Moulding the teacher: factors shaping teacher enactment of comprehensive sexuality education policy in Ethiopia

Abstract

Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) is promoted around the world to improve young people's sexual and reproductive health and rights, and to address gender-based violence. Teachers play crucial roles in enacting CSE, yet only few studies have placed them centrally to understand CSE re-contextualisation in schools. Hence, drawing on interviews, focus group discussions, and classroom observations with 56 participants, this paper presents how CSE teachers enact CSE policy and which factors affect their enactments at schools in Ethiopia. The paper highlights that while CSE teachers were typically conceptualised as 'facilitators' of the CSE initiative presented here, in practice teachers seemed to perform what might be understood as 'activist' roles within and beyond the classroom and school. Despite this activism, teachers' possibilities to address gender-based violence still seemed limited, in part due to lack of guidance from policy and programme designers, lack of support from community and school management, and socioeconomic factors.

Teachers’ conflicts in implementing comprehensive sexuality education: a qualitative systematic review and meta-synthesis

“…[CSE] is a rich mission to minimise this. (D2, school4, FGD with teachers, participant5, male) [ 20 ] Teacher’s belief that students still cannot make the right decisions, so they need directions from teachers to choose the right way As [teachers] we believe that giving a free choice to these very young children is dangerous. SRH is sensitive issue that determines the future life of the youth.…”

“…So as a teacher, we need to show them the right way. Just discussing the options and leaving the choice to them is dangerous because they are kids who do not know what is right and wrong (Validation workshop, teacher) [ 20 ] Lack of interest to facilitate CSE implementation According to me, the main problem is that the school administration lacks interest to facilitate [CSE] like that of regular programmes. They have no interest to facilitate these issues.…”

“…They have no interest to facilitate these issues. (D2, school4, FGD with teachers, teacher3, male) [ 20 ] The teacher felt shy to teach about sex education, but it's a huge challenge Some of the teachers feel shy to teach about sex education and I think this is a huge challenge. (School-based Coordinator, School Two) [ 21 ] Sexuality education has not been reinforced at home because it was not opened topics Firstly, the facts discussed on this topic are not reinforced at home.…”

The Struggle for Public Recognition: Understanding Early Marriage through the Lens of Honour and Shame in Six Countries in South Asia and West Africa

“…The young women make explicit reference to ‘elder women’ and parents invoking these narratives, while the ‘who’ remains implicit in the quote from the FGD with young Pakistani men. However, all speak to the idea that young people talking about sexuality is inappropriate (see also Let Mat et al, 2019; Plan International, 2019).…”

But is itComprehensive? Unpacking the ‘comprehensive’ in comprehensive sexuality education

“…As noted, the concept of CSE is one that appears to have no one agreed upon definition. Relatedly, the theoretical and normative elements that underpin CSE remain vague and at times disputed (see, for example, Le Mat et al, 2019b). Despite apparent lack of agreement on a specific definition, many authors allude to similar components in their analyses of this form of sexuality education.…”