I’m starting this article based around a single fact: everyone deserves access to sex education that is inclusive, informative, accurate, honest, and comprehensive. This is not up for debate, it is a fact. Unfortunately, far too many people do not have access to this kind of sex education. Curriculums, whether mandated by a governing body or created by an individual school, should reflect these realities. But this isn’t what I would like to discuss today. I want to look at the ways we can better sex education by having sex ed taught by sex educators.
Most schools that offer sex-ed programs have these programs taught by teachers who aren’t properly educated in sexual health information. All of my own sex ed in school was taught by homeroom teachers or phys ed teachers, and this is the case for many others. There are many reasons that sex educators would be better suited for this task, and I’d like to go over five of them. These reasons are based upon my own experiences, the experiences of others, and the sex education knowledge I have gained since my own school days.
1. Students deserve accurate information.
Even in places where the sex education curriculum is fairly comprehensive, accurate information isn’t necessarily guaranteed. Teachers may be trained to present the particular information in the curriculum, but unfortunately, that doesn’t prevent them from sharing their own misconceptions. I am privileged in that I had a fairly comprehensive sex education for many years, but that didn’t stop teachers from telling us that anal sex can get you pregnant because the semen can seep through the anal lining and then through the vaginal wall (no, it absolutely cannot). Sex educators are educated in sexual health, which means they are coming to the table with the correct information, and resources to get updated information whenever necessary. No student should be forced to unlearn incorrect information in the years following their education, and no student should be making sexual health decisions based on information provided by someone who doesn’t fully understand the minutia of the subject.
2. Students deserve a safe environment to discuss sensitive subjects.
Discussing sexual health can be uncomfortable or embarrassing for many people. It can often be hard to talk about anything from STIs and protection to the differences between healthy and unhealthy relationships to LGBTQ+ specific needs. I think one of the things that can make sex ed feel so uncomfortable is the knowledge that the person teaching you probably only has the bare minimum information required to teach you and will then return to teaching whatever their usual subject is. I remember exactly how hard it was to ask specific and sometimes embarrassing questions when the teacher was the same person who yelled at me when I did poorly in gym class or who scolded me for talking during math. Students should feel comfortable asking any questions when engaging in sex ed, and placing them in the care of a specialised sex educator is the best way to guarantee students will feel safe to talk.
3. Students deserve access to an instructor capable of answering all of their questions.
Not all teachers are going to be equipped to answer all questions, which is why trained sex educators are so important. This ties in with accuracy of information. Even if you have all the necessary information to provide to students based on the curriculum, that doesn’t mean you’re going to have the information and resources required to answer those questions. Some of the most ridiculous and incorrect information I received in my own sex ed classes (which were fairly comprehensive compared to many others) were as a result of students asking questions that the teachers didn’t have answers for and that they didn’t have the adequate resources to find the answers for. I can remember feeling like I wasn’t sure which information to trust when our teacher clearly sounded like they were guessing at the answers. A sex educator is better equipped to answer those questions than whichever teacher has been assigned the task.
4. Students deserve teachers with an education in the field they are teaching.
This notion is seemingly self-explanatory for every class except sex ed. We don’t hire literature experts to teach math, we hire someone who was properly educated in math. Why should be hiring someone who wasn’t educated in sexual health to be teaching sexual health? People are concerned with whether or not their children are being educated by someone who is qualified to teach the subjects their children are learning, but this concern seems to be absent when it comes to sex education, even though it’s a subject fraught with rumours, misconceptions, and flat out lies. Comprehensive sex education has the power to impact lives, but it only has the opportunity to do this when it is taught honestly and accurately. Sex educators offer information, skills, tools, and resources that other educators do not have the background to offer.
5. Students deserve a teacher with the knowledge and ability to balance physical information and social information.
Sex education is about a lot more than what goes where. There are physical components, of course, where there is biological and reproductive information shared, information about contraceptives, physical risks, and more. Sex ed should go beyond that. Sex education also covers information about LGBTQ+ identities, respectful inclusivity of LGBTQ+ folks, and resources for kids having struggles related to their identities. It covers issues relating to abuse and rape, and not just for students who may experience that, but for students in the room who already have experienced rape or abuse. It should absolutely cover consent. It should cover mental health as related to sexual health. It should cover physical health and disabilities as related to sexual health. The social side of sex education is just as important as the physical. Sex educators are best equipped to ensure students have access to all of these areas of learning and understanding.
Saying that everyone deserves access to sex education that is inclusive, informative, accurate, honest, and comprehensive is the bare minimum. Without appropriately knowledgable sex educators, we aren’t actually offering students that minimum. Having a sex education curriculum that reflects these values is a start (and unfortunately, there are not nearly enough places that have started), but we won’t truly be in the right place until we can offer students classes that have been taught by sex educators.
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