Understanding sexuality among Indian urban school adolescents

Abstract

Context:Adolescence is a very exciting phase of life fraught with many challenges like sexuality. Understanding them is important in helping the adolescents grow up healthily.Aims:To ascertain the attitudes and knowledge about sexuality among school-going adolescents.Settings and Design:Students in two urban schools of an Indian city from class IX to XII were administered a self-reporting questionnaire on matters related to sexuality.Materials and Methods:Requisite ethical clearances were taken as also the consent of the parents and students before administration of the questionnaire. The authors clarified doubts to adolescents.Statistical analysis:Statistical package for social sciences.Results:The incidence of having sexual contact was 30.08% for boys and 17.18% for girls. 6.31% boys and 1.31% girls reported having had experienced sexual intercourse. Friends constituted the main sexual partners for both boys and girls. Sexual abuse had been reported by both girls and boys. These and other findings are discussed in the article.Conclusions:Adolescent school students are involved in sexual activity, but lack adequate knowledge in this regard. Students, teachers, and parents need to understand various aspects of sexuality to be able to help adolescents’ healthy sexual development.

Sexuality in Adolescents: have we Explored Enough! A Cross-sectional Study to Explore Adolescent Health in a City Slum in Northern India

“…Frequently, sexuality presents, the first challenge to healthy growth and development during adolescence. Often unplanned and sometimes forced, adolescent sexual relations occur before young people acquire adequate knowledge about contraception, sexually transmitted disease or health services available to them [3,4].…”

Blood borne viral infections in adolescents of East Sikkim, Northeast India: serological prevalence and risk behaviour correlation

“…12 A study among adolescents in Pune by Sathe and Sathe reported 22% of boys and less than 5% of girls having had sexual intercourse and 13.9% of adolescent had engaged in sexual intercourse with commercial sex workers. 13 In another study among classes nine to twelve students of two schools in Pune. 6.31% males and 1.31% females reported having had experienced sexual intercourse and friends constituted the main sexual partners.…”

Educação sexual para adolescentes por docentes de um centro de educação comunitária Sex education for adolescents by teachers from a community education center

“…It is understood the importance of these issues for teens; however the only encompass these aspects schools restrict the chance to focus on the most relevant questions from students. 9 In this environment the teacher becomes the right person to address these issues, to be a reliable and meaningful adult for the student. For this it is necessary to understand what conditions they have to fulfill this role.…”

“…Moreover, it is important not to assign ratings or notes to the work of not providing these mandatory status or something imposing. 9 Other methodological strategies can be developed in the teaching process, for better adhesion of the contents passed on if they are integrative, based on the collective nature of joint dialogue, respect reality, individuality and experiences of young people and can include the family in this process. It should focus on the doubts and seek remedy them when possible.…”

“…In this sense the school, for being the main center for socio-culturalpedagogical training, is configured in the ideal place for this debate, since that is where the teenager complements the values learned at home and their culture. 9 At school the teacher is the main tool for performing these sexual education measures as it is the symbol of wisdom and knowledge, and also the closest to young people, so the most suitable to develop this dialogue. Schools should work sex education throughout the national territory.…”