“Usually, when we start the session, there’s a lot of laughter,” says a child psychologist. Sex education in schools and colleges consists of awareness sessions about hygiene practices, menstrual wellness, and physical and hormonal changes during puberty. The mentors keep the sessions interactive, address questions that make boys and girls comfortable about the topic and teach them the importance of sex education.
“We are a team of doctors who conduct sex education workshops tailor-made for students of different age groups. For high school students, it is to familiarize them with concepts of sexual wellness. For students in middle school or lower grades, we talk about hygienic practices to keep their intimate parts clean and prevent infections,” says Dr Sushma Gopalan, child psychologist and child life specialist at Aster CMI Hospital, Bangalore.
How important is sex education at school?
Firstly, to understand sex education, students need to learn about their bodies and what physical or emotional changes they undergo at the onset of puberty. Dr Gopalan says that both boys and girls go to the internet to search for answers. “When they start noticing changes in their body, they will have plenty of questions,” she added. There is a lot of misleading information on the internet, which can lead to health complications. Hence, sex education in schools becomes important. “Students in these sessions have plenty of questions and the mentors create a platform for discussions,” says Dr Gopalan.
Educational institutions make way for students to understand various facets of sexual wellness through these sessions. Highlighting the importance of sex education, some schools conduct workshops in collaboration with menstrual hygiene firms, psychiatrists, counselors and doctors. Ramitha Ramachandran, principal of a school in Bangalore, said that the students should be advised on these essential aspects of personal hygiene and sexual wellness.
She says, “Sanitary napkin companies have done menstrual hygiene programs. Life-skill sessions were also conducted to address various aspects of health and hygiene, including the adolescent education program, which highlights these topics in detail.”
Talking to Happiest Health, Anushka Roy, a class 10 student at a private school in Mumbai, says that their school initially highlighted good and bad touch by respecting each other’s bodies from childhood. “During grades 5-6, menstruation is often discussed on campus amongst classmates. Boys and girls had separate sessions for awareness. Girls were provided information about periods and how to deal with it while boys were taught how to be respectful towards their female classmates.”
She added that in higher grades, students are taught about sexual wellness. Though these were not part of our syllabus, these sessions were compulsory.
Respecting bodies is a crucial aspect of sex education
The very concept of conducting sex education in separate classes initially is to make them comfortable. Once they are a bit comfortable and realize the importance, the classes are conducted together, says Dr Gopalan. Boys should understand what changes the girls undergo and girls should understand what boys go through to be aware of normal bodily functions. “We talk about adolescent pressures and hormonal changes and how to inculcate acceptance of these bodily changes,” Dr Gopalan added.
Preventing infections: Staying away from STDs
Students should be taught that engaging in sexual activities can lead to infections due to HIV and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs). Dr Asfia Khaleel, consultant psychiatrist and director of Umeed De-addiction and Rehab Centre, Bangalore, says that it is imperative to take measures to prevent infections from occurring as well as avoid the risk of unwanted pregnancies. This adds to the importance of sex education.
“It is necessary to educate them about barrier methods like the use of condoms for both males and females. Students must be informed that they should not indulge in unsafe sexual practices,” added Khaleel.
Parents care is a must
Parents also play a crucial role in introducing sex education to their children, explains Dr Gopalan. They should initiate discussions about good touch, bad touch, and body awareness and normalize sexual wellness progressively. Parents should communicate with their children, and mothers should create a safe and supportive environment to discuss these things.
They can start by having conversations about puberty and bodily changes. For younger children, this might mean using books to explain basic concepts. Parents can provide more detailed information and answer any questions as children age.
Takeaway
- Sex education offers a multitude of health benefits to students. This includes becoming more aware of their bodily changes during puberty, physical well-being, sexual health, and safe sexual practices.
- Curious young minds get more clarity about different aspects of hygiene of intimate body parts.
- Experts stress the importance of sex education and advise that it should be a mandatory inclusion in the curriculum of every educational institution.
- Parents should encourage discussions with their children at home to normalize intimate health and prevent unnecessary health complications.
