Sex education in schools? It’s the parents who need lessons. Far too many don’t know how to teach their kids about a very delicate subject
WHAT
do you think of the calls for sex education to be made more graphic?
There’s a debate around the whole issue of how and when we teach our children about sex. That debate came to a head last week when there was a heated argument on This Morning.
On one side, Belgian psychologist Goedele Liekens saying we should give our children more explicit sex education.
On the other, radio host Nick Ferrari calling for a more cautious approach.
I don’t believe there should be a “one size fits all” solution when it comes to the whole business of teaching our children about sex and their bodies.
I know a lot of people feel we should try to preserve our children’s innocence as much as we can.
It’s becoming much more challenging to do that. But if we try to take a more tailored approach for each individual child, I think that can only be a good thing.
After all, most primary classes have around 30 children in them.
How can a teacher answer all their questions and pitch the teaching of what is undoubtedly a delicate subject, so that it’s just right for all of them?
Shouldn’t what kids are taught at a young age about all this be largely up to the parents?
No one knows a child better than their parents. One seven-year-old might be fairly mature and ready to learn more than the next, who is more immature and not ready to be given those facts. So why don’t we try a whole new approach? I don’t believe sex education should be the sole responsibility of schools, though there should be a basic level of it as part of the school curriculum. But I believe parents need to play a much bigger part. The problem is that some parents feel uncomfortable discussing sex and even their child’s changing body.
Or they don’t know how to introduce the subject, or what to say. Why don’t we support parents more? We could give them lessons on how to talk to their children about everything, from going through puberty to the issue of sexual consent and how to answer tricky questions.
I think if we got parents into schools, held workshops and discussions about sex education, it could be a more effective way of dealing with it.
Isn’t it worth thinking a little differently and trying something new?
Parents have the biggest influence of all on their children’s lives.
So let’s make the most of that.
It’s becoming much more challenging to preserve our children’s innocence