CHAPTER I

Introduction

Education gives us knowledge of the world around us and changes it into

something better and it develops in us a perspective of looking at life. It helps us

build opinions and have points of view on things in life. And it is not just about

giving people the facts, it is also about teaching skills to enable young people to use

that information effectively and to moderate behaviors according to the information

and knowledge at hand. Youth deserve the right to have access to information and

knowledge about making healthy and responsible decisions about their sexuality.

The meaning of sex education is different from the perception of the

common people. Sex education imparts the knowledge and attitude of the

reproductive process and the reality of healthy interrelationship and can be an

educational process like the word itself sex and education which is to inform or

educate us about sex education. There are several suggestions as to what should be

taught in a curriculum in regard to sexual education. For example, psychologist

Maureen Lyon, Ph.D. (2005) reported that abstinence-only programs showed an

unintended consequence of unprotected sex at first intercourse and during later

sexual activity. She also indicated that abstinence-only programs increased “the risk

of these adolescents for pregnancy and sexually transmitted illnesses, 3 including

HIV/AIDS” (APA, 2005, n.p.).

Nowadays, teens are exposed to sexual activities which characterized by

rapid growth and development in population with that, sex education should be an

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 integral part of the learning to develop effective communication skills and encourage

awareness about health and disease related knowledge. Sometimes, people

mistakenly believe sex education refers only to sexual behavior and not the full array

of topics that compromise sexuality. These includes the information and concerns

about body image, contraception, gender, human growth and development, human

reproduction, pregnancy, relationships, safer sex, sexual attitudes, values, sexual

health, as well as sexual orientation. With all these related impacts of sex education,

it will create awareness for us to engage with this kind of business. Some people

especially parents and students misconceptions or wrong belief that the program or

topic sex education encourage teens to have sex, and sex an adult topic.

We will conduct this kind of topic for our research because sex education is a

relevant issue for the students of Notre Dame University Senior High School and it is

because most of the students are over conservative when we are talking about

sexuality. Hence, it is possible that different ideas and strands regarding these

matters. Students have different misconceptions on sex education topic because of

having lack of clear knowledge about sex education will leads them into different

interpretation about approaches, moral, and awareness. Furthermore, there was also

be misconceptions students may have about contraceptives does not respect and will

arise students who wish arise abstinence, sex education.

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Review of Related Literature

Sex education — one of the most debated topics in India where the word sex it

itself considered a taboo. Adolescence is a very tentative age where the adolescents try to

experience every new thing they come across; there is a rage of hormones. During this

period, an individual undergoes extensive physical, psychologic, emotional and

personality changes which demands to be guided at the correct time. Incorrect or half-

baked knowledge about anything can be dangerous and as far as sex is concerned it

becomes even more problematic. Here, Sex Education comes into play. Sex education

encompass awareness of the human sexuality, sexual reproduction, birth control,

contraceptive measures, reproductive health etc., various physiological and psychological

aspects of sexual response run parallel to it.

According to Bleakley (2006), in a survey conducted, only about seventeen

percent of the respondents answered that sex education does encourage them to do it, and

the remaining eighty-three percent strongly disagreed. Sex education does not teach

students to have sex , or to have sex at an early age , it helps them to know about the

physical , emotional and biological changes taking place in their bodies and how to cope

up with them. It helps the students know the consequences and truth of sex.

There is no use of sex education: Now, this is to be made very clear to the people

who think that sex education is of no use. A comprehensive sex education can help the

present generation to live a secured life. According to me, India will be most benefited if

sex education is introduced in the curriculum because it will help the country to fight the

raising spread of AIDS and many other sexually transmitted diseases (STD). Since, people

do not have a very clear idea of how to protect themselves from HIV-AIDS, they tend to
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ignore it and therefore get infected. Statistics show that 26% of the Indians are infected

with AIDS. This can elucidate that sex education is the need of the hour. Another use of

sex education is that it can also help in controlling the population growth too, since it also

deals with birth control measures which is an integral part of it.

Sex is not a topic to be discussed by children: How well are we aware of teenage

pregnancies? India’s rate of teenage pregnancy, 62 out of every 1000 pregnant women,

which makes us amongst the countries with highest teenage pregnancy cases along with

US and UK. It is also to emphasize that teenage pregnancy is not a western import; it is an

ingrained problem in our society, perpetuated by lack of awareness of contraceptive

measures, birth control, etc. And furthermore, to elude from such situations, some people

in rural areas try to get their girls married at a very early and tender age.

Misconceptions about it should be cleared and discussing about it should not be

avoided. Through sex education, students will be able to learn about sex, correctly and it

will help them in the long run. Many issues surround the topic of sexual education

programs in the schools. These questions can range from what will be taught to how

frequently it should be taught. Today’s teenagers reach puberty at an earlier age, but marry

at a later age. These statistics are alarming because youth who start having sex before the

age of 14 are more likely to have multiple partners throughout their lifetime. According to

Campos (2002), condoms tend to have a 31% failure rate. Condoms also offer little

protection from chlamydia and human papilloma virus (HPV). According to Somers &

Paulson, 2000, p. 630 “Adolescents themselves appear to hold values and attitudes

consistent with responsible sexual conduct, but sexually experienced teens usually indicate

that the best age for first intercourse is older than they were when they began having sex”.

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Sexual education programs in the schools allow students to acquire knowledge about

sexual identity, attitudes and beliefs toward sex, and intimate relationships. Not only is it

about acquiring knowledge but it is also informing students about positive choices

regarding safe sex and consequences that can affect their behavior both physically and

emotionally. Fortunately, it is students’ right to sex education because it can benefit them

from future problems and challenges, and improve their health. Supporters say that sex

education should be considered as fundamental as reading, writing, and math. Schools

around the nation teach different approaches to sexual education, which means there is

not one proven correct way to teach these programs. Some would debate that students

should have information about the physical and emotional changes their bodies will be

going through with puberty and if they decide to become sexually active. Others may

debate that students should be taught to just not have sex at all. Numerous programs are

available commercially today; however, schools have created their own curriculum to

meet the needs of their youth in the community. According to Mabray and Labauve (2002,

p. 36), “comprehensive sexual education programs are rare in the USA, but they address

the needs of the adolescent in a more complete manner.” According to Campos (2002, p.

9) It is also said that comprehensive sexual education programs teach gender identity,

sexual development, affection, intimacy, body image, interpersonal and communication

skills and “assists in the exploration of values and goal setting” to achieve a lifetime of

sexual health. According to Van Dorn (2000) “teaching abstinence is a part of preventing

pregnancy just saying no may not be effective with sexually active teens. Schools in New

Mexico now lead the country in teen pregnancies. According to the Washington

Independent (2011, n.p.) “New Mexico students are also behind their national peers in

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sexual education, 77 percent of high school youth were taught about HIV/AIDS in school,

compared to the U.S. median of nearly 86 percent.” Washington Independent, 2011

“Comprehensive sexual education is one of the strategies that work to reduce teen

pregnancies and STIs”. Other goals for a comprehensive sexual education program include

supporting the abstinence from sex as the best choice for youth; however, the goals are not

embedded regarding abstinence-only. To achieve a healthy lifestyle regarding sex, one

must acquire a positive and comfortable attitude 12 towards sex. Among the topics that are

covered in a comprehensive sexual education program curriculum are: abortions,

masturbation, oral sex, homosexuality, and condoms.

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Statement of the Problem

This study would like to find out the misconceptions of the students in Notre Dame

University-Senior High School regarding sex education. Scientifically seeks to answer

the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the respondents in terms of sex orientation?

2. What are the misconceptions about sex education of the students?

3. Is there a significant difference in the misconceptions in terms of sex orientation?

Conceptual Framework

The schematic diagram illustrates the research process which is involved in

student’s misconception on sex education in correlation to sex of Notre Dame University-

Senior High School. It further shows the relationship and between the independent and

dependent variables treated in this study.

Independent Variable Dependent Variable

 Sexual Orientation  Awareness

 Gender

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Significance of the Study

The Department of Education

This study involves the DepEd for it is educationally-related. It will help them to

lessen the misconceptions of the citizens about sex education and to promote sex

education that will inspire them to conduct conferences, seminars and activities for the

citizens of the community to become fully aware about sex education.

The Youth

This study will benefit the youth to avoid negative health consequences, to widen

their perspective and lessen the misconceptions, and also to learn to communicate about

sexuality and sexual health.

The Parents

The result of the study will give them knowledge about their childhood

misconceptions on sex education. And they can properly evaluate their child on this

matter.

The Teachers

This study will enlighten the teachers of the university on how the students

understand the sex education. It will encourage them to incorporate the curriculum in our

school.

Scope and Limitation

The study only focuses on the misconceptions of the students when they hear the

topic, sex education. The study was conducted only in Notre Dame University Senior
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High School because of the accessibility. The researchers are only allowed to conduct the

study inside the premises of Notre Dame University Senior High School. The researchers

included all of the strands because the topics concern is fir general. The researchers

would like to know if there is any correlation between the misconceptions of male and

female. The study is only limited to the students of Notre Dame University Senior High

School enrolled in the school year 2018-2019.

Definition of Terms

Students -

Sex Orientation - an individual's preference in terms of sexual relationship with others

whether homosexual or heterosexual.

Sex Education - is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual

anatomy, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, and other aspects of human sexual

behavior.

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 CHAPTER II

METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents mainly the discussion on the methods and procedures,

which will be used by the researchers in gathering, processing, computing, analyzing, and

interpreting the data in this study. Specifically, this includes the research design,

respondent of the study, research instruments, setting of the study, sampling techniques,

data gathering procedure and statistical treatment of data.

Research Design

This study uses correlational research design. It is a type of non-experimental

research method, in which a researcher measures two variables, understands and assesses

the statistical relationship between them with no influence from any extraneous variable.

This research design as utilized in the study, aim to know the relationship of sex

orientation to misconceptions of the students of Notre Dame University Senior High

School. The data is gathered using a prepared questionnaire which covered the question

different misconceptions on sec education.

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Setting

The study takes place within the parameter of Notre Dame University Senior High

School. It is a school located at Cotabato City. It is by an Oblates of Mary Immaculate.

Respondents

The respondents are the selected students who are enrolled at Notre Dame

University Senior High School department. The respondents are form different strands

namely, STEM, ABM, TECHVOC and Arts and Design.

Sample size and Sample Technique

This study correlates the misconceptions about sex education among male and

female. The researchers use 200 respondents from the total population, as suggested in

the heuristic method. 119 for the female and 81 for male. The researchers divided the

subgroups, male and female through the use of stratified random technique. This is used

to make sure that the selection is unbiased.

Research Instrument

In order to gather the information from the respondents, the researchers used

survey questionnaire. It is composed into two categories. The first category was the

profile of the respondent and the second category was the set of questions regarding the

misconceptions of the students about sex education. The survey questionnaire was based

on the statements stated at the statement of the problem.

Data Gathering
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 The gathered data from the respondents was one of the main aspects in

conducting the study. To gather the data needed for this research, the researchers were

asked permission first the research teacher. After identifying the respondents for this

study from all strands in the Notre Dame University-Senior High school, the researchers

were introduced their study to the respondents to have a smooth flow of data gathering.

After giving their instructions, the survey questionnaires were then is distributed to the

respondents. After answering the survey questionnaire, the researchers were collecting it

and further analyze it to have a sound conclusion.

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