Sex Education and its Positioning in the Educational Process

Abstract

This article concerns sex education and its place in contemporary society and in education. We discuss the role currently played by the family in the Slovak Republic in bringing up children so as to prepare them for marriage, parenthood and sexual good health. However, practice and research have shown that not every family is adequately prepared for fulfilling this function. The results of demographic, sociological and psychological research highlight an increasing rate of divorce (especially amongst young marriages), a lack of preparedness on the part of young marital partners, a lack of any basic ethical approach to intimate relations, and, last but not least, an astonishingly laid-back approach to their own health. The topic of sex education is also defined in the context of the primary-level marriage and parenthood curriculum in the Slovak Republic (1998), in order to guide students towards a basic knowledge of, and responsible attitude towards, partnership and parenthood, in line with both scientific knowledge and ethical standards. The contents of a primary-level education in respect of marriage and parenthood also include the topic of education in the family, the principles of healthy living, gender equality, the creation and development of human beings, and also the changes in the body of a child in puberty. However, it is always necessary to supplement the lack of information on sexual health in Slovak primary schools, and to develop the social skills of students in order to better prepare them for family life, which is surely no less important than professional training or the life of the individual in society.