Sex Ed Week in Review: Sexy History Lessons, WiseGuyz, and Healthy Choices

Professors at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom are convincing students aged 14-19 that learning about history is fun and sex ed doesn’t have to be awkward. History professor Kate Fisher and classicist Dr. Rebecca Langlands have created the Sex and History project, which uses historical artifacts such as a chastity belt from the 18th century, African fertility icons, and phallic amulets that were worn by both soldiers and children in ancient Rome to provide a lead-in to conversations on topics such as changing sexual practices and conventions through time—especially in current times. 

“These intriguing artefacts [sic] from ancient cultures act as a productive and challenging stimulus, but they also provide a safe distance to discuss sensitive subjects,” explained Professor Fisher. “Using them encouraged young people to find new ways of discussing relationships and sex without embarrassment. They were talking about history, about places and times far away. It was no longer sex education or about putting them in the spotlight, but it was about broader cultures.” 

The artifacts went on display as the Intimate World exhibit at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Artifacts Gallery in Exeter on April 5, and can be used in conjunction with a free Relationship and Sex Education training.

The Walrus April issue profiles a fourteen-week supplemental sex ed course for ninth-grade boys called WiseGuyz, which is run by the Calgary Sexual Health Centre. The program follows “a carefully plotted schedule” that is designed to address the specific social learning styles and sex educate needs of 13-14 year old boys, who the article says, are like “pack animals” dealing with very strict rules of coolness and power that make it difficult to teach them about sex and sexuality, or help them to act against behaviors like sexual violence that they see amongst their peers, lest they lose social status. So WiseGuyz “doesn’t just target individuals; it tries to reshape the dynamics of boy culture” by deconstructing the concept of manhood in a “half-goofy, half-serious” way and then “helping them figure out how to become a good one [a good man].” 

The curriculum starts with human rights and values; moves on to anatomy, sex, and contraception; switches gears to gender and sexuality; and finishes by talking about healthy relationships—“how to establish and respect boundaries and personal choice.” Importantly, the program addresses pleasure in addition to the facts and responsibilities that are more often emphasized in sex ed programs for adolescents. Although there’s no empirical data yet on whether the program influences behaviors over the long-term, the Centre has seen at least anecdotally, by the connections instructors are making with their students, that WiseGuyz is making a difference.

Realityworks, Inc., a company based out of Eau Claire, WI, announced the release of a new sex ed program on April 4, called the Healthy Choices Sex Education Program. The program includes lessons on “relationships, puberty, sexuality, reproduction, Sexually Transmitted Infections, abstinence and family planning for middle and high school students,” and is designed to be used with the RealCare Baby, Realityworks flagship product. The program can reportedly fit with either abstinence-plus or abstinence-only curricula, and aligns to National Sexuality Education, Common Core and Common Career Core, and National Health Education standards.