Introduction
Sexual health of young people is one of the most discussed issues in developed societies. Young people in Australia need more information in relation to sex, sexuality, and risks of HIV to contribute to their adequate sexual health.
Thus, the necessity of sex and HIV education is discussed by the Australian researchers, social activists, policy-makers, and educators during a long period of time with references to the experience of the other countries.
Many researchers focus on the fact that young people should have the opportunity to receive the appropriate and consistent information about sexual health and risks of HIV as the part of their education process (Jones & Hillier 2012).
The rates of sexually transmitted infection cases among young people in Australia increase each year supporting the idea that current policies and programmes are ineffective to overcome the problem (Smith 2011).
In spite of the fact the ideas of the Health and Human Relations Education policy developed during the last decades of the twentieth century and the associated education programmes respond to the necessity of the sexual education at school, the new youth policies as well as sexual and HIV education programmes should be developed additionally to include and discuss topics which are more important for young people today and to decrease the risks of HIV and sexually transmitted infections.
Values, Ideas, and the Vested Interests of Stakeholders Reflected in Youth Policies on Sexual and HIV Education
Policy-makers, young people, their parents, and educators can be discussed as primary stakeholders who are interested in the aspects of sexual and HIV education.
Thus, their interests, values, and ideas are also involved in the process connected with the development of the effective youth policy and education programme which could respond to the needs of young people and contribute to their sexual health as the necessary part of the social development.
Sexuality is the crucial aspect of the people’s lives, but the sexual life is usually connected with the aspects of morality and human values affected by the definite religious or social visions.
From this point, one of the main challenges which prevent the sexual education programmes from their effective development is the impact of the Christian morality followed by the majority of people in the Australian society.
There are still many persons who discuss the sexual education at school as inappropriate and focus on the role of the family in the process.
The opponents of this conservative vision concentrate on the fact that family often cannot provide young people with all the necessary information to the issue that is why the role of the school in the sexual education should be increased (Brindis 2006).
Moreover, the growing rates of sexually transmitted infections and HIV among young people make stakeholders pay more attention to the effective resolution of the issue.
The primary value which should be discussed as the influential factor for the development of more effective youth policies and sexual education programmes is the sexual health of young people.
Thus, the age at which young people become sexually active decreases, and the necessity of the intensive sexual education to prevent sexually transmitted infections and HIV is visible.
Although there are a lot of stakeholders involved in the discussion of the issue, families and social communities cannot provide all the necessary information on the problem of sexual health for young people (Quadara 2008).
That is why the first tries to implement sexual health education as the part of the curriculum in schools were made when the Health and Human Relations Education policy began to work in the 1980s.
Following the principles of the policy, teachers focused on the aspects of sexual education as the social issues which need the immediate solution (Jones & Hillier 2012).
Thus, the main points which are still discussed at the lessons of sexual health include the problems of contraception, pregnancy, prevention of sexually transmitted infections and HIV, and the ethics of sexual relations.
However, this policy does not require the obligatory sexual health education as the part of the curriculum in all the schools of the country.
Nevertheless, the interests of policy-makers today depend significantly on the problem of preventing sexually transmitted infections and HIV and of early sexual activity of young people.
The current policies associated with the issue of young people’s sexual health and HIV education directly reflect the social values associated with the health of young persons and their social development as adult members of the society.
From this point, young people should have the appropriate and accurate sources of information on the issue of sexual health and sexual relations. The social values followed by young people are affected by those role models and social behaviours which are observed in their everyday life.
According to the social learning theory, people are inclined to reflect the behavioural patterns typical for the society in which they live (Smith 2011).
Applying this knowledge to the problem of sexual health and associated youth policy, it is possible to note that young people reflect the patterns of sexual behaviours, relations, and attitudes during their sexual development, and they need appropriate sources of information to follow to guarantee healthy sexual relations (Almahbobi 2012).
That is why much attention should be paid to the role of the peer educators in young people’s receiving information about the aspects of the sexual health and relations.
The developed Health and Human Relations Education policy are connected significantly with the social learning theory because sex education can be discussed as the effective measure to prevent young people from a lot of risks depended on the inappropriate sexual behaviour.
In spite of the fact many people are inclined to oppose the implementation of sexual health education programmes in all the schools in Australia, it is necessary to focus on the point that health promotion activities and the factual decrease of health-associated risks for young people can become the real positive outcomes of the active development of youth policies (Quadara 2008).
Moreover, these results can be discussed as positive for all the stakeholders interested in the discussion of the issue.
The Contribution of Policies to Resolving the Issue of Sexual and HIV Education
The Health and Human Relations Education and the Health and Physical Education policies in Australia are the central policies which are developed to regulate the problem of the sexual health and HIV education among young people.
Today, these policies are used to work out the national curriculum for implementing in schools of the country without references to their status.
The programme is at the stage of its development, that is why the contribution of the policies to resolving the issue of sexual health and HIV education cannot be discussed as complete.
It is possible to determine the main points on which the policymakers and peer educators focus while teaching young people (Smith 2011).
To realise the principles of the healthy sexual development, it is essential to receive the necessary information on the problems of reproduction, healthy sexual relations, and risks of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. Moreover, much attention should be paid to the respectful sexual relationships between the partners and the associated issue of pressure and tension.
The policy can be considered as effective and contributing to resolving the main problem of preventing HIV and sexually transmitted infections as well as developing the culture of the sexual health when it is realised appropriately and affects young people’s every day.
Sexual health education is the vital source of the information about HIV and sexually transmitted infections and sexual health and relations if the community and peer educators participate in the process successfully (Smith 2011).
The topics which should be discussed with references to the new educational programme can be chosen only with references to the young people’s needs.
The current realisation of the policy and the focus on sexual health lessons only in individual schools cannot guarantee the expected results and real changes in the social situation.
According to the principles of the developed policies, the essential elements necessary for the discussion are set, but they are not obligatory for all the secondary schools in which it is appropriate to realise sexual health education.
Thus, the policies can work effectively toward decreasing the rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections and cases of unplanned pregnancy among young people if the components of the sexual health education programme are the same for all the secondary schools in the country.
Moreover, the information provided should be oriented toward the possibilities of its practical usage (Jones & Hillier 2012). The sexual health education can be effective only when young people see the practicality of the issues discussed.
From this point, it is not only the focus on preventing HIV and sexually transmitted infections but also on the improvement of the young people’s knowledge of all the aspects of the sexual health.
The next issue is the diversity of the Australian nation’s cultural background. In spite of the fact the topics and components of the sexual health education programme should be the same in all regions and schools of the country, it is essential to pay attention to the cultural diversity and respond to the needs of young people with references to their cultural background.
It was stated earlier that many representatives of different Christian communities in the country disagree with the idea of the obligatory sexual health education because of the issues of religion and morality (Almahbobi 2012).
This situation can be also discussed from the point of the other communities’ interests. Thus, the practical education programme should not violate the moral norms and values of different religious and social groups.
The current policies are not competent enough because the gap between the young people’s cultural background, their everyday life, the realities of environment, and the information presented at the lessons of sexual health is still significant.
Although the prevention of HIV and sexually transmitted infections is one of the main goals of the sexual health education, this aspect should not become the primary component of the education process avoiding the discussion of young people’s sexual health as the complex picture (Brindis 2006).
Thus, effective policies should be based on presenting the aspects of the sexual health as the complex phenomenon, on paying attention to the cultural diversity, on the role of teachers as peer educators, and on the implementation of the programmes associated with the policy in all the schools of the country.
Conclusion
High rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections, unwanted pregnancy, and abortion are the significant social issue in Australia.
To prevent the development of the problem and contribute to decreasing the above-mentioned rates, it is necessary to focus on specific policies which goal is to influence young people’s behaviour and stimulate their responsible attitude to the sexual health.
The current policies used in the country are oriented to providing young people with the necessary information about the risks of HIV and sexually transmitted infections as well as about appropriate sexual behaviour and elements of the sexual health.
However, the education programmes which are based on these policies are not used in all the country’s schools. They are not part of the national education programme. To change the situation for better, the current policies should be revised.
Today, the policies and sexual health curricula lack the focus on the young people’s sexual health as the complex phenomenon in which all the aspects such as prevention of HIV and sexually transmitted infections and the ethics of sexual relations play a significant role.
The policies should be improved to work out education programmes which can be effectively used in all the regions of the country.
Reference List
Almahbobi, G 2012, ‘Multiculturalism and inconsistency in the perception of sex education in Australian society’, Australasian Medical Journal, vol. 5. no. 12, pp. 623–626.
Brindis, C 2006, ‘A public health success: Understanding policy changes related to teen sexual activity and pregnancy’, Annual Review of Public Health, vol. 27. no. 1, pp. 277-295.
Jones, T, & Hillier, L 2012, ‘Sexuality education school policy for Australian GLBTIQ students’, Sex Education, vol. 12. no. 4, pp.437-454.
Quadara, A 2008, Responding to young people’s disclosures about sexual assault: A resource for schools, Australian Institute of Family Studies, Melbourne.
Smith, A 2011, Sexuality education in Australian Secondary Schools: Results of the 1st National Survey of Australian Secondary Teachers of Sexuality Education 2010, Australian Research Centre in Sex Health and Society, Melbourne.