Research Proposal PowerPoint

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Marginalized
Students and
Sexual Education
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Topic Overview
§ Sexual Education is a critical part of adolescent's (aged 15-18)
development. The course is supposed to cover information in
regards to contraceptives, human development, relationships,
and sexually transmitted diseases. Prior research has shown
that these educational topics are lacking in the course, leaving
many students feeling under prepared and uninformed when it
comes to adulthood.

§ Marginalized students, for this study being defined as, youth of

color, young women, and LBGTQ (lesbian, bisexual, gay,
transgendered, and queer) are more drastically effected due to
the results of poor sexual education than others.
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Review of the Literature
§ Those of the marginalized population; being youth of color, women, and
LBGTQ (lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgendered, and queer) students are
under looked more than others. Research on what students are actually
learning during sexual education classes has been substantially looked
upon. Information from the research keeps pointing in the direction that
many adolescents are not receiving valuable information during the
courses and are in turn having to rely on the internet or friends.
Disparities among students was a recurring theme in many of the
research articles, with different subpopulations not receiving proper
sexual education. This was most commonly reported among students
who are black or Hispanic, living in poverty, having parents with a lower
education, and who attended religious services, less frequently
(Lindberg & Maddow-Zimet. 2012).
 z Review of the Literature – Young Women
§ When comparing abstinence based education to comprehensive based sexual
education, there is a reinforcement on gender stereotypes to those who receive
abstinence based education. In a thesis paper conducted by Lynch (2017), she goes
into full detail about how abstinence only sexual education reconstructs that women are
the “gatekeepers'' of male sexuality, meaning that they are responsible for preventing
unwanted sexual advances

§ Young women are also labeled as temptresses, with messages being relayed in the
form of lessons on proper attire, male aggressiveness and female submissiveness, and
a view of women needing protection (Lynch. 2017). These messages in turn degrade
women as not having power and instill an image of dangerous male entitlement and
females as ones to blame (Hoefer & Hoefer. 2017).

§ Sexual education has been known to be separated by gender, which firstly, leaves
individuals unsure about the other sexes body, but also reinforces gender typing, this
greatly stigmatizes those who are transgendered, but also all who are part of the
LBGTQ community, leaving many individuals feeling undereducated (Hall et al., 2019).
 z Review of the Literature – LBGTQ
Students
§ Individuals who are of these populations complain of not receiving sexual
education that is geared towards them, but more in terms of heterosexuality. As
of 2017, only 12 states required that the sexual education information include
facts geared towards sexual orientation, with 3 states requiring any information
about sexual orientation that is outside heterosexuality to be negative (Hoefer &
Hoefer. 2017).

§ Two states out of 50 are inclusive of diverse sexual orientation and gender
identities, by including these diversities, students of the LBGTQ community feel
safer in school environments due to eliminating the heteronormative perspective
(Hall et al., 2016)

§ Without inclusions, LBGTQ students have complained of feeling underprepared

to navigate their sexual lives, having an installment of shame associated with
sexuality and curiosity, and a lack of emotional safety in regards to their sexual
orientation (Hoefer & Hoefer. 2017).
 z Review of the Literature – Youth of Color
§ Individuals tend to be under included in sexual health protections that white
youth typically have. Such as ideas that white adolescents are “exploring their
natural curiosity, or making youthful mistakes” (Hoefer & Hoefer. 2017). These
stigmas branch as far as a “knowing” that children of color will partake in riskier
behaviors resulting in unwanted pregnancies and higher rates of “children
raising children” (Fields. 2008).

§ Educators seem to assume that students considered to be a racial minority are

more sexually active than they are, resulting in a lack of education in regards to
abstaining from sex until ready or on contraceptives (Fields. 2008). This
therefore leaves these students more vulnerable to becoming pregnant or
contracting an STI, which reiterates the educators “assumptions”, but due to a
lack of education, not higher rates of sexual behavior (Hoefer & Hoefer. 2017).
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Documented Problem from the
Literature

§ After reviewing the research, the developed research questions for this
study has been formed as; Why are marginalized high school students,
aged 15-18, in Southern states underrepresented during their sexual
education courses?
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Research question
§ The main goal of this research is to figure out firstly, why marginalized
students are severely under looked in regards to sexual education.
Secondly, to see if the rates are higher in the southern states. Research
done by Hoefer and Hoefer (2017) on a small scale sample of 16 students
showed trends that accurately reflect that marginalized students are not
receiving proper sexual education. But, the study does not answer exactly
why. By looking to a larger sample size and reflecting off of recurring gaps in
research, more information about how to adequately help these students
may become available. The formal research question for this study is; why
are marginalized high school students, aged 15-18, underrepresented
during sexual education courses in Southern States?
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Statement of the Problem
§ Marginalized students are being underrepresented in their sexual education
classes leading to poor health outcomes that could be reversed due to a non
stereotyping or stigmatizing course. High schools are the main source of health
education for students aged 15-18, which means responsibility should be placed on
the school to provide proper and nonexclusive information. Qualitative research
needs to be further conducted on the subject in the form of focus groups in order to
ensure that these individuals thoughts and feelings are heard. By receiving in person
experiences, the research will be able to further expand on the topic of marginalized
students and sexual education to potentially find a way to solve the underlying
question of why. The outcomes will more than likely be similar to previous studies,
but by including individuals from different economical backgrounds, results will
hopefully more accurately reflect the challenges faced.
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Overview of The Research Design –
The Gap

§ Much research has been conducted on sexual education and how it is

a flawed system. So why has nothing been done to change the
curriculum? Why are those who marginalized not receiving enough
crucial sexual health information? Why are stereotypes and stigmas
still placed in sexual education?
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Overview of the Research Design –
Qualitative Research
§ The Interactive Mode

1) Research Question: Why is sexual education, abstinence or

comprehensive based, lacking for marginalized adolescents?

2) Goals: To come to a conclusion on why education is lacking for

these students and what can be done to make necessary changes?

3) Methods: Focus Group

4) Validity: Respondent Bias

5) Conceptual Framework: Review of the literature / literature review

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Overview of the Research Process –
Addressing Validity
§ The study relates specifically to high school students, but by hosting a focus
group with individuals under the age of 18, issues could arise. By looking to
college aged students who still remember their sexual education, should allow
the ability to transfer results to the actual population being looked at. There is
still the possibility of respondent bias, meaning that individuals will say things
that they think the researcher will want to hear. This needs to be solved by
stating that there is confidentiality, that the focus group is a safe space, and that
thoughtful answers could help individuals not go through what the participants
went through.

§ Also have to keep in mind that the sample size is not huge, meaning there could
be issues generalizing the results to the whole population. This will be noted in
the research results.
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Overview of the Research – Selective
Purposive
§ The way to find individuals for the sample is to do a maximum
variation sampling technique, meaning to reach out to
individuals of all backgrounds.
§ Inclusion Criteria: Marginalized Students - low income, women,
LBGTQ students, and students of color
§ Exclusion Criteria: Students that are not considered marginalized
and also those who feel they received a good sexual education in
high school
§ Number of Participants: Two separate focus groups at different
colleges consisting of 20 individuals each
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Overview of the Research Process –
Method of Gathering Data

§ The method of data gathering will be a focus group. This will

allow for a wider range of participants, instead of having to do
multiple in person interviews which can get time consuming. The
focus groups will occur at two different colleges, one being a
four year public institution, and another being a two year
community college. This will hopefully eliminate any bias results
due to income or privilege. A twenty person focus group, with an
end goal of 40 responses, will allow for a more diverse group
and a wide range of answers.
z Focus Group Questions
§ Questions Regarding Sexual Education in General

1. How would you rate the overall experience of your high school sex
education class?

2. Do you feel that your sexual education course has prepared you for
college or for your future endeavors?

3. Do you feel as if your course instructor was knowledgeable on the

topics covered?

4. Were topics such as sexually transmitted diseases and

contraceptives covered?

5. Do you feel that your course stressed abstinence based ideals,

such as waiting till marriage?
 Focus Group Questions
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§ Questions Geared Towards Marginalized Students

1. Do you feel that the course reiterated stereotypes?

2. For those of the LBGTQ+ community, do you feel that the course prepared you for safe sex and preventive
measures?

3. Was the course sexist in any nature, such as reiterating “women’s duties”

4. Did you feel uncomfortable during the course?

5. If you could go back and change anything, what would it be?

6. With southern states being more conservative, do you think that a comprehensive based sexual education would be
better?

7. Would you, at 17 years old, have appreciated knowing that you could talk to your sexual education teacher about
questions you had?

8. Did you feel like you COULD talk to your teacher about these questions?

9. If you did not receive a proper sexual education in school, where was the information in regards to sexuality,
contraceptives, etc. coming from?

10. If you could see one change made, what would that be and why?
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Proposed Method of Data Analysis

§ After the focus group, the first step would be to transcribe the
data. From here, common themes can be composed using a
matrix that looks at open, axial, and descriptive codes.

§ From the common themes, results can be composed to see

what a majority of the students felt during their time in the sexual
education courses
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References
§ Fields, J. (2008). Risky lessons: Sex education and social inequality. Rutgers University
Press.

§ Hall, W. J., Jones, B. L. H., Witkemper, K. D., Collins, T. L., & Rodgers, G. K. (2019).
State policy on school-based sex education: A content analysis focused on
sexual behaviors, relationships, and identifies. American Journal of Health
Behaviors, 43(3), 506-519. doi: 10.5993/AJHB.43.3.6

§ Hoefer, S. E., & Hoefer, R. (2017). Worth the wait? The consequences of abstinence-only
sex education for marginalized students. American Journal of Sexuality
Education, 12(3), 257-276. doi: 10.1080/15546128.2017.1359802

§ Lindberg, L. D., & Maddow-Zimet, I. (2012). Consequences of sex education on teen and
young adult sexual behaviors and outcomes. Journal of Adolescent Health, 51(4),
332-338. doi: 10.1016/j.adohealth.2011.12.028

§ Lynch, Moira N. (2017). Abstinence-only sex education in the United States: How abstinence
curricula have harmed America. University Honors Theses, Paper 380. doi:
10.15760/honors.372