighten the students about sex. A further important thing is the timing at which this education should be imparted. Most of the students that are in their late teens would have already experimented on a sexual relationship. Hence teens should be given classes when they are near puberty so that they have all the knowledge about sex and can think over it before starting a relationship. Rather than focusing on the facts and problems related to sex, teens should be given adequate information to prevent them. They should be taught about problems related to sexuality like complications in menstrual cycles, sexually transmitted diseases and early pregnancies. Teens should be told about contraception and how it could be achieved and from where they can get condoms without embarrassing themselves (Davis, 1995). Sex education will undoubt edly prevent a large number of teenage pregnancies that arise due to lack of proper information about the sexual experience. Once it is decided that the schools incorporate sex education in their curriculum, it is imperative to look for a teacher that can cater to teenagers’ needs and understand their psychology. The teacher should be confident and talk to the teenagers like a friend so that they voice their confusions without getting uncomfortable. Also the classes for sex education should be conducted in a single sex environment that is boys should have a class with all boys and the same goes for the girls. With such planning, teenagers will be able to get most out of the class (Irvine,