Foreign Curriculum Exemplar
Sweden has the longest history of implementing effective sex education in their schools in the world.
In 1955, Sweden was the first country to introduce mandatory sex education curriculum into schools (Ketting & Ivanova, 2018).
The first bill on the need for sex education was presented to the Swedish Parliament in 1908 (Riksförbundet för Sexuell Upplysning- the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education [RFSU], 2017).
Because sex education has such a long tradition in Sweden, parents generally support it very strongly. Evidence has shown that there is no significant opposition to sex education in Sweden (Ketting & Ivanova, 2018; RFSU, 2017).
Sex education in Sweden is an interdisciplinary subject that is fully integrated in school curricula, and many schools often form a team consisting of teachers, administration, and a school nurse or school counselor. (Ketting & Ivanova, 2018; RFSU, 2017).
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Puberty, body development, love, self-image, “the first time”, masturbation, condoms and preventive methods, gender, and sexual orientation are some of the important topics covered in these curricula (RFSU, 2017).
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Sex education in Sweden starts in preschool and continues throughout to their upper secondary school. Most schools focus most heavily on sex education from ages 11-16.
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Biology and science studies are the subjects that deal with knowledge of the human body, reproductive systems, sexuality, and STIs. Terms such as gender equality, responsibility, and relationships were added to the course syllabus of these subjects in 2011 (Ketting & Ivanova, 2018).
Topics such as love, long-term relationships and partnership, sexual orientation, gender roles and equality, mutual consent to sexual activity, and human rights and sexuality are interspersed throughout the curriculum of various other subjects (Ketting & Ivanova, 2018).
Domestic Curriculum Exemplar
The United States has less to choose from in terms of an exemplary comprehensive sex education curriculum model. This is because the United States has been relatively slow in its course to comprehensive sex education, and there is no implementation at the federal level.
However, some states have shown more progress in certain areas than others. The state of Massachusetts was the first state to directly address the safety of LGBTQ+ students in its schools on a statewide basis with the establishment of the Safe Schools Program for Gay and Lesbian Students in 1993.
This program was meant to enhance the support and safety of sexual minority youth, and to ensure that all members of the school community are informed, therefore improving the sexual diversity climate (Szalacha, 2003).
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They did this by developing school policies that protect LGBTQ+ students from harassment, violence, and discrimination, offering training to school faculty and staff in crisis and suicide prevention, providing school-based counseling for family members of LGBTQ+ students, and supporting the establishment of school-based support groups for the LGBTQ+ community, known as GSAs or Gay-Straight Alliances (Szalacha, 2003).
Lesson Plan Exemplars
The Genderbread Person is a teaching tool that breaks the concept of gender into more digestible pieces for young students. The lesson plans and activities address anatomical sex, gender identity, gender expression, and attraction in an accessible way that students can enjoy and understand.
FLASH is a sexual health education curriculum developed by Seattle Public Health designed to prevent teen pregnancy, STIs, and sexual violence, and to increase knowledge about the reproductive system and puberty. FLASH is available for elementary, middle, high school, and special education classrooms.