Gumleaf
February 25th, 2008, 02:33 AM
Monday Feb 25 17:47 AEDT
Queensland teenagers are at greater risk of abuse, infections and pregnancies due to an ad hoc approach to sex education, a forum has heard.
Research indicated less than five per cent of Queensland students received comprehensive sex education, Family Planning Queensland manager for research and development Holly Brennan told the forum in Brisbane on Monday.
"At the moment it is really up to the school's discretion of how they do it because there are no checks and balances in place," Ms Brennan told AAP outside the forum.
"So some schools will have a fantastic program that goes from grades one to 12 while others just give young people a five-minute talk before they go to schoolies at the end of Year 12."
Ms Brennan said parents were not talking to their children about sexual issues as they believed it was covered at school.
She said young people who received sexual education were less likely to be abused or catch sexually transmitted diseases.
"If young people get sexuality education they are more likely to have sex at a later age and more likely to use contraception when they do, and they are more likely to do it without the influence of drugs and alcohol and be making choices that aren't as exploitative," she said.
Ms Brennan said Queensland was second only to the Northern Territory when it came to child sex abuse and teenage pregnancy rates in Australia.
"People support (sex education), but there is no leadership saying this has to be done," she said.
©AAP 2008
Queensland teenagers are at greater risk of abuse, infections and pregnancies due to an ad hoc approach to sex education, a forum has heard.
Research indicated less than five per cent of Queensland students received comprehensive sex education, Family Planning Queensland manager for research and development Holly Brennan told the forum in Brisbane on Monday.
"At the moment it is really up to the school's discretion of how they do it because there are no checks and balances in place," Ms Brennan told AAP outside the forum.
"So some schools will have a fantastic program that goes from grades one to 12 while others just give young people a five-minute talk before they go to schoolies at the end of Year 12."
Ms Brennan said parents were not talking to their children about sexual issues as they believed it was covered at school.
She said young people who received sexual education were less likely to be abused or catch sexually transmitted diseases.
"If young people get sexuality education they are more likely to have sex at a later age and more likely to use contraception when they do, and they are more likely to do it without the influence of drugs and alcohol and be making choices that aren't as exploitative," she said.
Ms Brennan said Queensland was second only to the Northern Territory when it came to child sex abuse and teenage pregnancy rates in Australia.
"People support (sex education), but there is no leadership saying this has to be done," she said.
©AAP 2008