Teaching Sex and health education by Elma

Teaching Sex and health education by Elma - August 2017 Scholarship Essay

College professors must be ready for anyone who walks into their classroom in search for knowledge. I love teaching, and I also love to see my students learn and more so very committed to the American dream of availing education to everyone. I am very interested in teaching Health and Sex Education to a broader spectrum of people and especially to college students. As a teacher, I have come to learn that students need more than just proper academic preparations. There are several misconceptions regarding sexual health, and I will give an example later in this paper.
Health and sex education will help students to gain information, skills as well as motivation to make health decisions regarding sex and sexuality. Today, college students are facing a confusing reality; they live at a time when sexuality is baldly and blatantly being displayed everywhere. Research indicates that young people learn matters of sex and sexual health from school-based sexuality education lessons. It was also found that family members also offer a significant source of information (about 61%). With that knowledge that students are now turning to school and to their family members, it is my duty to give them what they need and ensure that they make informed decisions regarding their sexuality. There are a lot of messages being spread around the world about sexuality. Many of these messages are sensationalist and misinformed, and they spread in highly communicative version through adverts, internet blogs, film, reality TV, pop videos, and television series. Their primary purpose is to create awareness of a certain product and not to educate young people about what they need to have a healthy and fulfilling life (Formby, 2011).
Research has pointed out that young people are sexually active and there are two major issues of concerns. The first issue is that many young people are not consistent in practicing protected sex. Secondly, there is increased rate of unwanted sex, and especially in relation to alcohol use. My desire is to offer teachings in sexuality and provide consistent and accurate information to college students, and this will encourage positive behavior change. Again, most of the young people have misconceptions regarding sex. I have an example of a young star athlete (Sara) who got pregnant and forfeited her chance to join an institution to play college basketball. She said that they ‘did it’ in the shower and thus did not need to use a condom. That was a mistake, and I have no doubt that young people can make correct decisions regarding their sexual heath if proper information and services are given to them.
Sex education will cover several topics that relate to sex and sexuality. It will also teach on values and beliefs that will help students navigate their relationships as well as manage their sexual health. Some of the topics to be covered include:
• Human development: This will cover areas such as puberty, reproduction, sexual orientation, and gender.
• Relationships: This is a wide topic that will cover all kinds of relationships with families, friends, and also about romance and dating.
• Personal skills: This will focus on teaching students about decision making, communication, and negotiation.
• Sexual behavior: Another important topic which focuses on abstinence and sexuality.
• Culture: This topic will address the society and explore different cultures. It will focus on gender roles, media role in sexuality and diversity.
I am aware of the varying levels of academic preparation of college students. They all come from different cultural background, and they vary in age and are a mix of ethnicities. Thus, working with such students requires flexibility in teaching methodologies. I am more passionate about the idea of active learning whereby students take the lead. I will develop the content and engagingly share with them so that they can be able to question and engage in discourse (Lindroth, 2014). Sex topics are interesting if delivered properly. In my teaching I will focus on the result, that is, to help students gain knowledge and skills in sexual health so that they can be able to make proper decisions regarding their lives. I don’t believe in lecturing anymore as this is boring to students (making them sit and listen is boring). I will find more interactive ways to connect and communicate with students (Carr & Packham, 2016).
Sexual health also affects the academic achievement of many students, and that also affects the rate of graduation in college. Those who get pregnant are at a higher risk of dropping out of school and becoming mothers at an early age. As noted in many states, there disparity in teen pregnancy between low-income and high-income households. Also, there is racial disparity at the national level as African-American and Hispanic teens are more likely to get pregnant as compared to white teens. I pointed this out just to make it clear on the necessity for teachers to focus on sex and health education to the young people (Lindroth, 2014). I am so interested in teaching sex and health education, and I hope that I will achieve my goal in the future.