I remember 9th grade (NINTH GRADE!!!) and we were doing biology in science. We were asked - “has anyone had sex before?” you could have heard a pin drop. One guy turned bright red, put one hand over his eyes and raised his hand.
It was Mr. Hansen, our teacher, married with two kids.

But this was 9th grade- I hope that all of us had had “the talk” with our parents previously.

Suited to age, of course, you need to answer a bit more candidly when asked “how did baby get in mummy’s tummy?”

I work ina school, and would probably be one of the few people in that enviroment who has license to talk about these things, teachers just don’t have the time to fit it in-nor are they trained to do so, and more often than not schools just don’t put it in the curriculum, so its left to the ad hoc bits I’m allowed to chuck in here and there.

These kinds of discussions work best with outside people, not teachers. Perhaps there is a scope for churches to step into the gap there and provide some good wholistic sex/love ed. Not sure if many are doing it but?

Cool. Thanks for posting that.

I still think though, for our teens to be using their friends as one of the primary sources of sex education is really, really dangerous. I get asked the “Can I get pregnant from oral sex” question surprisingly often and when we talk a bit more, it is always followed with something like, “I was talking with my friends and they weren’t sure….”. Believe me, these are not young people from your so called ‘ideal Christian world’.

In fact, while faith plays an important role in shaping your morals, when it comes to the health and education of the next generation, I think faith is irrelevant. In all tribes/races around the world, the elders have taught the young people everything about being an adult - sex included. The only exception to this is our Western culture…and we’re seeing the consequences.

If I want to learn about mechanics, or theology, or art or whatever, I enrol in a course and learn from those with more experience and knowlege than I. Reading is certainly part of that, but even that reading is directed by a teacher or mentor.

Mitchell is right, there must be some middle ground somewhere and perhaps it is up to the church, or at least part of it, to lead the way here.

Any other thoughts?

I think friends CAN be a great source of education, but what I think Matt is getting at here, is the in general kids are getting the wrong education about sex. Well, not wrong, but incomplete. If you read the right magazines, go to the right friends, sure, you’ll be looked after,, but really how many teenagers are that switched on, or even that lucky to have that available to them? Sure, you get some (in particular your young sheltered Christian types) who still have a Mandy Moore ‘Thats a nice sweater’ life, but the vast majority just dont have that around them, especially not from an early age where it can be vital.

What we need is across the board love & sex ed, in schools. Something more than the mechanics of ‘what to put where’ and how to buy condoms. Schools should be doing it. I know that at my primary school we did some great stuff n GR 5 & 6, but it was never followed up on. Crap, so much in High school is focused on results, results, results, with token policies on ‘wellbeing’ and ‘bullying’ amongst others. Yet I see kids getting into relationship through the upper end of high school that they are just ill equipped to deal with emotionally. A program through High school that promotes total looking after of a young person? I’d like to see it. But maybe its time the Church lead the way. Somewhere, somehow there has to be a middle ground where we can teach sex openly, like the school, and teach morals, ethics and carnal forbearance (I’m sure there’s a song about it) like the church does. Lets not be prudes. Lets not be whores.

Oh and by the way, good to see the Catholic chuch getting into it. It leaves ME with one nagging question.

What about Contraception????

Or are unwanted pregnancies and AIDs (amongst other STD’s) okay, as long as we’re educated about what we’re living with?