Tag Archives: Sex Education

Commentary

Canadian study suggests how parents can influence children’s sexual choices

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Story here at No Apologies. (H/T Andrew)

This is based on a study by the Institute of Marriage and Family Canada. (IMFC)

Excerpt:

Parents’ behaviour and attitudes during childhood shape a teen’s sexual choices. Based on our findings we recommend:

• Parents should be the prime sex educator. Parents are the most influential force in a teens life

• Parents should work to create a healthy, stable home characterized by warmth, open communication and clear expectations

• Parents should model a healthy lifestyle and positive choices. Your children are watching

• Sex education should engage parents and recognize their role as the primary sex educators

• Sex education should acknowledge that girls face unique risks compared to boys when it comes to early sexual engagement

While it may seem daunting to see correlations between family behaviours years ago and sexual activity in your children today – the news is positive. Teens do listen and want to listen to their parents, as indicated by surveys and polls. It’s something to remember next time your teen slams the door and turns up the music.

Here are the four practical tips discussed in the IMFC article:

  • Eliminate parental use of alcohol, drugs and tobacco
  • Involved and engaged fathers and increased parent-child communication
  • Increased community involvement by parents, especially church
  • Married parents biologically linked to the children
News

New study explains the best way for young people to avoid sexual risks

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Story from Life Site News.

Excerpt:

A new study from Marquette University has found that religious attitudes toward sexuality, parent-based sexual education and intact two-parent households have a positive influence upon youth in their sexual practices and the onset of first sexual intercourse.

Researchers took a nationally representative sample of 3,168 men and women ages 15-21 years old from a 2002 National Survey of Family Growth and obtained the data from 60-90 minute interviews with participants from the 2002 survey.

The study’s findings confirmed previous research literature, which suggests “religiosity” – defined by the authors as a set of institutionalized beliefs, doctrines and rituals, and ethical standards for how to live a good life – is “a protective factor that appears to contribute to decreased sexual risk behaviors.”

According to the study, those who viewed religion as “very important” reported an average of 1.9 lifetime sexual partners and on average began sexual activity at 17.4 years. In contrast, those who viewed religion as somewhat important or “not important at all,” began their first sexual activity at 16.9 years and had an average of 2.9 lifetime sexual partners.

However, researchers found that high religious attitudes toward sexuality (RAS) “appeared to be the most protective religiosity variable in terms of decreasing sexual risk.”

Good parenting from both parents in an intact family and a teleological outlook on life works well during the teen years, because teens sometimes don’t respond to arguments and evidence. They tend to think that bad things won’t happen to them, no matter how much evidence you show them. I would still show them the evidence, though.

But these numbers from the study do surprise me, because it seems as though not very many young people are abstaining from sex before they are married. I am in my thirties and radically, radically chaste. So it is definitely possible to abstain from sex and hold out for a more solid commitment and radical intimacy.

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News

“Pleasure-based” sex education in Canadian classrooms

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Story from LifeSiteNews. (H/T Andrew)

Excerpt:

Lianne George of Maclean’s magazine has penned a piece published this week on a new trend in schools’ sexual education offerings to focus on the pleasure of sex. Her article highlights the work of Toronto’s Carlyle Jansen, the owner of a ‘sex shop’ for women, Good For Her, who has launched a new not-for-profit organization devoted to offering free, “pleasure-based” sex workshops to schools and other groups in the area.

Jansen has long offered pleasure-based workshops through her store, but, according to George, a year and a half ago Jansen started getting calls from local high school teachers who wanted her to come and offer sex-ed to their classes. Since then, Jansen guesses that she has spoken to about 12 or 15 classes.

“Kids are taught to death about all the bad things that can happen to them if they have sex,” Jansen told George. “They’ve said, ‘We’ve heard about sexually transmitted infections, we know you can get pregnant, but we want to know about pleasure and we want to know about healthy relationships.'”

[…]Now, Jansen has helped launch the Sexual Health Education Pleasure Project (SHEPP) in the Greater Toronto Area, whose mission is “to provide free, pleasure-based sexual health education focused mainly on marginalized communities including youth, people of colour, women, queer and trans communities.” Course topic titles include “Negotiating what you want – in and out of the bedroom,” and “Cool, safe, and hot sex.”

A topic entitled “Re-visioning ‘pro-choice'” is also on the list, with the description: “Not just about abortion any more. Know your rights!” The group explains their vision of ‘pro-choice’ further on a page entitled ‘What We Believe In’. While the phrase is certainly used to designate openness to abortion, the groups sees it as including a broader range of sexual choices, including the freedom to exercise sexual license and the freedom to marry whomever one chooses.

The Maclean’s article is here.