Poor sex education puts teens at risk of STIs
The department’s deputy chief medical officer, Dr Colette Bonner, said a new report highlighting inadequacies in relationships and sexuality education in second-level schools was worrying from a public health perspective.
The study found that three-quarters of teenagers had no sex-education classes last year. And of the small number who had, the subject was most likely to be delivered as part of religion class.
Dr Bonner said latest statistics on sexually transmitted diseases reveal that more than 10% occur in young people under the age of 19 and a further 60% in the 20-29 year group.
“Clearly, this emphasises the importance of sexual health information which is appropriate and factual,” she said at the launch of the study carried out by young people under the guidance of a professional researcher. “School-based Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) should be delivered in a consistent way by professionals who were specifically trained for this role and who support and complement parents and carers in educating our children and young people,” said Dr Bonner.
The study, conducted by teenagers from the Dáil na nÓg Council, found that 45% received RSE through guest speakers from medical backgrounds, crisis pregnancy agencies, rape crisis centres and religious groups.
The most emphasised theme in the RSE syllabus was healthy relationships and the least emphasised was understanding sexual orientation.
Some of the 220 young people from 94 secondary schools who completed a questionnaire on the RSE programme were particularly critical of the religious groups.
One commented: “God’s input into sex. It was quite bad. They ridiculed homosexuality.”
Another said: “Catholic youth workers who provided us with untrue facts and gave misguided information. It was solely the teaching of the Catholic Church and quite bad.”
Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Barry Andrews said there was a minimum requirement in terms of how RSE should be taught and that should be reflected in the curriculum.
He said the ridiculing of homosexuality would not be tolerated in any school, no matter what religious ethos it held.
“In order to develop effective policies and safeguard young people’s well-being, we must consider the views and solutions put forward by young people themselves,” he said.
An official from the Department of Education, Margaret Kelly, said she found it “very disturbing” that just 26% of students said they received sex-education last year.
She said schools claimed two-thirds were implementing the RSE programme last year, a finding that was inconsistent with the teen survey.
