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Girl
THOUGHTS... |
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at a youth centre rather
than learning it at school. We can be ourselves at a youth centre,”
says RUBY girl Fiona.
“We do need to learn more from school, not just what a condom
looks like,” says Steph in Kent. “But it really is better
when you |
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can discuss things with
either an outside professional or from slightly older peers - not
from your regular teachers. With our Sexual Self Respect group we
aim to be able to go into schools and have more discussions with
the younger girls.”
All the girls agreed they would like to have more SRE-type classes,
but ones where everyone is encouraged to talk openly about ‘emotional’
things and uncertainties around sex itself. This kind of peer-led
discussion forum is more valuable than the occasional human biology
class or sporadic teacher-led lecture.
16-year-old Jo from Kent says: “Some of my school education
in year nine was useful, but for example, I have only just learned
from the work I’m doing now with the community group that
you can get some STIs from oral sex. And I’m 16 going on 17!”
Jo also explains: “One of the reasons I got involved in the
Sexual Self Respect project is because I felt that the emotional
consequences of having sex were completely ignored when we were
taught about sex at school. We get told the facts but nothing else,
and young girls are especially emotionally vulnerable the first
time they have sex. The only place I remember getting any help,
as a 13-year old, was from girls’ magazines, which are useful. |
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“Discussions with
friends are often just gossip. You need to be able to talk about
things for real and honestly with your peers, and with a few people
who have more experience and wisdom,” she concludes.
The reason youth peer sex-education projects are springing up everywhere
is because, as YWCA’s policy officer, Clare Dodwell, warns:
“it’s become very apparent that sexual health education
is sadly lacking in schools and young girls particularly are suffering
as a result.
“We all know about the increases in unwanted teenage pregnancies
and STIs here in the UK, and it’s encouraging that we are
getting groups of young women themselves to set up their own projects
so they can go into schools and youth centres and help awareness.”
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Welsh
valley girls in the FPA’s RUBY project get some time ‘to
be r selves’ at the youth centre |
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