Sex education for teenagers

[simon43]

This is probably the best forum for my question/musings:

I was wondering about what sex education (if any), is provided to teenagers in government schools.

My personal concern is for one of my Thai nieces. Her older sister previously managed to get herself pregnant (twice!) when she was 15 years old, and there was obviously some angst and expense in the family to 'resolve' this problem. (no, not my money LoL).

(BTW, my concern is purely as the old 'git' in the family, looking out for the welfare of his nieces).

The niece in question has hot herself a trendy new boyfriend ==> useless waste of space on a noisy motorbike etc.

So I am a little concerned that she might end up in the same situation as her older sister.

We get on fine together and I did chat with her in Thai a little about the 'birds and the bees'. Have to say that she didn't have a clue and the teen boys are prowling around...

What are teenage girls taught in school about pregnancy, contraception, condoms, STDs? (Maybe my niece was just asleep in those classes?)

I was thinking of purchasing some Postinor/Madonna tablets and making her aware that I have these at hand, if (and only if) some 'emergency' should arise.

I'd appreciate your thoughts about this. I'm sure some of you will say that it is none of my business, but being pregnant at 15 is surely not a good situation for any girl - the teen boys can just wash their hands of the problem...

[stoneyboy]

Given the fact that adults sneak around booking into short time hotels for some sex,children are scared senseless to question teachers and public shows of affection are not the norm one can only imagine that not much is taught at all.

In fact a quick search shows that as of 2013 sex education in schools was limited by the ministry of education to a mere 8 hours.

Is it any wonder that Thailand has the 2nd highest rate of teen pregnancy in ASEAN.

When Mallika told her parents she was pregnant at 17, they pulled her out of school and ordered her to marry the baby's father. But the marriage didn't happen and the one-time aspiring singer now cares for her baby girl alone.

"I love her, but at the time I hid in shame," said Mallika, now 23 and a vendor of cheap, made-in-China clothing at a weekend market in Thailand's capital, Bangkok.

"The boy's family wanted to pay me to shut up and stay away from them. We were both children ourselves," she added, sitting in her dilapidated apartment overlooking a highway on the outskirts of Bangkok.

Mallika's situation is, sadly, far from unusual. Thailand's teenage pregnancy rate is the highest in Southeast Asia after neighbouring Laos, according to the Bureau of Reproductive Health at the Thai Public Health Ministry.

In fact, even though the overall birthrate is dropping, teen births are on the rise. Out of every 1,000 live births, 54 are from teen mothers aged 15-19 - higher than in the United States and ten times higher than Singapore's teen pregnancy rate.

What's more, it's rising fast. The number of live births by Thai teenage mothers aged 15-18 increased 43 percent between 2000 and 2011, a Thai annual public health report shows.

Though there are many factors responsible, health experts put weight on cultural mores that make frank discussion of the issue difficult, whether in an official context or a personal one. This is complicated by gender issues.

"Women are told to protect their virginity but Thai men who have multiple sexual encounters are seen as cool," said Visa Benjamano, a commissioner at the Thai National Human Rights Council (NHRC).

"If men sleep around, their image is not at stake whereas a woman's image is. Women are generally more afraid to discuss their sexual health needs in public."

LACK OF DISCUSSION

Although sexual education is part of the national school curriculum, teaching is clearly insufficient. The Education Ministry limits instruction on the subject to eight hours a year despite changing attitudes towards sex among the young.

"Teachers are prudish and out of touch with Thai kids today and they approach the topic like a biology class rather than talking about the emotional issues involved," said Visa.

The consequences of unplanned pregnancy are often left out of classroom teaching too, despite a lack of legal options.

A 2011 report by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and Thailand's National and Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB) shows the number of women hospitalised in connection with abortions increased by over 16 percent between 1994 and 2009, hitting 60,000 in 2009.

Yet abortion is illegal in Thailand except in cases of rape or incest, to save a woman's life or preserve her physical or mental health, and if the woman is under 15 years of age.

Under Thai law the penalty for performing illegal abortions is up to five years in prison or a fine of up to 10,000 baht ($340). Despite this, illegal clinics and back street abortions abound.

In 2010, Thai police found 2,000 foetuses on the grounds of a Bangkok Buddhist temple.They were believed to have been sent there from illegal abortion clinics.

The discovery left the Thai public grappling with the reality of a highly charged religious and social issue. Abortion is recognised as a "sin" in the Theravada Buddhism practiced by up to 95 percent of the population.

Unlike the predominantly Catholic Philippines, Thailand offers easy access to contraception and birth control pills, with condoms and most other contraceptives readily available and sold over the counter.

But when it comes to teenage girls getting them, social stigma gets in the way.

Kanya Musiket was 15 when she started a physical relationship with a boy in her neighbourhood. But when she ventured to a local shop to buy condoms, shopkeepers would look at her "disapprovingly," making her feel ashamed.

Edited November 22, 2015 by stoneyboy

[h90]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

[DonaldBattles]

Perhaps what they learn and know best is how to sell it.

[BlindMagician]

None in schools(?), plenty on the streets.

My advice...take care of matters within the family, and friends.

Start by inviting the little man to a lunch, sit him down, in a dark spot, private enough, with a bunch of ugly mean looking Falang friends. Get the two biggest fat ones to sit either side, tightly squeezed. Say nothing to him for an hour, whilst you all eat. He gets nothing....you get the idea...he will too. Then say one simple sentence in Thai along the lines of if a baby appears = your bits get cut off. Then feed him.

[Deli]

They learn it, as I (had to) learn it: In the streets. And I was lucky to meet a 25 year old, at the age of 16...

[Dap]

Hi Simon43,

They do indeed give sex education in the Govt. High Schools. I have

a farang friend who teaches locally at a well respected Govt. HS and

this particular class is his responsibility. As I do know this man I know

that his class covers all the bases, in depth.

[NoshowJones]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

I can certainly believe that, When I was teaching a Prathom 6 class, ages 11 and 12. I caught a couple of girls and boys passing drawings of completely naked people between them.

[prakhonchai nick]

They all know about sex- but not about prevention of babies and disease.

8 hours sex education a year in school is more than adequate. 10 minutes would do the job if the kids were interested.

[mgjackson69]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

That teacher is as ignorant as her students.

"Knowing about sex" is much more than knowing how to <deleted>.

These kids know nothing about birth control or prevention of STDs.

As near as I can tell, sex ed at most Thai homes consists of "That is dirty, do no do that".

[Colabamumbai]

Having been a teacher at a variety of schools and a college, none.

[duanebigsby]

Hi Simon43,

They do indeed give sex education in the Govt. High Schools. I have

a farang friend who teaches locally at a well respected Govt. HS and

this particular class is his responsibility. As I do know this man I know

that his class covers all the bases, in depth.

In my school it's taught by a Thai teacher.

I'm not sure about hours, but I've seen the anatomy illustrations and the sex ed words are all over the chalk board.

It's in Thai but std, pregnancy, abortion, adoption, condom, are all over the chalkboard in English and Thai..

But, alas, they also teach motorbike helmet safety.

[swissbie]

In this old fashioned school system it's not possible to teach them properly. Would be more efficient to do it with social media channels. It's not that teenagers don't know, but they don't care. The once in a year talk about using condoms is a joke, they have to hear it over and over again. But this is not only a problem of the education system, parents should also be more responisble, not only the ones with daughters..

[oxo1947]

Sex Education classes must be confusing in Thailand.

'This is a woman...sometimes she has a penis.'......................................

[Emster23]

seem to recall some test used here some years back. Question: What to do when feel sexual urges? Answer: go play basketball.

I taught high school in USA. Had nurses from teen health center (located in school) come and teach, answer questions, demonstrate how to put on a condom (on an anatomically correct model). If Thai teachers are prudes and this is acceptable, how about hiring new teachers that actually teach the subject?

[gemguy]

Well now...some say if you educate the kids about sex then that makes them all the more curious to try having some of what they are told to be careful about.

It is weird how it works out that way even after they have been educated and forewarned and you believe they will use their brains and figure it out...but most do not while human nature takes its natural course

I believe it sinks in with the girls more so than the boys when the girls come to realize that getting pregnant is and will be an ongoing problem for them and the first and most important concern.

Meantime...it is the boys that should be seriously dealt with for the irresponsible part they play because all too many of them just run from the girl when she gets pregnant while that is the original plan in the first place with all too many of them...as in not all ...but all too many of them.

I suggest you have a man to man talk with the new BF and tell him if he gets the girl pregnant you will be there to track him down to the ends of the earth and make him be responsible for what he started.

Meantime give the boy a whole lot of condoms and tell the boy if he does get the girl pregnant it is because he did not use the condoms so you will be there to make him eat a dozen or more condoms as the penalty for his thoughtlessness and selfish behavior ...and that is just the beginning of your sex education enforcement.

Cheers

[Krataiboy]

It's the job of parents, not teachers, to tell their kids the facts of life and ensure they are able to protect themselves from the consequences of ignorance. Otherwise, don't have kids because you don't deserve them.

Oh, and the same goes for just about everything else in life which is more important than the three R's. Which is nearly everything you can think of. And a lot you probably can't.

The world would be a much better place if we all stopped relying on the nanny state to bail us out of our responsibilities?.

Edited November 26, 2015 by Krataiboy

[DefaultName]

I still remember my father's sex ed lecture. At the end I could have passed a biology O level but I still had no idea what you put where. Fortunately a friendly girl comploted my education a couple of months later.

[thailanddogerator]

Nothing taught at school of course but everything is online.

The only problem is that in a country where adults care nothing, how do you want kids to care anything ?

I love this country but find people here so ridiculous in everything they think or do !

[ronrat]

There is a high school in Sakeo being used as a trial to do more than just teach the biological stuff. They bring in guest lecturers for the girls who were themselves teenage mothers and tell of the consequences. Mainly along the lines that the Thai boyfriend will piss off and literally leave Grandma holding the baby while your prospects of a career is shot unless you want to be a massage girl or bar girl. The pregnancy rate has plummeted. Fortunately my girlfriends 13 year old girl is going there.

[gemguy]

There is a high school in Sakeo being used as a trial to do more than just teach the biological stuff. They bring in guest lecturers for the girls who were themselves teenage mothers and tell of the consequences. Mainly along the lines that the Thai boyfriend will piss off and literally leave Grandma holding the baby while your prospects of a career is shot unless you want to be a massage girl or bar girl. The pregnancy rate has plummeted. Fortunately my girlfriends 13 year old girl is going there.

That is some of the best kind of education.

I still believe the emphasis should be aimed at the boys and make sure they know they will be held responsible for what they do and what they start if they get a girl pregnant.

When you think about it.....the boys are more of the problem than the girls as young boys are looking to get laid as part of the male ritual of "getting laid"...lol.... so.... make them far more responsible than they are at present.

I know, I know.... that would ruin their adolescent fun....but still, who needs unwanted and unplanned pregnancies that create a burden for other people directly or indirectly.

Sure, babies and kids are great.......but not when they come about because young boys and young men just have to stick their dick into a young girl no matter what the consequences, implications and ramifications....just to get laid....and then do a runner from the responsibilities while no one really tries to make the kid own up to the situation and problem he has created.

Just saying.

Cheers

[h90]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

That teacher is as ignorant as her students.

"Knowing about sex" is much more than knowing how to <deleted>.

These kids know nothing about birth control or prevention of STDs.

As near as I can tell, sex ed at most Thai homes consists of "That is dirty, do no do that".

Of course it is ignorant.....But I also doubt that the kids don't know about Kondoms.....I guess everyone above 12 knows that.

[mgjackson69]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

That teacher is as ignorant as her students.

"Knowing about sex" is much more than knowing how to <deleted>.

These kids know nothing about birth control or prevention of STDs.

As near as I can tell, sex ed at most Thai homes consists of "That is dirty, do no do that".

Of course it is ignorant.....But I also doubt that the kids don't know about Kondoms.....I guess everyone above 12 knows that.

What does "know about Kondoms <sic>" mean? If the parents and/or the schools are not teaching them, where are they getting their information?

As was the case for many of my generation, my parents did not tell me anything, and sex education was almost non-existent in the schools back then. Through a bit of luck, and some effort to educate myself, I made it to adulthood,and to this point with no unwanted pregnancies. My older brother was not so lucky...his first child was born at the end of his junior year of high school.

"Knowing about" condoms does not imply that these kids know the proper way to use them, or the various aspects of birth control and STD prevention.

For such an important topic, I would prefer to assume that the kids know nothing, and teach them.

[h90]

Was 7 hours in the train with a teacher and she told, the kids all know a lot more about sex than she know (blushing a bit), she can't teach them anything new.

That teacher is as ignorant as her students.

"Knowing about sex" is much more than knowing how to <deleted>.

These kids know nothing about birth control or prevention of STDs.

As near as I can tell, sex ed at most Thai homes consists of "That is dirty, do no do that".

Of course it is ignorant.....But I also doubt that the kids don't know about Kondoms.....I guess everyone above 12 knows that.

What does "know about Kondoms <sic>" mean? If the parents and/or the schools are not teaching them, where are they getting their information?

As was the case for many of my generation, my parents did not tell me anything, and sex education was almost non-existent in the schools back then. Through a bit of luck, and some effort to educate myself, I made it to adulthood,and to this point with no unwanted pregnancies. My older brother was not so lucky...his first child was born at the end of his junior year of high school.

"Knowing about" condoms does not imply that these kids know the proper way to use them, or the various aspects of birth control and STD prevention.

For such an important topic, I would prefer to assume that the kids know nothing, and teach them.

Condoms were always heavily promoted in Thailand and they are just enough for birth control and STD. I think with internet and all the permanent chat they'll figure out which bodypart to cover with it and how to do it is written on the small guide inside the pack. The basics, where the babies come from and how to prevent that, everyone in my country figured out in the age of 6-8. But I have to admit it is a bit country side, so you know, see when the farmer lady brings the bull to make some new baby cows (and the problems with it + the jokes when the bull doesn't want and the farmer lady.....).

The kids all speak with each other and look the videos from internet....they are not inocent, but they are ignorant and no one hammer the importance into them.

So I think it is not missing knowelege, it is awarness of the importance of it.

[meatboy]

send them on a learning course down in patts.they will soon get the message.

[Jessi]

simon all is OK now.

The General told them all on Valentines day to go to the Temple and not a short time motel.

[kiwikeith]

The tee shirts with ferg on the first date should be banned.

Schools should be trying to educate girls about getting pregnant early will ruin your chances, baby gets brought up by grandma and girl ends up in bar.

No social wellfare here, in other countries this happens as well not just a thai problem, our stupid countries pay them to raise illegitamit children, then raise the pension age.

[attrayant]

This graphic came up in my FB news feed a few days ago and I reposted it as a joke, saying something like "next week's lesson: how to use a condom - get ready seniors!"

I was unprepared for the flood of private messages coming from students, many of who weren't even in my program, all excited that they were finally going to learn something about sex ed. I had to break it to them that it was just a joke, and they were clearly disappointed. Many of them told me that they get some very basic anatomy classes with simple line drawings (absolutely no realistic images), but no real education about the mechanisms, physiology, pathology or life consequences of sex or reproduction. I feel so sad for them.

[sandyf]

Having been a teacher at a variety of schools and a college, none.

Must depend on the area, certainly taught at the government school in Chonburi.

[SaintLouisBlues]

It's selfless of me I know and not everyone has my commitment to assisting where I can but I stand ready to offer whatever practical help I can