🙈 The sex education curriculum is about to be updated for the first time in 20 years. So what would young people most like to be taught?
telegraph.co.uk/family/relatio…
From sexting to online porn and dating apps, it's fair to say that teenagers in 2021 are growing up in a very different world from their parents and teachers when it comes to sex and relationships
Young people are desperate for more reliable information. They know the gist of what they're missing; they see it online; on porn sites, Bridgerton even. But for many millennials and older members of Gen Z, getting good sex education has come too little, too late
“The mechanical realities of gay sex” - Jack Rear, 27
"There was no notion that sex could be for anything other that procreation. Sex for its own sake, gay or otherwise, was never mentioned. Pleasure? Fun? Connection? None of those came into it"
“What a man’s body looks like” - Katie Russell, 25
"For most of my teenage years, I pictured a penis to be the size of one you’d find on an ancient Greek statue (tiny). Needless to say, it was a shock when I finally saw one in the flesh in my first year at university"
“That the sex in porn is distorted” - Alex Denny, 23
"I wish I’d known more about the hyper-realised depiction of sex in the media; not just porn, but sex in movies, music, everything. I would have liked guidance on issues surrounding the contraceptive pill, such as blood clots"
"Women can enjoy sex too” - Poppie Platt, 24
"I wish we had learnt more about masturbation, internet dating and sexting. My friends and I spoke about sexual acts as something we did to please boys. It’s only when I went to university I discovered women proud to enjoy sex"
“Not to catcall women” - Henry Nash, 23
"I was never taught basic things, like not to catcall women. When I was young, sending explicit photos was common. So many people have had their nude photos sent around their school. Surely teenagers should be told what’s right and wrong?"
“You don’t owe men anything” - Maighna Nanu, 25
"It can take a long time to unlearn the idea that subpar behaviour is not okay. Guys pressuring you into doing something or putting you down are red flags – I don’t think I knew what consent was until I was well into university"
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