IT is believed that today's teenagers are growing up too
fast mentally due to the fast track of technology. By so doing, they tend to
know things too quickly or too early before the appropriate timing is up for
them to learn some stuff.
One subject matter which is of great interest to teenagers is that of sex education. One day I found myself engaged in a brief interview with a young teenager who looked to be around the age of 14, talking about the aspects of sex. From the pros and cons of that subject matter, I ended up concluding that most teenagers of this generation are well versed with the subject of sex. Sad to some but it is the truth.
The first question that came to my mind was, where are they getting such information from? Are they being taught that in schools, discussing it at home with their parents or probably they search it on the internet? In our Zimbabwean culture, sex among young children is regarded as taboo. It can only be talked about by married adults. Well, things change as time progresses in our day to day lives. However, it seems that married people are not the only ones talking about it anymore.
Should young teens be taught about sex? If so, at what age should this information be portrayed to these youngsters? Some parents find it hard to talk to their children about sex matters while some have an easy way to go by it in discussing this critical issue. At some point, for the parents to discuss this with their children it now depends with the age at which the kids are to be talking about it. But the million-dollar question here remains: "What is the appropriate age at which the kids should start even be thinking about sex?
One student from St Augustine's High School stated:"Knowledge is power but this knowledge might be too powerful for young children below the ages of 16". I personally thought that he was right, as the child would be immature enough to understand and take account its matters and facts. Parents should talk to their kids about sex and as they do so, they need to be open and honest about it.
Sometimes discussing such lively matters actually builds trust between the parents and child, for which trust is earned. One scholar, Stayce Muchemedzi, outlined the fact that "It could practically be easier for a parent to teach this matter due to their past experiences on such an issue when they the parents where teenagers". Some children would really need help or to ask their guardians about such matters, but it could be regarded as taboo for a child to ask their parent such matters. This subject matter should be seriously considered in the schools' syllabus as it is proving to be important. It helps them know about the sexually transmitted diseases.
An increase in pregnancies and high rates of transmitted diseases in teenagers is possibly caused by the lack of sex education. Sex education was introduced in Zimbabwean schools by the Ministry of Education in the year 2000 but it seems as if nothing much is being done about it as the rate of teenage pregnancies is increasing. Some of the key topics in sex studies are too controversial, like the distribution of contraceptives to teenagers.
I would agree with what one Herald Cool Lifestyle writer, Tafadzwa Zimoyo wrote pertaining to that subject matter. "No to contraceptives for schoolchildren as it may send the wrong message to the society". Some, however, will not agree with the sentiment, arguing that it is part of education. Sex education for teenagers is very important but it must be implemented effectively in homes and mainly in schools.
One subject matter which is of great interest to teenagers is that of sex education. One day I found myself engaged in a brief interview with a young teenager who looked to be around the age of 14, talking about the aspects of sex. From the pros and cons of that subject matter, I ended up concluding that most teenagers of this generation are well versed with the subject of sex. Sad to some but it is the truth.
The first question that came to my mind was, where are they getting such information from? Are they being taught that in schools, discussing it at home with their parents or probably they search it on the internet? In our Zimbabwean culture, sex among young children is regarded as taboo. It can only be talked about by married adults. Well, things change as time progresses in our day to day lives. However, it seems that married people are not the only ones talking about it anymore.
Should young teens be taught about sex? If so, at what age should this information be portrayed to these youngsters? Some parents find it hard to talk to their children about sex matters while some have an easy way to go by it in discussing this critical issue. At some point, for the parents to discuss this with their children it now depends with the age at which the kids are to be talking about it. But the million-dollar question here remains: "What is the appropriate age at which the kids should start even be thinking about sex?
One student from St Augustine's High School stated:"Knowledge is power but this knowledge might be too powerful for young children below the ages of 16". I personally thought that he was right, as the child would be immature enough to understand and take account its matters and facts. Parents should talk to their kids about sex and as they do so, they need to be open and honest about it.
Sometimes discussing such lively matters actually builds trust between the parents and child, for which trust is earned. One scholar, Stayce Muchemedzi, outlined the fact that "It could practically be easier for a parent to teach this matter due to their past experiences on such an issue when they the parents where teenagers". Some children would really need help or to ask their guardians about such matters, but it could be regarded as taboo for a child to ask their parent such matters. This subject matter should be seriously considered in the schools' syllabus as it is proving to be important. It helps them know about the sexually transmitted diseases.
An increase in pregnancies and high rates of transmitted diseases in teenagers is possibly caused by the lack of sex education. Sex education was introduced in Zimbabwean schools by the Ministry of Education in the year 2000 but it seems as if nothing much is being done about it as the rate of teenage pregnancies is increasing. Some of the key topics in sex studies are too controversial, like the distribution of contraceptives to teenagers.
I would agree with what one Herald Cool Lifestyle writer, Tafadzwa Zimoyo wrote pertaining to that subject matter. "No to contraceptives for schoolchildren as it may send the wrong message to the society". Some, however, will not agree with the sentiment, arguing that it is part of education. Sex education for teenagers is very important but it must be implemented effectively in homes and mainly in schools.
