Sex: the subject you didn’t learn in school

A collage of tweets from J.K. Rowling’s twitter.
In school we are told that drugs are bad and that we should stay away from them; we dedicate a whole week where teachers have to find a way to integrate this topic into their teaching curriculum. If drugs and their negative effects are being discussed so openly amongst schools, why isn’t the same level of awareness being given to other subjects that are just as taboo? For example, why don’t we have a week where we talk about safe sex or the lack thereof? As mentioned earlier, sex is one of the most risque subjects to be talked about on school grounds, yet this topic is probably one of the most broad and deep topics existing in our modern culture. Even though it’s been normalised by various mediums, such as music and writing, this topic is apparently too much to be discussed during class time.
Middle College High School, along with other high schools, doesn’t have a Sex Ed program, and this is a problem. The problem with this is that students aren’t given the chance to talk openly and question any ideas they might have about sex. It’s very easy to be misinformed about sex when you have friends who are having sex and each give different advice. We are still teenagers, and it’s important to have that grownup figure talking to us about sex and warning us about the dangers of unprotected sex.
Even though this subject is one that’s not the most comfortable to talk about, that doesn’t mean that it should be completely ignored. Instead schools, such as ours, should promote the ideas of safe sex through various campaigns, such as, but not limited to: optional classes discussing safe sex, handing out information on birth control, or even just spreading the word on condoms. By practicing safe sex, not only are you lowering the chances of pregnancy, but the risk of sexually transmitted disease and HIV are lowered by 75 percent. In most high schools, there are condoms located in the nurse’s office and multiple posters and/or around school promoting safe sex. For as long as I’ve been at Middle College, I can confidently say that I have never seen at least one poster promoting safe sex or awareness towards HIV and STDs.
I conducted a survey where I asked 50 students the same five questions regarding sex. I asked, What’s the big deal about sex? What do you know about safe sex? What’s something that our school could possibly teach about safe sex? Why do you think our society is more comfortable talking about drug use than sex? and finally, Do your parents talk to you about sex? It was interesting to see some students shy away from answering my questions even though they were told it would be anonymous. As I ask myself why teenagers might feel embarrassed, I easily remember that we are told to not talk about certain actions in school or in a public environment.
Sex isn’t just physical, but also emotional, and it is important to learn about when to be ready for the effect that sex can have on one’s state of mind. In the survey I conducted, most students said that the big deal about sex was that it was a big step to take for a relationship while others said that there didn’t have to be an emotional connection to the sexual act itself. When in a teenage relationship, there can be a lot of pressure to have sex or perform other sexual activities. Sex can be tricky, but it is something that everyone should be careful with and I feel that the more we know about it the more we are able to accept it as part of something natural.

Fun Facts:
I like to sing and write poems.
I like to read sci-fi books.
My favorite Disney movie is "Hercules."
This article is very much true and is simply excellent.
This article is correct and i believe it is true that this is a very important topic.
I think you have strong points and a really great idea. Writing this article is a good start to trying to get this happening for the safety of our classmates and friends. 🙂 I also noticed they don’ provide this class at this school like others, and it is just common knowledge that everyone should know
Good job, Sandra! 😉
This a very informational article (I did this for extra credit XD)
This is an interesting article and I agree that we should talk about “it” more.
I find this article very interesting, because I also believe that it’s very important to educate and inform students about it and how we can prevent bad things from happening.
I thought that this article is very interesting on an important subject. I think that teachers should give a bit of their time to help students with this matter, but it is a very uncomfortable subject when it comes to talking to students about it.
This is very well written, and I completely agree with the thought of having a Sex Ed class, optional or not. Sex Ed might open the eyes of some people and prevent youngsters from having sex or at least motivate them to do it safely. Teenage pregnancy has now become a stereotypical thing to societies, and it shouldn’t be. I believe sex ed would be very informative and speaking about this topic brought another thing to my mind. What if MCHS had a self-defense class? Many students, including me, take the public bus or walk home late in the day. I’ve come across many weirdos, perverts, and just in general people that aren’t very nice. Knowing how to defend myself would be beneficial. It might be too much to ask, but it’s just a suggestion.
PS : I just really wanted to say this; “Don’t have sex. Cause you will get pregnant, and die” (Coach Carr – Mean Girls)
And way to go Sandra! Love you girl ! <3
I found this quite amusing since I seen so many people have a hard time talking about this subject.
Sex Ed is very important for the youth in our community because nowadays people have unprotected sex with multiple people which is not safe. Diseases are on the RISE. We will die of a disease before we die of obesity. This is the honest truth. Condoms are the best option for EVERYONE.
I think this article is pointing out a good choice that schools should have sex Ed program. How drugs can have a big impact in your life as well as unprotected sex. If our school talks about how drugs are harmful for your heath, unprotected sex can be harmful and can give you many infections.
nice