ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Sex education can be defined as instructions relating to human sexuality including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, sexual activity, sexual reproduction, age of consent, reproductive health, reproductive rights, safe sex, birth control and sexual abstinence. Sex education helps us to understand the concepts of sexual identity sexual relationship, intimacy and consequences of poor knowledge on sexuality. Parents are the first teachers to children, their primary duty is to socialize and maintain healthy communication. Adolescent is a crucial age and if proper guidance and information are not provided it could lead to consequences, Hence the research was titled “PARENTS KNOWLEDGE ON THE CONSEQUENCES OF INADEQUATE SEX EDUCATION IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUTHS IN THE MOLYKO HEALTH AREA, Buea. OBJECTIVE: This study was aimed to investigate on; Parents knowledge on the consequences of inadequate sex education in the development of youths in Molyko health area, Buea. METHOD: This study was a quantitative cross sectional study using the convenient sampling technique; only Parents who lived in Molyko and gave their consent were sampled. A questionnaire of both open and closed ended questions was used for data collection. Data analysis was done using Microsoft excel and also for graphic representation .RESULTS:   From the questionnaire administered, data analysis for parents knowledge on the importance of sex education to children, showed that All the parents had knowledge on the importance of sex education to children, A majority 60% knew the consequences of inadequate sex while a greater proportion 34% of parents said Ignorance was a major factor hindering the provision of sex education to children. CONCLUSION: This study found that most parents were knowledgeable on the importance of sex education in the development of youths and the consequences of inadequate sex education to children; however, this study found out that the major factor hindering the provision of sex education is Ignorance.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of Studies 

Sexual education is a lifelong process of acquiring information and forming attitudes, beliefs and values about identity, relationships and intimacy. It encompasses sexuality development, interpersonal relationships, affection, intimacy, body image and gender roles .It also addresses the biological,  socio-cultural psychological and spiritual dimensions of sexuality from the cognitive domain(information),the affective domain(feelings, values and attitudes) and the behavioral domain(communication and decision making skills) (Taris,2000) Sexuality is part of human life and development. It develops   during   childhood   and accelerates through adolescence. Internationally young people are a key vulnerable group for sexually transmitted infections (STIS) and more likely than any age group to be diagnosed with STI (CDC, 2016). When parents realize that their children have entered puberty, it is important for them to try and facilitate the affective attachment between them. This closeness will   avoid   that adolescents feels lonely or lost and this will help them to understand and   live this stage valuing their knowledge   and history, because it is within the family that they will find the support and safety they need to deal with the conflicts common to their age. Hence it is important to talk about sexuality as early as possible since it is a subject that usually causes controversy and conflicting ideas (Oringanje, Chioma et al, 2016).According to Greathead (2002), parents are the primary sources from which children obtain norms and values, In the context of permissiveness he argued that parents sexual standards are the earliest   to which children are exposed and provide the foundation of subsequent development.

Parents have an important role in delivering sexual education to their children; they play a key role in shaping the attitudes of adolescents, thereby reducing risky sexual behaviors and promoting healthy sexual development. However, most parents are reluctant to discuss sexual matters with their children due to the sensitive nature of the topic and the lack of knowledge on the consequences of inadequate sex education to their children. Parents are a critical influence on their children sexual health, in 2015, the journal of the American medical association (JAMA) published a study that synthesized over 30 years of research on parent-child communication around sexual health. The study found out that communication around sexual health with parents plays a protective role in safer sex practices among adolescents (Widman et al, 2015).this is why planned parenthood and other advocates of comprehensive sex education believe that parents are and ought to be their children primary sexuality educators (NGTF, 2004) .According to Arnette,(2003), adolescent is a period of healthy life including sexual life, but many adolescence are less informed about their sexual and reproductive health by their parents. Weaver says, (2002) says several studies indicate that sex education should not be left out to parents alone but should also include schools, community, media and even churches. Education by in Africa is seen as a sort of public health strategy recommended by multilateral development organization. The high prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Eastern and Southern African countries has resulted in sexuality education being more developed, standard and accepted by countries like Kenya, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Malawi, Lesotho, Swaziland, Namibia and South Africa (UNESCO, 2012).

These were among those targeted for the 2011 -2015 UNAIDS strategy which aim at achieving national comprehensive knowledge about HIV amongst at least 80% in and out of school including the provision of good quality sexual education (UNESCO, 2012).

Although data from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey is censored, it was evident that a greater proportion of adolescents in rural areas had ever had sexual intercourse as compared to the adolescents living in urban areas. Thus, adolescents sexual and reproductive health issues are prevalent in Ghana and may often go unreported by adolescents. This poses several challenges to parents, teachers, and healthcare providers and to the adolescents themselves. This has fueled controversies regarding how best to educate adolescents about sex in order to prevent unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections

Cameroon with the population of about 21,700,000 rank fiftieth worldwide in terms of HIV/AIDS(UNESCO,2012) with adult percentage of 53 while that for those aged 15-34 stands 33% (Tarkang,2013) The country is also  known to face problems of adolescent pregnancy,(Centre for Reproductive Right,2013),abortion(Engen,2013), and breast ironing (Tapscott,2012).Sex education may be taught informally, such as when someone receives information from a conversation with a parent, friend, religious leader or through the media (Philliber, SG ,ML Tatum Vol.17). A qualitative study carried out in KWHD of Cameroon by Wirsiy et al., reported that knowledge on sex-reproductive health issues is low among adolescent girls, including both child mothers as well as pregnant adolescents with majority of the obtaining information on sexo-repoductive health from their peers . We therefore sought in this study to determine the parent’s knowledge on the consequences of inadequate sex education in the development of youths at the Molyko health area, Buea

1.2 Problem Statement

Sex education is a very important aspect of sexual health in a child’s life which is supposed to be taught in schools, churches and most especially at home by their parents. It has been proven that adequate sex education can help; promote abstinence, shape early values, reduce the rate of premarital sex and promiscuity, reduce the rate of teenage pregnancy, shape early values, reveals the consequences of unsafe sex, reduce the spread of STIs, spreads awareness about contraceptives and family planning methods, Reduce the rate of abortion and even death due to unwanted pregnancy, reduce the number of school dropouts.

Meanwhile when sex education is not properly provided to the adolescent it has the following as consequences; high rate of teenage pregnancy and school dropouts, increased spread of STIs due to lack of abstinence and multiple sex partners, Abortion, and even death. Also statistics from social welfare center in Buea Southwest Region (SWR), Cameroon indicate 5% of girls terminate schooling due to teenage pregnancy every academic year. (Fomenky, 2008).

The above mentioned got the researcher worried and in order to evade these consequences mentioned above ,the researcher thought it wise to handle the problem from the root cause  hence  prompted the researcher to carry out this study on parents knowledge on the consequences of inadequate sex education in the development of youths at the Molyko health area, Buea

 1.3 Rationale

The rational here is to create awareness amongst parents on the consequences of inadequate sex education in the development of youths at the Molyko health area, Buea.

1.4. Research Questions

1) What is the importance of sex education?    

 2) What are the factors hindering the provision of sex education by parents?

3) What are the consequences of inadequate sex education?

1.5. Objectives

1.5.1. General objective

To investigate on Parent’s knowledge on the consequences of inadequate sex education in the development of youths at the Molyko Health Area, Buea

1.5.2. Specific Objectives

1) To assess Parent’s knowledge on the importance of sex education

2) To identify Factors hindering the provision of sex education by parents

3) To outline the Consequences of inadequate sex education