Research to support sexuality and relationships education
Learning about sexuality is a life long process. When educators work together with parents and carers to provide sexuality and relationships education, this enables the healthy sexual development of children and young people. These benefits are important for all children, including those with additional needs or a disability (FPQ, 2001).
In the early years, supporting young children to learn about bodies and develop skills to relate with others has many benefits. These include helping children to feel good about themselves, increasing their independence in self care, understanding emotions, understanding appropriate sexual behaviours, asking questions and seeking help if they need to (Link, 1997). Early childhood education settings and primary schools can provide education to support healthy and safe sexual development.
During puberty, young people need support to develop the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values to care for their health and wellbeing, manage the changes they experience with confidence and seek advice and support from trustworthy sources. Sexuality and relationships education has the potential to have a positive flow on effect on the health decisions and behaviours of young people WHO (2003).
Many adolescents at some point during their secondary school years become sexually active. Sexuality and relationships education has been shown to have a positive effect of behaviour, delaying the onset of sexual activity and increasing the adoption of safer sex practices (Senderowitz & Kirby, 2006).
Secondary Students and Sexual Health 2008 (Smith, Agius, Mitchell, Barrett & Pitts, 2009) reported the following statistics about young people’s sexual health:
- the majority of young people in Years 10 and 12 are sexually active in some way
- the use of condoms and other forms of contraception is common amongst young people
- 78% have experienced some form of sexual activity
- 30% report having more than three sexual partners in a year
- 69% reported using a condom the last time they had sex
- less than 1 in 10 students believed they were at risk of infection with HIV/AIDS, an STI, hepatitis B or hepatitis C
- 1 in 10 students reported their most recent sexual encounter was with someone of the same sex
- 38% of young women reported experiencing unwanted sex
- most students (88%) had sought information regarding sexual health
References
Family Planning Queensland. (2001). Every body needs to know: A sexual and reproductive health education resource for teaching people with a disability. Brisbane: Family Planning Queensland.
Link, P. (1997). Pants aren’t rude. Responding to children’s sexual development and behaviour in the early childhood years. Canberra: Goanna Print.
Senderowitz, J. & Kirby, D. (2006). Standards for curriculum-based reproductive health and HIV education programs. USA: Family Health International.
Smith, A., Agius, P., Dyson, S., Mitchell, A. & Pitts, M. (2003). Secondary students and sexual health 2002: Results of the 3rd national survey of Australian secondary students, HIV/AIDS and sexual health. Melbourne: Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University.
World Health Organisation (2003). Very young adolescents: The hidden young people. Technical meeting on 10-14 year olds. Retrieved on 5 November, 2007 from www.who.int/child-adolescent.