Category: Let's talk
Hi everyone. I'm doing a survey on sex education for my human sexuality class. Would any of you be willing to take it? The questions are set up on a ten point scale with one being strongly agree and ten being strongly disagree. Thank you in advance. I'm looking forward to reading your answers. I hope you are having a great day.
1. Public and private schools should require all students to participate in an age-appropriate comprehensive Sexuality Education (SE) program.
2. If schools allow children to “opt-out” of the program mentioned in the prior question, how would you then feel about the statement?
3. Instead of a “comprehensive” age-appropriate SE program, schools should require an “abstinence until marriage” type of SE program.
4. Regardless of age or type of program, it is possible to create a SE program of some type that teaches only facts.
5. Regardless of age or type of program, it is possible to create a SE program of some type that teaches sexuality without the problem of values.
6. A good SE program teaches that sex “should” be delayed until marriage.
7. A good SE program teaches that sex is linked to love, intimacy, and commitment.
8. It is reasonable for a parent to expect his or her high school Senior to abstain from sexual activity (the type of sexual activity that could lead to disease or pregnancy).
9. It is more important to teach teens about contraception than to teach them about abstinence.
10. Teaching abstinence to teens means that you cannot teach about contraceptives at the same time.
Describe what you think would be the best way to teach SE to all people – particularly those who need it the most and are not likely to get it from their parents.
Sure, happy to help. Here are my answers.
1. 1
2. 5
3. 10
4. 10
5. 10
6. 10
7. 10
8. 10
9. 1
10. 10
11. The best way to teach sex ed is to remove all moral judgments and religious
overtones from the education. One does not teach a student what they should
or should not believe. One should arm them with knowledge, and the ability to
think, and allow them and their families to guide their beliefs. Teach only the
facts. How sex works, what certain body parts are, how contraceptives work,
and the risks involved. Do not say wait until point X to have sex. Do not say
that having sex will ruin your relationship if you have not met point X. Do not
say that a woman who has had sex is like a glass full of everyone's saliva, or a
chewed piece of gum, or any of the other examples used by the fundamentalist
propaganda to terrify our children while preventing them from gaining an actual
education. Stop treating sex like it is a taboo subject that everyone is supposed
to feel uncomfortable about. Treat sex as the natural, enjoyable, necessary
activity which it is, and leave the students morals alone. They are none of the
teacher's business.
P.S. Did you write this survey? Some of the questions are a little unclear.
Number two especially so.
I think this would have been more appropriate with a 1 to 5 scale, but here goes.
1. 1
2. 5
3. 10
4. 9
5. 9
6. 9
7. 8
8. 5
9. 5
10. 10
11. I think kids should be taught that yes, abstinence is the safest option. However, if they do choose to engage in sexual activity, they should be taught how to do it in as safe a manner as possible, thus being taught about contraception and preventing STD's. While I believe it is best to have sex in a committed relationship, if kids do choose to have sex, they should not be shamed for it.
As an aside, I agree with Cody. These questions are not very well or clearly written. number 2 being the most obvious, but some of the rest as well. If you want an effective survey, you may wish to write better and clearer questions.
Thank you Cody and SisterDawn. I appreciate your help and critiques. I agree with you both. The questions are not that well written. I didn't write the survey, I don't even think the professor wrote it, he just handed it out to the class.
1. 1 3. 10. 4. 5. 5. 5. 6. 10. 7. 5. 8. 10. 9. 5. 10. 4. Open and honest teaching should be given. All aspects of sex, love, and what can and can not be expected should be taught. People need to know they have choices, and can decide on their own value scale without pressure to feel one way or the other.
Here are my answers. Before I continue, I want to say that I am not sure which grade level this survey is referring to.
1. 9
2. 1
3. 10
4. 10
5. 10
6. 5
7. 2
8. 10
9. 10
10. 10
Regarding item 2: If children, without their guardian’s knowledge and consent, are allowed to opt out, then you can change my answer to 10. I believe the parent/guardian should be involved in this decision.
The best way to offer a comprehensive sex ed program would be to have the educators speak realistically and openly about it.
The age of the student should be considered so that they are given age-appropriate information and it’s made clear that they understand everything they are told.
Realistic examples should be provided, without leaving out all the risks and consequences. The perspectives of people who belong to the students’ peer group should also be taken into account, so that everyone gets a good understanding of the consequences that their actions carry. They should also provide the perspectives of different age groups, so that they know how adults think and feel about sex. They should teach about the different types of relationships and situations to which they can be exposed, including abusive and incestual, or romantic and casual, including online, and all the potential consequences.
They should be taught the correlations between drugs and sex, peer pressure and risky behavior, socioeconomical factors and crime, different cultural attitudes, etc. They should be taught that they are responsible for their actions.
There should not be an emphasis on right vs wrong, but the facts should be presented as honestly and objectively as possible.
Educators should have as good an idea as possible about the backgrounds of the students that they are teaching. They should try to address all personality types.
Public and private schools should offer the same information and resources to their students with regards to sex ed. Up to date information that is relevant to the age group should also be provided. Information to resources that can help students should be provided.
Wherever possible, it should be required for guardians to take at least a small roll in this part of their children’s education. Schools should not preach or replace the role that a parent or guardian is supposed to fill.
1. 1
2. 8
3. 5
4. 1
5. 5
6. 5
7. 3
8.3
9. 2
10. 10
Lol sorry, that was meant to read the number 8, and then 3.
1. 1
2. 1
3. 10
4. 1
5. 1
6. 10
7. 5
8. 10
9. 1
10. 10
I really can't say it better than others, especially Raskolnikov, have already said it. A sex ed program should be comprehensive and totally free of moral or religious elements. I'd even go so far as to say that the "Abstinence is the safest bet, but if you're going to have sex, etc..." aproach should be done away with. I mean, if adults who go to sex therapists aren't getting that advice, then why give it to teenagers? It's pointless. All body parts and sexual acts, along with the various stages of sexual development, should be explained. Students should be informed of which sexual acts can lead to which STD's and STI's. They should also be clearly told what can and cannot lead to pregnancy, as many young people are sadly misinformed on this subject. The risks and benefits of all forms of contraception should be taught. Information relevant to the LGBT community should be given, and students with disabilities who have been segregated into different classrooms should be included. Again, I don't believe that morals should be pushed on students, but I do believe that they should be taught the difference between casual and romantic sex and the potential emotional consequences of each. All forms of sexual pressure, harassment, and assault, without emphasis on any specific gender, should be explained, and students should be taught how to protect themselves and report any incident of sexual misconduct that they witness or experience. There should be a component that deals with online relationships. Students should be given a complete and up-to-date list of resources. As for parents being involved, I think students need a sex ed program, whether their parents agree or not. Call that radical, intrusive, or whatever you like. I just know what I've experienced. I got absolutely no information from my parents, and what I got from others was not much better. So not only did I start looking for answers in the wrong places, but my sexual development was screwed up for a long, long time, and it's taken me years to undo the damage. If I knew then what I know now, I'd've launched a campaign at my school for the type of program I've just described.
Becky