LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX

Secondary school; we’ve all been there so, presumably, all, at the very least got the “sex talk”. If not, let me give you a little recap in 8 words, “the only true form of contraception is abstinence”. 

That’s it, that’s all you need to know, you can all go home now. Laughing, animation student, Juliet McGrath recalls this phrase to me, echoing the experience of so many other Irish students.

For anyone outside of Ireland or the grips of the Holy Trinity, this probably seems ridiculous. How could that even be allowed?

You see this is the first hiccup in a flawed system: it is allowed.

As stated in the official sex education syllabus, stamped and issued by the Department of Education and Sciences, the syllabus is “not prescriptive, rather (it) provides a menu of options for classroom lessons from which teachers can choose in accordance with their school RSE Policy”.

The keywords here are “options” and “THEIR school policy”. In layman's language, what this translates to me is teachers have the liberty of picking and choosing what they would like to teach according to their school ethos. Let’s take a Catholic convent for example. Catholicism doesn’t believe in sex outside of marriage nor abortions, therefore, according to law Catholic schools are entitled to reserve the right to teach according to their beliefs which happens to be, “the only true form of contraception is abstinence”.

Luckily, 99% of the time, the implementation of this rule is not that drastic, but it creates a grey area where subjectivity can creep in.

In the words of Irish LGBTQ+ organisation GOSHH, “A lot of these talks speak about the functional nature of puberty and not the emotional journey”.

From reading through the syllabus of both Junior and Senior Cert cycles, this is a point I can agree on. Sex is spoken of in functional matters: it’s a means of reproduction, not pleasure.

Sex is seen as something taboo, it’s shameful and should be kept tucked away in secret, as opposed to it being seen as liberating, pleasurable and healthy.

Yes, the best-kept secret of Ireland is that sex is, in fact, good for your physical and mental health. The NHS, which is essentially the English version of the HSE, has a section on their website designated to the benefits of love and sex. Amongst benefits include: a better heart, decreased likelihood of ulcers, de-stressor and many others.

Imagine that- your very own government encouraging sex? 

Another unimaginable thought: Invest in Netflix, not education. I’m assuming you will all get the satire in that- I don’t actually mean drop out of school and become a professional Netflix-binger but it’s interesting to think what a €7 monthly subscription on Netflix can get you in comparison to the tax money of a whole country. 

21-year-old, UL student, Cathal O’Sullivan admits the first time he heard of PrEP (means of protection from HIV) was through Netflix.

“I think the first time I heard about it was on ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ if I’m honest”.

As a gay man, this piece of information could potentially save him from a life of illness. It’s not something schools can afford to leave out, yet, despite the fact Ireland has nearly double the European average of HIV+ cases, schools continue not to teach it.

According to HIV Ireland, 79% of HIV diagnoses in Ireland are amongst those aged between 25-39 years old, I can’t help but wonder would this number be much lower, had people been informed of the virus in schools?

In reference to homosexuality in RSE, Cathal said, “It was always mentioned in passing as a kind of afterthought but not even in relation to sex and there was never anything as detailed as what was said about straight sex”.

‘Accepting Sexual Orientations’ is a chapter in the Leaving Cert RSE programme but just as Cathal points out, there’s no real mention of sexuality. The lesson comes from a heteronormative perspective looking at stereotypes which is great and all but what about including homosexual perspectives when talking about homosexuality? - *high pitched sarcastic voice* “that’d be an idea wouldn’t it!?” DUH!

GOSHH Ireland who have extensive experience dealing with LGBTQ+ issues on a day to day basis, stress the positive effect it would have on “diverse gender or orientation to hear themselves represented in study plans and curriculum”.

Schools can’t keep encouraging inclusivity without actually applying it themselves! Jeesh, c’mon guys it’s 2019, practice what you preach.

But this concept of inclusivity I’m preaching about stretches much farther than sexuality. It means including all aspects of sexual health, not just the frilly bits around the edges. It means talking about sex, masturbation, orientations as opposed to reading poems and sitting in circles discussing friendship. 

I’m all for a good poem but what good will that be to me when I’m butt naked wondering what happened to me that I can’t orgasm because I was never taught in school that only 57% of women regularly orgasm during sex.

I got in touch with Minister of Education and Sciences, Joe McHugh on the topic and this is the response I got: “In April 2018, a review of RSE in schools was announced by the previous Minister for Education and Skills Mr. Richard Bruton TD.  The Minister asked the NCCA to undertake a review, not just of the content of the curriculum but of how it is taught in schools”.

I am told over 7,891 parents, 512 young people, 1,333 teachers, as well as a number of focus groups and organisations took part in consultations surrounding this report and the findings are set to be released before the end of this year and will go on to be used to redevelop the SPHE/RSE curriculum in Ireland. 

At least the government are taking action, let’s just hope it’s for the same reasons we want them to.

In the meantime, please enjoy these sexy facts, get your hole and be safe.