Sex Education Gaps in University Curriculum

Abstract

Background: Sex education is one of the challenging areas of educational systems that has always been accompanied by many problems due to some obstacles and constraints. This has led to occurrence of many behavioral problems and deviations. The aim of this study was to determine the sex education gaps in university curriculum from the students' perspective. Methods: This was a descriptive-survey on students of universities in Kashan (15235 students), during academic year 2013-14. Overall, 220 students were enrolled in this study using stratified random sampling. Data collection tool was a questionnaire of sex education with 28 questions and six components (objectives, content, procedures, experiences and learning opportunities, cultural and advisory institutions' performance and university atmosphere) using a 5-point Likert scale. The content validity was confirmed by experts. The reliability was estimated as 0.89 using Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the obtained data. Results:The mean level of sex education gaps (3.97±0.56) in the university curriculum was above the average (3). The highest mean was related to the component of procedures (4.1±0.63) and experiences and learning opportunities (4.1±1.01). Conclusion:The results showed that the average level of gaps in sex education in the university curriculum is higher than the assumed mean level. The gaps are present in all components of objectives, content, procedures, experiences and learning opportunities, cultural and advisory institutions' performance and the university atmosphere. Keywords: Sex Education, Students, University IntroductionSex education as one of the key areas of education and upbringing along with other aspects such as social and mental-emotional training, play an important role in formation of personality, thoughts, emotions and behaviors of humans (1). However, sex education is also important from the perspective of sexual health. Sexual health training should be one of the most important components of healthcare, because many sexual problems are caused by the lack of knowledge about sexual issues. In addition, due to the spread of diseases, sexual disorders and increasing rates of AIDS, sex education and preventive programs are necessary (2). Sexual health is a condition in which a person beneficiate from a healthy, appropriate and normal sexual relationship with desirable physical, emotional and behavioral excitement resulted from a certain harmony, intimacy, love and in other words sexual satisfaction. Undoubtedly, one of the most important ways to achieve this type of health is to provide necessary training for individuals (3). Sex education affects health behaviors and leads to better understanding of sexual issues. Moreover, the variety of media and information and communication technology provides fast access to various forms of sexrelated information. This technical feature practically makes it easy for young individuals to retrieve and use different sexual contents and i...