Since sex education remains a taboo in homes and schools, students seek information from their friends and the Web.
Aviral Aggarwal, a mechanical engineering student, said chapters related to sexual reproduction were skipped in his school. “Our teachers didn’t teach us those chapters saying that ‘there is nothing to teach in this’.” They were told to get their doubts cleared once they had finished reading on their own.
“Currently, my younger brother studies in class 10. The same thing happened with him. His teacher taught the chapter, but completed it in just one day which left my brother more confused. Now, he is clarifying his doubts by asking me certain questions, and even I can’t answer them because I am clueless on certain topics,” Aggarwal added.
Aayush Kumar, a class 8 student, finds it difficult to understand the subject. “We had online classes where the teacher herself didn’t seem comfortable while teaching us the topic. I had some questions to ask but couldn’t. We discussed among ourselves the information we had collected from the Internet.” Even his parents don’t talk about sex education, making him feel he should stay away from it.
India has lagged behind in sex education. Youths need to be aware of myths and facts. Their queries should be properly answered, experts say, but Indian culture is such that it prevents people from openly talking about it.
Sneha Roy, an MBBS student, shared: “I remember my teacher telling us about safe sex practices. It was in our syllabus in class 12. Class 10 had nothing related to safe sex practices, condoms, etc. All they taught us was primary and secondary characteristics which… have no use in life.” She believes sex education should include aspects related to sexual abuse, consent, homosexuality and body image.
Aakriti Nanda, a class 11 biology student, had doubts when she studied chapters on reproduction. “I had all sorts of questions related to sex, pregnancy, abortions, relationships and other things, but I was not able to ask.” She, too, went online to find information.
Keerthi K, a software engineer, said it’s difficult for him to teach his child sex education. “I know it’s important to impart such things to children, but they will know all… with time. We also came to know about it and nobody talked to us about sex education.” His wife speaks to their daughter about menstruation; the rest of the things are taught in school.
Meera Kumar, a housewife who has a 15-year-old son, tries to sort out his queries as much as possible. “I believe parents should talk openly with their child regarding sexual health. I have directed my son to come to me if he has any doubt instead of talking with his friends or surfing the Internet. My husband hesitates to talk about such things…, but I make sure his queries are solved.”
Teachers also feel there is a need to include topics other than just the reproductive system.
Sakshi Gupta, a biology teacher, said: “I believe sex education is… also about emotional and social well-being and teaching our children how to respond to certain situations which they may encounter. If a girl is being forced into a sexual relationship, she wouldn’t know how to respond…. Similarly, boys should understand the meaning of consent. These things are absent from our curriculum which should be added.”
Anshul Girdhar, a psychiatrist, said the upbringing in our society is such that we consider talking about sex education a sin. “Children observe a lot. When they see that their elders, parents or teachers are not comfortable about something, they won’t ask because either their queries won’t be answered or they will face a backlash….”
“The Internet has opened the door for youngsters to access any kind of information, but… they might access wrong information which makes things worse,” he added.
The National Education Policy says: “Sex education will also be included in secondary school for future judgment surrounding consent, harassment, respect for women, safety, family planning and STD prevention.”
anwesha.s@iijnm.org
