Sex education in school: young people's views.

The aims of this study were to explore adolescents' levels of knowledge on sexual health issues and their views on the sex education they receive as part of their compulsory education. Twenty students from two schools completed a short questionnaire and participated in a focus group discussion. The students had an excellent level of knowledge about sexual health issues, which contradicts Government views that ignorance is the key to adolescents' sexual health concerns (Social Exclusion Unit 1999). Participants felt their sex education was 'too little, too late' and that it should be taught by someone other than a teacher. Sex education should be introduced earlier in the curriculum as well as finding an acceptable 'teacher' if adolescent sexual health is to improve.