Sex Education 

Sex education, or, to give it its full title, Relationship and Sex Education (RSE) is now mandated by the government. Parents can choose to withdraw their children from these lessons but all schools must offer them. For more information on this, check our page on Government Guidance.

Student silliness is one of the occupational hazards of teaching RSE (or teaching anything, really!) Our favourite way to discourage this is to say something like: "I understand that this topic can make people uncomfortable and, sometimes, when we're uncomfortable, we laugh." This makes students reflect on how they are feeling and it gets peer pressure working for you (suddenly it's cool to be sensible and a bit embarrassing to giggle!)

The anonymous question box is a very useful tool in PSHE and especially RSE. We recommend using it at the end of the lesson to give you time to consider questions carefully and formulate answers ready for the following week.

School nurses are invaluable resources. However, there is absolutely no reason why you need a nursing qualification to teach RSE. In fact, we would argue that a teaching qualification is more important. If you hand over all of your RSE to the nurses, it reinforces a message that "sex" is a topic that is inherently different from all other PSHE content. Nurses and external providers should supplement, not replace, a comprehensive RSE programme taught by teachers alongside other PSHE topics.

As with school nurses, there is no reason why all of your RSE has to be taught by external providers. That being said, students may be more receptive to certain messages if they are reinforced by people who are not their teachers or parents. They may also be more willing to ask questions of strangers. If you would like to book the PSHEasy team to come and give lectures or workshops at your school, please contact us to discuss your requirements.

Most elements of PSHE can be covered effectively using digital or paper resources and class discussions but there are some elements of sex education that involve developing practical skills; specifically, using contraception correctly. The "putting on a condom" lesson is so important and it shouldn't just be demonstrated. Every student should have the opportunity to practise. We also  recommend buying proper models for demonstrations, rather than using bananas!

Sex education can be alienating for LGBTQ+ students. There is still a tendency to teach that sex means "penis in vagina". When teaching contraception, it is important to discuss STI transmission and the importance of safe sex for everyone.  For example, the previously mentioned "putting on a condom" lesson can exclude lesbian students. One way to overcome this is to include dental dams, which can either be bought or made by cutting up a condom to make a latex square.