Does the United States need to re-evaluate sex education?
and Family Health conducted a survey in order to further understand “how parents and children
in the same households communicate about sex and sexuality, health, and relationships.” 90
percent of parents surveyed responded that they believe middle school and high school
curriculums should include sex education. Parents also reported that they believe sex education
in schools should have a focus on healthy as opposed to unhealthy relationships.
Despite the overwhelming support that sex education has from the majority of the
populace as well as organizations such as the American Medical Association, the American
Academy of Pediatrics, and the Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine, only 24 states
currently mandate sex education in schools. Of those 24 states, only 13 require that the
information provided be medically accurate, and in Alabama, Texas, and South Carolina only
information regarding the negative consequences of sexual activity can be provided to students.
26 states also require that abstinence be stressed when discussing any material regarding sexual
activity.
Early studies carried out by researchers attempting to investigate the nature of sexual
violence relied heavily on interviews with convicted offenders. Psychologists, such as Neil
Malamuth, believe this approach offered researchers a limited understanding of the psychology
behind sexual violence. Malamuth stated “Men in prison are often 'generalists.' They would steal
your television, your watch, your car. And sometimes they steal sex.” More recent studies have
relied on anonymous surveys that ask questions regarding the surveyees’ sexual practices,
behaviors, and tactics without including terms such as “rape” or “sexual assault.”
Mary P. Koss, a professor of public health at the University of Arizona and the first
person to coin the term “date rape,” carried out such a survey. She found that a majority of
respondents willingly admitted to engaging in non consensual sex. Dr. Koss noted, however, that
when asking a subject if they had engaged in “rape” the answer was almost always no. These
studies have suggested that a major indicator as to whether or not an individual will commit one
or more sexual assaults is a limited understanding of what constitutes transgressive sexual
behavior.
For her doctoral thesis at the criminology department of Anglia Ruskin University,
Madhumita Pandey interviewed 100 convicted rapists in India following 2012 street protests
against the widespread rape culture. After concluding her study, Padney noted “After you speak
to [the rapists], it shocks you — these men have the power to make you feel sorry for them. As a
woman that’s not how you expect to feel. I would almost forget that these men have been
convicted of raping a woman. In my experience a lot of these men don’t realize that what they've
done is rape. They don't understand what consent is.”Attitudes towards sex in India remain
highly conservative, and legislators prohibit sex education in schools, frequently stating that such
material could offend traditional values. In 2012 India was ranked as the worst place to be a
woman among G-20 countries in an article published by Reuters World News. In 2016, 106
rapes were reported per day in India, with four in ten victims being minors.
Sexual education is much more prevalent in the United States than in India, Accordingly,
the prevalence of sexual violence in the US is much lower than in India. However, instances of
rape and sexual assault are much higher in the US than in other developed countries such as the
Netherlands, France, and Norway. In 2015, the Netherlands recorded 7.1 instances of rape
reported per 100,00 people, while the United States recorded 28.4 instances of rape reported per
100,000 people.
In the Netherlands, it is mandatory that all children receive some form of sex education
before completing primary school. Schools in the Netherlands have developed what is being
called “comprehensive sexuality education.” This system of sexual education addresses core
principles such as encouraging respect for all sexual preferences and developing skills in order to
address sexual coercion, abuse, and intimidation. Kindergarten age children are taught how to
properly express and communicate wishes and boundaries. Students are also encouraged to
anonymously submit any questions they have regarding sexuality, so as to be discussed in a
group setting. This approach to sex education also rarely encourages abstinence, but rather aims
to reinforce that sexual relationships can be extremely positive and rewarding experiences when
approached in a healthy manner.
According to a survey carried out by the Public Religion Research Institute, four in ten
millennials in the United States feel that the information that they received regarding healthy
sexual practices during their youth was inadequate. 66 percent of sexually active teens in the
United States report that they wish they had waited longer to begin engaging in sexual activity,
whereas sexually active teens from the Netherlands generally describe their initial sexual
encounters as “wanted and fun.”
Re-evaluating the way in which we approach sexual education in the United States would
not only serve to mitigate instances of rape and sexual violence, but also likely lead to the
populace engaging in healthier sexual practices in general.
Comments
Post a Comment