40% of schools without proper sex education

FOUR out of 10 secondary schools have failed to fully implement the State’s sex education programme since it was introduced nine years ago, a conference on adolescent sexual behaviour and sexual health heard yesterday.

Frances Shearer, coordinator of the Relationship and Sexuality Education (RSE) programme, said the overcrowded curriculum was hindering the implementation of the programme in secondary schools.

The curriculum was identified as a major problem by 77% of teachers in research published by the Department of Education five years ago, and new research shows that it remains a problem.

Ms Shearer said it was expected that the implementation of RSE in schools would be a gradual process. This was also the case in other countries, she pointed out. “Ireland is not unique in experiencing obstacles along the way,” she said.

But a survey carried out in May 2004 found that only 60% of schools had fully implemented the programme. It also found that where Social Personal and Health Education (SPHE) was included in the school timetable, RSE was more likely to be taught.

Ms Shearer said the problem of curriculum overload identified in the department’s study in 2000 was also borne out by the latest study. And while the figures showed that more schools were introducing the programme, there was no room for complacency.

Young people have said that they want to discuss sex with their parents, more sex education in schools, and a health service that is more suited to their needs.

But, Ms Shearer said, while it was extremely important and necessary to listen to the voices of young people, it was also important to consider the challenges teachers faced.

“The majority of Irish schools are under religious management, yet 30% of births in Ireland occur outside of marriage. The RSE teacher has to be observant of the school’s policy ... while keeping in mind the reality of the lives of the children.”