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Sex Education
School-based sex education plays a vital role in young people’s sexual health and wellbeing.
Little is known, however, about the effectiveness of efforts beyond pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease prevention. The authors conducted a systematic literature review of three decades of research on school-based programs to find evidence for the effectiveness of comprehensive sex education.
Researchers searched ERIC, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE. The research team
identified papers are meeting the systematic literature review criteria. Of 8,058 relevant articles, 218 met specific review criteria. More than 80% focused solely on pregnancy and disease prevention and were excluded, leaving 39. In the next phase, researchers expanded the requirements to studies outside the U.S. to identify evidence reflecting the full range of topic areas. Eighty articles constituted the final review.
Outcomes include an appreciation of sexual diversity, dating, and intimate partner violence prevention, development of healthy relationships, prevention of child sex abuse, improved social/emotional learning, and increased media literacy.
Substantial evidence supports sex education beginning in elementary school, which is scaffolded and of longer duration, and LGBTQ–inclusive teaching…
