'Somebody that looks like me' matters: a qualitative study of black women's preferences for receiving sexual health services in the USA.

Research dedicated to understanding the sexual experiences of Black women has historically been framed around adverse outcomes. There are limited data that can be used to understand the lived experiences of Black women related to sexual health care. Twenty-five Black women aged 18- 35 from across nine US states were interviewed to gain insight into their experiences and preferences for receiving sexual health services. Three themes were developed from their accounts: individual and structural barriers affect access to and perceived quality of care; service provider race and gender impact sexual health care experiences; and personalised care improves engagement. Findings suggest the need for culturally informed training for sexual health practitioners working with Black women.

Breaking the silence on abortion: the role of adult community abortion education in fostering resistance to norms.

Meanings of abortion in society are constructed within sociohistorical and gendered spaces and manifested through myriad discourses that impact on the perception and treatment of the issue in that society. In societies with powerful oppressive anti-abortion norms, such as Northern Ireland, little is known as to how these norms are resisted by the adult population. This study uses a Foucauldian feminist approach to show how resistance to religious and patriarchal norms can be fostered through adult community abortion education. This resistance is multi-faceted and bolstered by a lived experience discourse, which does not necessarily involve eschewing religious notions held within society.

Development of Contextually-relevant Sexuality Education: Lessons from a Comprehensive Review of Adolescent Sexuality Education Across Cultures.

As reported by the World Health Organization in 2017, there are 2 million+ young people living with HIV worldwide. The World Health Organization also reported that a third of all new HIV infections around the world are estimated to occur among youths (aged 15⁻25). and teen pregnancy rates are on the rise in many places. These worrying trends suggest that existing sexuality education programs and interventions may be inadequate and/or ineffective. Although the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development's (ICPD) Programme of Action highlighted the roles of Governments to offer sex education to young people to promote teenage reproductive health, yet inconsistency exists in the related initiatives in the global context. The present article aims to provide a comprehensive literature review of the existing sexuality programs in selected places in both English-speaking (i.e., the United States of America, the United Kingdom) and Chinese-speaking contexts (i.e., Hong Kong, Mainland China, and Taiwan). Based on the review, observations and implications for sexuality education policy and practice, as well as recommendations for future research for youths are outlined.

What is best practice in sex and relationship education? A synthesis of evidence, including stakeholders' views.

OBJECTIVES: Sex and relationship education (SRE) is regarded as vital to improving young people's sexual health, but a third of schools in England lacks good SRE and government guidance is outdated. We aimed to identify what makes SRE programmes effective, acceptable, sustainable and capable of faithful implementation. DESIGN: This is a synthesis of findings from five research packages that we conducted (practitioner interviews, case study investigation, National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles, review of reviews and qualitative synthesis). We also gained feedback on our research from stakeholder consultations. SETTINGS: Primary research and stakeholder consultations were conducted in the UK. Secondary research draws on studies worldwide. RESULTS: Our findings indicate that school-based SRE and school-linked sexual health services can be effective at improving sexual health. We found professional consensus that good programmes start in primary school. Professionals and young people agreed that good programmes are age-appropriate, interactive and take place in a safe environment. Some young women reported preferring single-sex classes, but young men appeared to want mixed classes. Young people and professionals agreed that SRE should take a 'life skills' approach and not focus on abstinence. Young people advocated a 'sex-positive' approach but reported this was lacking. Young people and professionals agreed that SRE should discuss risks, but young people indicated that approaches to risk need revising. Professionals felt teachers should be involved in SRE delivery, but many young people reported disliking having their teachers deliver SRE and we found that key messages could become lost when interpreted by teachers. The divergence between young people and professionals was echoed by stakeholders. We developed criteria for best practice based on the evidence. CONCLUSIONS: We identified key features of effective and acceptable SRE. Our best practice criteria can be used to evaluate existing programmes, contribute to the development of new programmes and inform consultations around statutory SRE.

What do young people think about their school-based sex and relationship education? A qualitative synthesis of young people's views and experiences.

OBJECTIVES: Although sex and relationship education (SRE) represents a key strand in policies to safeguard young people and improve their sexual health, it currently lacks statutory status, government guidance is outdated and a third of UK schools has poor-quality SRE. We aimed to investigate whether current provision meets young people's needs. DESIGN: Synthesis of qualitative studies of young people's views of their school-based SRE. SETTING: Eligible studies originated from the UK, Ireland, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, Iran, Brazil and Sweden. PARTICIPANTS: Studies of students aged 4-19 in full-time education, young adults ≤19 (not necessarily in full-time education) or adults ≤25 if recalling their experiences of school-based SRE. RESULTS: -69 publications were identified, with 55 remaining after quality appraisal (representing 48 studies). The synthesis found that although sex is a potent and potentially embarrassing topic, schools appear reluctant to acknowledge this and attempt to teach SRE in the same way as other subjects. Young people report feeling vulnerable in SRE, with young men anxious to conceal sexual ignorance and young women risking sexual harassment if they participate. Schools appear to have difficulty accepting that some young people are sexually active, leading to SRE that is out of touch with many young people's lives. Young people report that SRE can be negative, gendered and heterosexist. They expressed dislike of their own teachers delivering SRE due to blurred boundaries, lack of anonymity, embarrassment and poor training. CONCLUSIONS: SRE should be 'sex-positive' and delivered by experts who maintain clear boundaries with students. Schools should acknowledge that sex is a special subject with unique challenges, as well as the fact and range of young people's sexual activity, otherwise young people will continue to disengage from SRE and opportunities for safeguarding and improving their sexual health will be reduced.

Why Fertility Education is needed in schools.

Fertility education needs to be at the top of the agenda if we want to make a major impact in preventing infertility. We have been successful in reducing teenage pregnancies through Sex and Relationship education (SRE) and education on contraception. Sex and relationship education is for now and fertility education is for the future. Conception and contraception are two sides of the same coin. We need to empower our young people with education on fertility so that they can stand a better chance of falling pregnant when they choose to. Education empowers.

"We Don't Get Into All That": An Analysis of How Teachers Uphold Heteronormative Sex and Relationship Education.

Legislation that applies to UK SRE currently advocates inclusive provision. Given the nonstatutory status of SRE, however, it is unclear how teachers incorporate sexual inclusivity, especially as research has shown that teachers' discursive practices can promote a heteronormative SRE climate (Renn, 2010). Using a discursive psychological approach to analyze interview data, this study examined how teachers account for their provision as inclusive. It was revealed that even when promoting their inclusivity, teachers' SRE provision upholds heteronormativity. In doing this, they positioned LGB and same-sex practices outside of the classroom, potentially leaving these young people without a sufficient sex education.