ABSTRACT
This research work was a survey
research, it was designed to study the adolescent attitude towards sex
education in the senior secondary schools in Owan West Local Government Area of
Edo State. In carrying out the research,
five research questions were raised to study the adolescent attitude towards
sex education. A sample of one hundred
(100) students were randomly selected.
Twenty (20) students each from the selected public senior secondary
schools were used. For effective data
collection, questionnaires were designed using strongly agree, agree, strongly
disagree, disagree. The data collected
were critically analyzed and used to test the research questions propounded,
simple percentage were the statistical method adopted in the analysis of
data. During the findings, it was
discovered that adolescent faces sex related problems because of lack of sex
education. Based on the findings, it is
recommended that education about the dangers of sex should be provided by
parents, teachers and religious leaders.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page i
Certification ii
Dedication iii
Acknowledgement iv
Abstract vi
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Background to
the Study 1
Statement of the
Problem 6
Purpose of the
Study 8
Research
Questions 8
Scope of the
Study 10
Definition of
Terms 11
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
The Concept of
Attitude 13
Attitude
Formation 14
Attitude Change 15
Sex Education 17
Attitude and Sex
Education 24
Attitude of Secondary School
Learners towards Sex
Education in relation to
Information given by Parents,
Teachers, Peers, and other Media 31
Influence of gender, age, and
grades on Attitudes
towards sex Education 35
Importance of Sex Education for
Teenagers/Adolescents 43
CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY
Research Design 45
Population of
the Study 46
Sample and
Sampling Technique 46
Instrumentation 47
Validity of the
Study 47
Reliability of
the Study 48
Administration
of Questionnaire 48
Method of Data
Analysis 49
CHAPTER FOUR
Analysis of Data
and Discussion of Findings 50
CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY,
CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary 63
Conclusion 65
Recommendations 66
References 69
Appendix
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background to the Study
The Nigerian society today has to
grapple with many behavioural problems of its youth. Such problems include truancy, disobedience,
drug offences, assault, insult, stealing, violent, demonstration, vandalism,
examination malpractices, robbery and secret cult activities (Nnachi,
2003). Apart from these widely
publicized behavioural problems, heterosexual activities are also listed among
types of behavioural problems prevalent in Nigeria secondary schools. These are variously named in the literature
as sex abuse, sex offences, sexual misconduct, sexual immorality, sexual
promiscuity and sexual maladjustment (Odoemelam, 1996; Adedipe, 2000; Ndu,
2000; Nnachi, 2003).
The end of the nineteenth century and
the early part of the twentieth century represented an important period in the
invention of the concept we now call adolescence. Adolescence can be described as the period
between the latter stage of childhood and early stage of adulthood (Health
Foundation of Ghana, 2004). The World
Health Organization (WHO) suggested adolescence to be the period between the
ages of 10 and 19 or the second decade of life.
Adolescence, therefore, refers to boys and girls who fall within this
stage or period.
Sex education simply refers to the
systematic attempt to promote the healthy awareness in the individual on
matters of his or sound development, functioning, behavior and attitude through
direct teaching. Sex is a topic, which
most people would not like to talk about.
The Nigerian parents’ attitude to sex is that the child will grow to
know. In the home, when the child is
present and parents are discussing issues about sex, even the adolescent child
is kept away from sight. An inquisitive
child who ventures to ask questions about sex is morally branded “a bad”
child. Many society and homes consider
discussion of sexual issues as a taboo.
In view of this, most parents find it too difficult, awkward and
uncomfortable to discuss sex-related issues with their children. Children are condemned when they mention a
word referring to some sexual organ or act.
Even the hands of babies are hit whenever they fondle with their sex
organs. Due to this, throughout
adolescence, the youth in the country learn about sex and sexuality in a
variety of ways devoid, in most cases of factual and empirical information and
in secrecy.
The child comes to know about sex
possibly from an early age through relatives, friends, the elderly, movies, and
drawing. A 14 year old boy was asked
where he learned about sex, he responded “in the streets’. Asked if this was the only place, he said
“well, I learned some from play boy and others sex magazines”. What about school, he was asked? He responded, “No, they talk about hygiene,
but not much that could help you out”.
When asked his parents’ contribution, he replied “they haven’t told me
one thing” (Powers and Baskin, 1969).
In a similar survey contained in the
Population Report (1995), seventy-five percent of the students sampled
preferred to discuss about bodily changes that occur during adolescence with
peers of the same sex, non of them wanted it to be with their parents. As a result of a cultural taboo, adolescents
in many developing countries rarely discuss sexual matters explicitly with
their parents. Most information for
their patchy knowledge often comes from peers of the same sex, who may
themselves be uninformed or incorrectly informed. The end result to know about one’s sexual
development, hence experimentation to explore one’s sexual life.
The issue of introducing sex education
has been a tropical and controversial one with two schools of thought
emerging. This scholarly tug of war has
engaged the attention of policy makers and government the world over, religious
organization, parents and even children.
Many are those who have called for its introduction due to the apparent
havoc that irresponsible and unplanned sexual behavior brings.
As a child reaches the adolescence
stage, the interest in the opposite sex generates. This instinct – (sex drive) which has been
present with the adolescent since childhood pushes him or her to ‘pet’, kiss
and manipulate the sex organ, etc.
Curiosity and experimentation of sex, which sometimes leads to teenage
pregnancy and or contraction of STD (sexually transmitted diseases) are
prevalent at this adolescent stage.
Statement of the Problem
A lot of sex related problems facing
the youth of today is undoubtedly linked with lack of sex education. It is apt to point out that even though these
(matters about sex) impinge generally on men, the vulnerable group is the
youth, many of whom are not knowledgeable in matters concerning sex. In their bid to satisfy their curiosity, many
a youth would like to experiment these things and inexperience usually lead
them into dangerous consequences. Many
a time, the adolescent receive wrong information and these myths and
misconception are carried throughout their life time. Therefore, there is a need to provide
adolescents with information so as to enable them to cope better with these
changes (Sathe, 1992).
The fact is that with or without these
services, the tendency towards precocious sexual relations, pregnancy in
adolescence and the alarming increase in the incidence of sexually transmitted
diseases (STDs) in these age groups, are commonplace and universal
realities. It is necessary that the
adolescent is made aware of these bodily changes through education before they
occur so that they can adequately prepare themselves before the asset of
puberty, and also help them engage in other activities rather than sexual
manipulation. The study, therefore,
sought to explore the adolescents’ opinion on various sexual issues that
account for their sexual development and to establish the need for sex
education in senior high schools in some selected schools in Owan West Local
Government Area of Edo State.
Purpose of the Study
The purpose of this study is to:
·
Determine the nature of the adolescence thoughts
and feelings towards sex education.
·
To find out the nature of adolescents thoughts
and feelings towards sex education in relation to information given by parent,
teachers, and other media.
·
To determine the extent to which gender, age
grade and residence influence learner’s thought and feeling towards sex
education.
Research Questions
The study sets out to examine or
unravel the following research questions:
1.
What is the nature of adolescents’ thoughts and
feelings towards sex education?
2.
What is the nature of adolescents’ thoughts and
feelings towards sex education in relation to information given by parents,
teachers, peers and other media?
3.
How do the following variables influence the
thoughts and feelings of adolescents towards sex education:
-
Age
-
Resident
4.
To what extent do students favour the teaching
of sex education in schools?
5.
In what ways can sex education be effectively
promoted among adolescents in schools?
Scope of the Study
In any study, the scope is the area in
which the research work is focused on or going to be carried out as a centre
for the study.
The smaller the scope, the more
manageable the study will be in terms of available resources, time, energy and
intellectual materials.
The scope of this study is some
selected secondary schools in Owan West Local Government Area of Edo
State. Reasons being that:
1.
Money and time constrain which would not enable
the researcher to travel very far and wide for gathering information in respect
of the project topic, hence the scope in Owan West.
2.
The researcher hails from Owan West Local
Government Area of Edo State and as a result, it will be easier for her to
gather information because she is familiar to most of the children within the
locality sampled.
Definition of Terms
The study deals with adolescent
attitude towards sex education. There
are three concepts involved in this study that need to be unpacked, namely;
attitudes, adolescents and sex education.
Attitude is a disposition of respond
favourably or unfavourably. In other
words, attitudes are the thoughts and feelings that encourage someone to act as
if he/she likes or dislike something.
According to Coom (1996) an attitude is a learned predisposition to
respond to people, objects or institution in a positive or negative way.
Adolescent can be described as the
period between the later stage of childhood and early stage of adulthood
(Health Foundation of Ghana, 2004).
Adolescent therefore refers to boys
and girls who falls within this stage or period, between the ages of 10 and 17
or the second decade of life.
Sex education is an openness, about
sex in society where teachers at schools, parents at home and the department of
education have to listen to communication and provide the knowledge about sex
education to the adolescents. Sex
education simply refers to the systematic attempt to promote the healthy
awareness in the individual on matters of his or her sexual development,
functioning behavior and attitudes through direct teaching.
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