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SEX EDUCATION REVISITED: SCHOOL-BASED SEX EDUCATION

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 Analele Universităţii “Eftimie Murgu” din Reşiţa

ANALELE UNIVERSITĂŢII “EFTIMIE MURGU” DIN REŞIŢA

FASCICOLA DE ŞTIINŢE SOCIAL-UMANISTE
ANUL VI, 2018

Aurel BAHNARU 1
Remus RUNCAN 2

SEX EDUCATION REVISITED:

SCHOOL-BASED SEX EDUCATION

ABTRACT
Sex education is still a taboo in the Romanian education system: schools promote the
idea that families should teach about sex, while families claim schools should do that. This
paper is an attempt to answer such questions as: Who should teach sex education? What
should sex education emphasise? What should sex education not emphasise? What should
be the outcomes of sex education? The use of the theoretical propositions provided here
will allow a more systematic and ultimately fuller understanding of how sex education
should be taught in schools. This understanding would be useful to educators in their
struggle to reduce teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. The research method
used in the study is content analysis of references regarding sex education. Findings show
there are differences regarding who should teach sex education – the parents or the
schools. It is not clear yet if sex education should emphasise abstinence or teach about
homosexuality, and it is not clear if sex education reduces or not teen pregnancy. Several
conclusions can be drawn: sex education should be taught primarily by parents, sex
education should also be taught in schools, sex education should emphasise values, sex
education should not emphasise abstinence, sex education should reduce teen pregnancy,
schools should teach about homosexuality.

Keywords: Sex education, abstinence, sexually transmitted diseases, teen pregnancy,

homosexuality.
1. INTRODUCTION
School-based sexuality education has been a hotly debated topic in the U.S.A.
(Perez, Luquis & Allison, 2004) and a controversial one in Romania (Smith, 2017). Before
1989, sexual education in schools was promoted for the purpose of a so-called “sexual
emancipation”, but this was limited to topics of anatomy and hygiene (Rada, 2014).

1
Drd., Faculty of Sociology and Psychology, West University of Timișoara, Roumania,
relubahnaru@yahoo.com
2
Lect. Univ. dr. Drd., Faculty of Sociology and Psychology, West University of
Timișoara, Roumania, remus.runcan@e-uvt.ro

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 Fascicola de Ştiinţe Social-Umaniste, Anul VI, 2018
Currently, in Romania, at the public education level, sex education classes “are only
elective topics in school curricula, sparsely and inappropriately covered in most Romanian
schools” (Neamtu, 2005, in Andreescu, 2011, p. 225).
Sex education or sexual education or sexuality education is defined as
“education in schools about sex” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/). It “exhorts
students about how to live the most intimate parts of their lives” (Hendricks & Howerton,
2011).
Sex education should not be mistaken for relationship education or the teaching
of relationship skills that helps to address issues faced by young people today and equips
them for adulthood (Relationships & Sex Education: A Submission from the Family
Stability Network and Centre for Social Justice, 2018).
Sex education targets:
 children (“young human beings below the age of puberty or below the legal age of
majority” – cf. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/) (Roleff, 1999; Brewer,
Brown & Migdal, 2007; Garbutt, 2008; Fehring, 2009; Haglund & Fehring,
2010; O’Sullivan, 2014; Sexuality education – what is it? 2016; Relationships &
Sex Education. A Submission from the Family Stability Network and Centre for
Social Justice, 2018);
 adolescents / teens (“boys or girls in the process of developing from a child into an
adult [between 15 and 19 years of age]” – cf. https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/)
(Roleff, 1999; Kaestle et al., 2005; McKeon, 2006; Brewer, Brown & Migdal,
2007; Van der Stege et al., 2014; Sexuality education – what is it? 2016);
 young adults / youths (“persons in their teens or early twenties” – cf.
https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/) (Kaestle et al., 2005; Brewer, Brown &
Migdal, 2007; Relationships & Sex Education. A Submission from the Family
Stability Network and Centre for Social Justice, 2018);
 adults (“persons who are fully grown or developed” – cf.
https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/) (Roleff, 1999; Brewer, Brown & Migdal,
2007; Relationships & Sex Education. A Submission from the Family Stability
Network and Centre for Social Justice, 2018): lately, there has been increasing
interest in sexuality education for adults with developmental / intellectual /
learning disabilities (Caspar & Masters Glidden, 2001; Garbutt, 2008;
O’Sullivan, 2014; Van der Stege et al., 2014; Schaafsma et al., 2015; Pop &
Rusu, 2016; Pop et al., 2016).

There are three major categories of sexuality education programmes: abstinence-

only sexuality education, abstinence-plus sexuality education, and comprehensive
sexuality education programmes (Pop & Rusu, 2015).

1.1. Abstinence-Only Sexuality Education

Abstinence-only sexuality education is characterised by (Brewer, Brown &
Migdal, 2007):
 Having as its exclusive purpose teaching the social, psychological, and health
gains to be realized by abstaining from sexual activity;

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 Analele Universităţii “Eftimie Murgu” din Reşiţa
 Teaching abstinence from sexual activity outside marriage as the expected
standard for all school age children;
 Teaching that a mutually faithful, monogamous relationship in the context of
marriage is the expected standard of human sexual activity;
 Teaching that abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-
of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and other associated
health problems;
 Teaching that bearing children out-of-wedlock is likely to have harmful
consequences for the child, the child’s parents, and society;
 Teaching that sexual activity outside of the context of marriage is likely to have
harmful psychological and physical effects;
 Teaching the importance of attaining self-sufficiency before engaging in sexual
activity;
 Teaching young people how to reject sexual advances and how alcohol and drug
use increases vulnerability to sexual advances.
It advises students to completely abstain from sex until marriage and excludes any
discussion of contraception or prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, except to discuss
failure rates (Hendricks & Howerton, 2011).

1.2. Abstinence-Plus Sexuality Education

Abstinence-plus sexuality education is on an abstinence-comprehensiveness
continuum. It is characterised by (Pop & Rusu, 2015):
 Placing abstinence at the centre of its approach;
 Concentrating on its undisputed role as the safest premarital sexual strategy;
 Offering information on contraception and condoms with the purpose of helping
adolescents prevent contracting sexually transmitted infections or
unwanted/unplanned pregnancies in case they decide to engage in sexual
activity

1.3. Comprehensive Sex / Sexuality Education

At the beginning of the 21st century, new concepts appeared, among which
comprehensive sex / sexuality education or effective sex education characterised by
(McKeon, 2006):
 Addressing psychosocial risk and protective factors with activities to change each
targeted risk and to promote each protective factor;
 Assisting youth to clarify their individual, family, and community values;
 Assisting youth to develop skills in communication, refusal, and negotiation;
 Being developed in cooperation with members of the target community, especially
young people;
 Contributing to the development of sexual and reproductive health-promoting
skills (e.g. avoiding risk behaviour, communication, decision-making,
expressing refusal, recognising potentially abusive behaviour and dangerous
situations);
 Exploring values;

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 Fascicola de Ştiinţe Social-Umaniste, Anul VI, 2018
 Focusing on specific health behaviours related to the goals, with clear messages
about these behaviours;
 Having clear goals for preventing human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), other
sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and/or teen pregnancy;
 Offering age- and culturally-appropriate sexual health information in a safe
environment for participants;
 Providing medically accurate information about both abstinence and also
contraception, including condoms;
 Relying on participatory teaching methods, implemented by trained educators and
using all the activities as designed;
 Respecting community values and responding to community needs.

It typically promotes abstinence for young people, but it also offers students accurate
information on contraception and the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases
(Hendricks & Howerton, 2011).
According to Smith (2017), sex education, sexual education, and sexual health
education refer to a comprehensive education that includes factual and accurate
information on family planning, HIV/AIDs, modern contraceptives, and sexually
transmitted infections.
Brewer, Brown & Migdal (2007) and the European Expert Group on Sexuality
Education (2016) claim that comprehensive / holistic sexuality education has four main
goals:
 Helping create responsibility regarding sexual relationships, including addressing
abstinence, resisting pressure to become prematurely involved in sexual
intercourse, and encouraging the use of contraception and other sexual health
measures;
 Helping develop interpersonal skills including communication, decision-making,
assertiveness, and peer refusal skills-and help to create satisfying relationships;
 Providing an opportunity to question, explore, and assess sexual attitudes in order
to develop values, increase self-esteem, create insights concerning relationships
with members of both genders, and understand obligations and responsibilities
to others;
 Providing information about human sexuality, including anatomy and physiology,
abstinence, attitudes, body image, contraception, couple/intimate relationships,
gender, growth and development, human development, relationships, personal
skills, reproduction and pregnancy, safe sex, sexual behaviour, sexual health,
sexual orientation, sexual pleasure, and society and culture.

Specialists also study sexual and reproductive health education (Rada, 2014).

2. PROBLEM STATEMENT
Almost two decades ago, a report by Katzive et al. (2000, p. 4) mentioned the
following about Romania: “Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have taken the lead in
providing sex education in schools. Their lectures, however, must be approved by the local
school boards and their content varies from one organization to another. Thus, sex

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 Analele Universităţii “Eftimie Murgu” din Reşiţa
education in some areas is sporadic or non-existent (especially in rural areas) and the
information provided is variable. According to a 1996 study, the primary source of
information on contraception for young women is a friend (27%) or a colleague (13%),
followed by media (17%) and health providers (12%). Ten percent have heard about
contraception first from their mothers, and 6% from their partners. Only 4% cited school
courses.”
Unfortunately, it seems nothing has changed since then. In January 2014, only four
of Romanian NGOs advocated for sexual and reproductive rights (Centrul Euroregional
Pentru Iniţiative Publice (ECPI), Societatea de Educatie Contraceptiva si Sexuala (SECS),
Fundatia Marie Stopes Romania, and Institutul Est-European de Sănătate a Reproducerii
Tg. Mureş). In May 2013, November 2014, September 2015, and April 2016, tens of
Romanian NGOs asked the Ministry of Education to introduce sexuality education in
schools (including kindergarten) curricula. In October 2015, the Minister for Education
promised this demand would be met, but nothing has been done so far.
Currently, there are few NGOs that promote sexuality education in Romania.
Among them, Societatea de Educatie Contraceptiva si Sexuala (Bucharest) and
Fundatia Estera. Centru de Consiliere pentru Femeile cu Sarcina Neplanificata si a
Familiilor Acestora (Timisoara). Other organisations located in Timisoara, Timis
County, Romania, are against sexuality education in schools: Asociația Bărbaților
Creștini din România, Asociația Darul Veții, Asociația Prologos, and Asociația
WorldTeach România.
In her MA thesis on the barriers to implementing a national sexual education in
Romania aimed at reducing pregnancy in teenagers, Smith (2017) identifies barriers that
have strong links with Romania’s culture and societal values:
 The lack of a health education field (including the lack of properly trained
teachers for this topic);
 The lack of accurate, recent and shared data;
 The lack of political engagement caused by the lack of trust for the government
(including school principals that are politically appointed) from the public;
 The lack of purpose in young women who do not have the means to support a
child;
 The lack of visibility of teenage pregnancies in the general Romanian public,
rooted in education, media’s portrayal, and options for pregnant teenagers;
 The organization of those opposed to the implementation of a national strategy
(the political and social power of the Orthodox Church, which “preaches” that
adolescents’ sexual urges are just a product of their environment, that birth
control and condoms are ineffective, and that delaying sexual initiation is most
effective) (Turcescu & Stan, 2005).
We believe the following parent-related barriers (as forms of resistance to
sexuality education) could also be added to this list (Pop & Rusu, 2016):
 Child’s gender;
 Lack of specific knowledge and resources;
 Low self-efficacy;
 Negative expectations regarding the outcomes;
 Parent’s embarrassment;

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 Fascicola de Ştiinţe Social-Umaniste, Anul VI, 2018
 Parent’s fear of judgement or criticism from others;
 Parent’s gender;
 Parental values and beliefs;
 Parents’ perception that their children are too young and too innocent for sex
education and not knowing how and when to talk to them (Smith, 2017).

There is also resistance of teachers to sex education (Perez, Luquis & Allison,
2004):
 They may not feel comfortable with the subject matter;
 They may not feel prepared to instruct sexuality education.
Paradoxically, schools promote the idea that families should teach about sex, while
families claim schools should do that.
However, it seems that parents’ attitude regarding sexual health and education of
children and young people is changing: parents in Romania usually debate in their online
interactions with other parents such topics as parenting sexually developing children and
young people, sex education significance, sexual development and sexual behaviour of
children and young people (Pop & Rusu, 2016).

3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS
Who should teach sexuality education – parents or school?
Why should sexuality education be taught?
How should sexuality education be taught?
What should sexuality education teach?
To whom should sexuality education be taught?
With what effect should sexuality education be taught?

4. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The use of the theoretical propositions provided here will allow a more systematic
and ultimately fuller understanding of how sex education should be taught in schools.
This understanding would be useful to educators in their struggle to reduce teen
pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases

5. RESEARCH METHODS
The research method used in this study is content analysis of reference texts
regarding sexuality education worldwide and in Romania in an attempt to define
school-based sexuality education, its targets, its various forms, and its pros and cons, thus
reaching the main goal of this study: to propose a model of school-based sexuality
education curriculum for people aged 5-18.
We used the keywords above in our content analysis.

6. FINDINGS
Below are the findings / answers to our research questions.
6.1. Who Should Teach Sexuality Education – Parents or School?
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 Analele Universităţii “Eftimie Murgu” din Reşiţa
There are differences regarding who should teach sex education – the parents or the
schools.
McCarthy (1999) advocates it should be the parents, while Elders (1999) advocates
it should be school.
6.2. Why Should Sexuality Education Be Taught?
Here are some of the pros for school-based sexuality education (Kohler, Manhart &
Lafferty, 2008; Hendricks & Howerton, 2011):
 It does not contain factual inaccuracies and misleading information, thereby
contributing to public health problems;
 It does not inculcate teens with gender stereotypes;
 It does not inculcate teens with negative attitudes about sex;
 It does not unconstitutionally promote religion in public schools;
 It encourages teens to refrain from sex until they are more mature;
 It makes adolescents who received comprehensive sex education significantly less
likely to report teen pregnancy;
 It provides teens with the information they need to make their own decisions about
sexual activity;
 It reduces the likelihood of engaging in vaginal intercourse.
Outside the classroom, it increases knowledge and changes attitudes in adults with
developmental disabilities (Caspar & Masters Glidden, 2001).
Here are some of the cons for school-based sexuality education (Kohler, Manhart &
Lafferty, 2008; Hendricks & Howerton, 2011):
 It does not foster a sense of morality among adolescents;
 It does not help teens to avoid the emotional and physical problems that could
come with sex before marriage;
 It does not reduce the likelihood of reported sexually transmitted disease
diagnoses;
 It does not work to keep sex within marriage;
 It encourages teens to engage in premarital sex;
 It is a direct cause of increased levels of sexually transmitted diseases;
 It is a direct cause of teen pregnancy;
 It may lead to an increase in prostitution (a Romanian senator’s opinion cited by
Turcescu & Stan, 2005);
 It makes teenagers less likely of reporting having engaged in vaginal intercourse.
6.3. How Should Sexuality Education Be Taught?
Sexuality education should be taught by adopting (and, if the case, by adapting) the
main key concepts / dimensions and topics of sexuality education for ages 5 to 18 years
developed by the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (2004).
6.4. What Should Sexuality Education Teach?
Sexuality education should teach the main key concepts / dimensions and topics of
sexuality education for ages 5 to 18 years developed by the Sexuality Information and
Education Council of the United States (2004).
 Human development (because it is characterized by the interrelationship between
physical, emotional, social, and intellectual growth) – main topics: sexual and

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 Fascicola de Ştiinţe Social-Umaniste, Anul VI, 2018
reproductive anatomy and physiology, puberty, reproduction, body image,
sexual orientation, gender identity;
 Relationships (because they play a central role throughout our lives) – main
topics: families, friendship, love, dating and romantic relationships, marriage
and lifetime commitments, raising children;
 Personal skills (because healthy sexuality requires the development and use of
specific personal and interpersonal skills) – main topics: values, decision-
making, communication, assertiveness, negotiation, looking for help;
 Sexual behaviour (because sexuality is a central part of being human, and
individuals express their sexuality in a variety of ways) – main topics: sexuality
throughout life, masturbation, shared sexual behaviour, sexual abstinence,
human sexual response, sexual fantasy, sexual dysfunction;
 Sexual health (because the promotion of sexual health requires specific
information and attitudes to avoid unwanted consequences of sexual behaviour)
– main topics: reproductive health, contraception, pregnancy and prenatal care,
abortion, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV & AIDS, sexual abuse, assault,
violence and harassment;
 Society and culture (because social and cultural environments shape the way
individuals learn about and express their sexuality) – main topics: sexuality and
society, gender roles, sexuality and the law, sexuality and religion, diversity,
sexuality and the media, sexuality and the arts.
6.5. To Whom Should Sexuality Education Be Taught?
For each of the main topics above, there are four age levels reflecting four stages of
development and, hence, four levels of understanding:

 Level 1: middle childhood, ages 5 through 8; kindergarten and early elementary

school;
 Level 2: preadolescence, ages 9 through 12; later elementary school;
 Level 3: early adolescence, ages 12 through 15; middle school/junior high school;
 Level 4: adolescence, ages 15 through 18; high school.
For example, within Key Concept 1, developmental messages include, for Level 1:
Each body part has a correct name and a specific function; A person’s genitals,
reproductive organs, and genes determine whether the person is male or female; A boy/man
has nipples, a penis, a scrotum, and testicles; A girl/woman has breasts, nipples, a vulva, a
clitoris, a vagina, a uterus, and ovaries; Some sexual or reproductive organs, such as
penises and vulvas, are external or on the outside of the body while others, such as ovaries
and testicles, are internal or inside the body; Both boys and girls have body parts that feel
good when touched; and, for Level 4: Sexual differentiation, whether a foetus will be male
or female, is determined largely by chromosomes and occurs early in prenatal development;
Some babies are born intersexed which means that they may have ambiguous genitals that
are not clearly male or female and/or that their chromosomes do not match their genitals;
Hormones influence growth and development as well as sexual and reproductive functions;
A woman’s ability to reproduce ceases after menopause; after puberty, a man can usually
reproduce for the rest of his life; Individuals may want to use a mirror to look closely at
their external organs so they can note any changes that may indicate health problems.

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 Analele Universităţii “Eftimie Murgu” din Reşiţa
6.6. With What Effect Should Sexuality Education Be Taught?
Sexuality education should be taught to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually
transmitted diseases.

7. CONCLUSION
The following conclusions can be drawn from our study:
 Schools should teach about homosexuality (this issue is debatable – cf. Lyman,
1999; Vitagliano, 1999);
 Sex education should also be taught in schools (Elders, 1999);
 Sex education should be taught primarily by parents (McCarthy, 1999);
 Sex education should emphasise abstinence (this issue is debatable – cf. Gough,
1999; Haffner, 1999; McIlhaney, 1999; McKeon, 2006; Brewer, Brown &
Migdal, 2007; Haglund & Fehring, 2010);
 Sex education should emphasise values (Etzioni, 1999);
 Sex education should increase condom use (it is not clear if it does – cf. Weed &
Ericksen, 2018; Weed, 2018a; Weed, 2018b);
 Sex education should increase teen abstinence (it is not clear if it does – cf. Weed
& Ericksen, 2018; Weed, 2018a; Weed, 2018b);
 Sex education should reduce sexually transmitted diseases incidence (it is not clear
if it does – cf. Kaestle et al., 2005; Weed & Ericksen, 2018; Weed, 2018a;
Weed, 2018b);
 Sex education should reduce teen pregnancy (it is not clear if it does – cf. Kasun,
1999; Mauldon & Luker, 1999; Likoudis, 1999; Napier, 1999; Weed &
Ericksen, 2018; Weed, 2018a; Weed, 2018b);
 Sex educators should develop more efficient sexual education tools for adults
(according to Pop et al., 2016).

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