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In recent discussions of youth education, a controversial issue has been whether sex
education should be mandatory for children to receive in school. On the one hand, some
argue that it is inappropriate to teach children about sex. From this perspective, sex is a topic
that is embarrassing and has no need for children to learn at a young age. On the other hand,
however, others argue that sex education plays an at least equally crucial role as other
knowledge and skills. In the words of Fatima Mohammed, the author of the book Higher
Heels, Bigger Dreams, one of this view’s main proponents, “Sex education is essential to
create healthy self-knowledge and reconciliation, healthy conversation and understanding,
healthy mindsets and lifestyles.” According to this view, sex education contributes crucially
to children’s physical and psychological development. In sum, the issue is whether sex
education is something necessary for children to be taught.
My own view is that sex education should be integrated into the curriculum for
children to learn at school. Though I concede that the subject of the lessons may conflict with
the moral and religious beliefs of some students, I still maintain that the benefits that welldesigned classes bring outweigh their potential harm. For example, in-class sex education
helps students open up about possible issues they may face in future sexual relationships, that
they may be unwilling to share otherwise. Although some might object that teens may engage
in more sexual activities after being exposed to sexual topics, I would reply that properly
trained teachers with adequate lessons would reduce the risks and generate long-lasting
positive impacts on youths instead. The issue is important because only if an appropriate
perspective is established regarding sex education, children can grow up and protect
themselves the best.
Sex education provides children with useful knowledge to reduce teen pregnancy
rates and thus lower certain sexual health risks. People on the opposite side of sex education
tend to believe that sex education makes youths indulge in sexual behaviors and cause more
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teen pregnancies. This view is mistaken because it dismisses professional pieces of
knowledge that sex education brings to children. In fact, Researchers Kohler et al. investigate
the effect of sex education on the sexual health issues of children. The data turns out that
better and more comprehensive sex education leads to fewer pregnancies since youths are
educated on the usage of condoms. Furthermore, Hillier and Mitchell, researchers working at
the Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society, verify that the prioritization of sex
education could deter HIV’s spread among adolescents because their awareness of safe sex is
cultivated. Thus, sex education could provide teenagers with the required knowledge and
assist them to understand sexual health risks, which would lead to fewer teen pregnancies and
abortions, and reduced exposure to infections and sexually transmitted diseases.
With sex education, young people are cultivated with the ability to respect,
communicate and recognize the violent behaviors in romantic relationships, which helps them
to develop healthy relationships in the future. The importance of maintaining a healthy
relationship is typically dismissed and barely taught in school; however, such ignorance
could lead to severe results. According to research data from the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention, about one in twelve high school students experienced physical violence from
their dating partners. To address this problem, comprehensive education is needed since it
could provide children with the knowledge and skills they need to understand and deal with
violent dating behaviors. Such behaviors could be reduced with sufficient education at a
young age. Also, teens would be taught how to identify abusive behaviors and how to seek
help, not only in dating but in their future sexual relationships as well.
Additionally, sex education could foster an appreciation of sexual diversity, which
reduces related social stereotypes and gender discrimination. Children absorb an
understanding of the roles of males and females in society at a young age, which lays the
foundation for the formation of their personal values, so it is of great significance for them to
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form an inclusive and respectful mindset. Sex education helps strengthen proper attitudes
toward sex and sexuality. The school could offer classes that lead students to understand and
accept various definitions of gender, as well as combat the stereotypes regarding gender
roles. On top of this, researcher Kirsten Helmer has established that when provided with
lessons to learn and discuss LGBTQ-related information, students gradually changed from
discomfort to confidence in talking about the issues and could actually become more
supportive advocates for the LGBTQ community. Therefore, sex education is necessary for
children to receive because it reduces social bias and discrimination in the long run.
Recognizing the importance of sex education, the school environment provides a
comprehensive and ideal environment for children to learn sexual knowledge, compared to
most outside media. In a published research article in the journal Archives of Sexual
Behavior, Rothman et al discovered that when adolescents are not receiving adequate
discussion about sex from parents and schools, they are more inclined to use pornography as
a useful source of sexual information. However, as commented by Emily Rothman,
a professor at the Boston University School of Public Health in the department of community
health sciences, pornography is probably not the right source for sex education since it is
created to focus on what's profitable, but not what’s instructional. To prevent young people
from receiving information in an improper way, proactive sex education is necessary.
Compared to unfiltered online platforms and parents (many of whom might consider sex as
taboo), schools are equipped with the best capacity of offering well-structured lectures and a
safe environment for all children to receive sex education. Well-trained teachers could
regulate the class and lead students to understand sex in an appropriate way by teaching them
professional knowledge and providing an inclusive chance for everyone to communicate. As
a result, school is the best place for possibly all students to receive the most comprehensive
and appropriate information and skills about sex and sexuality.
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To summarize, sex education provided by schools could help children reduce sexual
health risks, cultivate their capacity of maintaining healthy relationships, and form a proper
attitude towards gender and gender roles. Additionally, the inclusivity and professionalism of
schools provide an ideal environment for these goals to be carried out. Admittedly, the
implementation of sex education may come with certain risks, but these risks could be
minimized with the proper curriculum. Furthermore, the benefits that sex education brings to
children are far more important and meaningful in a long run. Thus, sex education should be
mandatory for children to learn in school.
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Work Cited
Helmer, Kirsten. ‘“Everyone Needs a Class like This’: High School Students' Perspectives on
a Gay and Lesbian Literature Course.” The Educational Forum, vol. 79, no. 4, 2015,
pp. 408–420., https://doi.org/10.1080/00131725.2015.1068421.
Hillier, Lynne, and Anne Mitchell. ‘“It Was as Useful as a Chocolate Kettle’: Sex Education
in the Lives of Same‐Sex‐Attracted Young People in Australia.” Sex Education, vol.
8, no. 2, 2008, pp. 211–224., https://doi.org/10.1080/14681810801981258.
Kohler, Pamela K., et al. “Abstinence-Only and Comprehensive Sex Education and the
Initiation of Sexual Activity and Teen Pregnancy.” Journal of Adolescent Health, vol.
42, no. 4, 2008, pp. 344–351., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2007.08.026.
Rothman, Emily F., et al. “The Prevalence of Using Pornography for Information about How
to Have Sex: Findings from a Nationally Representative Survey of U.S. Adolescents
and Young Adults.” Archives of Sexual Behavior, vol. 50, no. 2, 2021, pp. 629–646.,
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01877-7.