Compare and Contrast How Boys and Girls Are Taught Sex Education in Various Cultures

Compare and Contrast How Boys and Girls Are Taught Sex Education in Various Cultures
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Abstract
Sex education is critical for girls and boys as they develop to become mature in life. Better sex education approaches prevent cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and ensure that boys and girls understand their bodies and develop responsibly. However, various cultures around the world tend to discourage efforts to affording better sex education to youth. For instance, religious teachings and abstinence-only approaches among Muslims and African Americans have contributed to the rising rates of STIs. Policies in Spain and Italy of not supporting sex education in schools have also failed prevention measures in the countries. A comparison of how boys and girls are taught sex education in different cultures is provided in the paper to determine the effectiveness of such approaches.
Compare and Contrast How Boys and Girls Are Taught Sex Education in Various Cultures
Introduction
Society could gain the most and become more egalitarian if boys and girls receive same-sex education and messages about gender, sex, and relationships. Dividing young people based on gender implies that they receive different sex education. However, according to Rough (2018), many cultures across the globe have reinforced the cultural taboo about sex education and buttressed the idea that sex should not be discussed when boys are mixed with girls. Besides, religious teachings among Muslims have polarized discussions about sex and approaches to sex education among Muslim youth will remain unsuccessful (Smerecnik et al., 2010). In Italy, sex education is not compulsory and no laws have been passed to support sex education initiatives (Fontana, 2018). The best practice is to speak to both genders about sex at the same time to ensure inclusiveness. In many countries, such as Italy and Spain, sex education and messages are given with taboos and there has been a common practice of separating boys from girls when giving them sex education. Spain also faces challenges due to a lack of teacher training (Martinez, Vicario-Molina, & Ilabaca, 2013). Proponents of separating genders argue that students are more comfortable to ask sensitive questions when separated by gender (Rough, 2018). However, children may not be nervous when mixed while giving them sex education and sensitive questions can be presented through anonymous question boxes. This paper compares and contrasts how boys and girls are taught sex education in various cultures and identify specific approaches and their merits.
While women's equality and reproductive rights are crucial for sustainable development, girls around the world continue to face struggles in accessing information about reproductive and sexual health (The Guardian, 2019). Girls are taught how to be able to resist the pressure to having sex and how they can access contraceptives. Efforts have been made to empower girls and women through family planning and ensuring reproductive health is central in effective policy formulation. However, many girls around the world have been left out with about 15 million adolescent girls aged between 15 and 19 reporting to having experienced forceful sex, 12 million girls below the age of 18 have been married, and a staggering 130 million girls have dropped out of school (The Guardian, 2019). The approach to teaching girls sex education is that girls should not date while in school. Among Muslims in the Netherlands, the use of Quranic verses has challenged sex education in schools (Smerecnik et al., 2010). Among African Americans, Breunig (2017) has reported that the abstinence-only sex education approach has failed to work among youths and there are high rates of sexually-transmitted infections (STIs). According to one of the girls “The Guardian” interviewed, some pare...