Introduction
The school-based sexuality education programmes in South Africa aim to improve the sexual and reproductive health of school-going adolescents. However, the high rate of unplanned pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections among learners in some schools in rural areas of King Cetshwayo district suggests that the programmes in these schools might not be effective due to certain learner-centred factors.
Method
This qualitative study explored lived experiences of 84 learners from nine public schools in 2020 through focus group interviews. Data was analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
Results
Learner-centred barriers to effective school-based sexuality education identified in this study were attitudes, age disparity, psychological status, peer pressure, socio-economic status, the exploratory attitude of learners, media, lack of role models, previous experiences, socio-economic status, and lack of parental love. These factors could reduce good sexual health. Learner-targeted interventions such as campaigns, using guest professionals, condom distribution, videos, on-site family planning, formal demonstrations, and on-site counselling could address these barriers.
Conclusions
Addressing these barriers and implementing the proposed interventions will enhance school-based sexuality education and consequently improve adolescents’ sexual health.
Policy Implications
The findings could guide programming, implementation, and delivery of school-based sexuality education leading to improved adolescents’ sexual and reproductive health.
Sexuality Education aims to reduce teenage pregnancies and other consequences of risky sexual practices such as sexually transmitted infections including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) among young people. This descriptive-explorative study explored and described how teachers in the senior phase at Soutpansberg West Circuit, South Africa perceived Sexuality Education in their schools. Ten purposively recruited teachers in the research setting were individually interviewed in 2019. The collected data were thematically analysed. The research findings revealed the teachers’ perceived benefits of Sexuality Education, the barriers to Sexuality Education and impact of Sexuality Education on senior level learners in the study setting. Furthermore, it emerged that teachers used different approaches such as lectures, questions and answers, class discussions, and targeted individuals to facilitate Sexuality Education lessons in their schools. This study recommends the provision of support to teachers through training, access to relevant curriculum resources, as well as the monitoring and evaluation of Sexuality Education programmes in the study setting.
Received: 29 November 2021 / Accepted: 29 June 2022 / Published: 5 July 2022
Sexuality education is central to the South African government's strategy to promote adolescents' sexual and reproductive health, reduce student pregnancy, and prevent sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. The school-based sexuality education program aims to reduce young people’s vulnerability, enhance their decision-making skills, and improve their self-efficacy. The rising incidence of sexually transmitted infections and student pregnancy in some rural schools in King Cetshwayo district may indicate that their sexuality education programs are ineffective as a result of multiple contextual factors. In light of this, the author conducted a study that explored students' lived experiences with the sexuality education programs available in their schools. This phenomenological study was conducted in 2020. Nine schools were chosen, and 84 purposively sampled secondary school students participated in focus group interviews. The collected data were analysed using an interpretative phenomenological analysis framework. Study findings revealed that social media platforms could be utilised to improve the effectiveness of school-based sexuality education in the research setting. The study identified untapped opportunities to spread sexuality education messages to all stakeholders, including students, teachers, parents, and various community actors. Furthermore, the findings showed that using social media platforms could increase the spread and accessibility of sexuality education messages outside of the four walls of classrooms. In addition, it emerged that social media could be used to create platforms for confidential, private, and non-judgemental engagements on sensitive aspects of sexuality education. Based on the findings of the study, the author recommends that policymakers initiate and implement policies that will integrate the use of multiple social media platforms to advance the messages of sexuality education to all stakeholders. In addition, such platforms could be used for capacity building and support for both teachers and students, as well as a medium for multi-stakeholder engagement.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.