Sex education

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Study Guide No. 1

Sex Information and Education
Council of the US

The SIECUS Purpose

To establish human sexuality as a health entity:

to identify the special characteristics that dis-
tinguish it from, yet relate it to, human
reproduction; to dignify it by openness of
approach, study, and scientific research
designed to lead toward its understanding and
its freedom from exploitation; to give
leadership to professionals and to society, to the
end that human beings may be aided toward
responsible use of the sexual faculty and
toward assimilation of sex into their individual
life patterns as a creative and re-creative force.

Sex Education, SIECUS Study Guide No. 1, was written by Lester A.
Kirkendall, Ph.D. A Founder and member of the Board of SIECUS, Dr.
Kirkendall is Professor of Family Life, Emeritus, Oregon State Uni'ver-
sity, Corvallis. He is the author of the study Premarital Intercourse and
Interpersonal Relationships and of other books and articles on family
life education.

THE LIBRARY

Southwest Texas State University
San Marcos, Texas

Sex Education

This study guide is intended primarily for discus-
sion leaders and for individuals interested in inten-
sive, self motivated study.

CONTENTS

How Shall We Look at Sex— and Sex Education?
Common Weaknesses of Sex Education Programs
Objectives of Sex Education
Scope of Sex Education Programs
Sex Education— A New Look
Selected Bibliography

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Originally published, October 1965
Eighth printing, August 1974

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How Shall We Look at Sex-
and Sex Education?

Sex is far more than a physical expression; it is a
major aspect of personality. As such it is intimately
related to the individual's emotional and social
adjustment and to his physical development. Prob-
ably nothing so greatly influences one's life pattern
as his sex membership. £Xn individual's sense of
identity, his ways of thinking and behaving, social
and occupational activities, choice of associates,
mode of dress, and many other important factors
are strongly conditioned by being male or femalej
An individual's happiness, his success as a family
member, and his civic contributions are either en-
hanced or diminished by his success or failure in
fitting into his sex role, and in wisely managing and
directing his sexuality.

Sex can never be fully understood simply by
focusing upon it as a physiological process, by con-
centrating on the sex act, or by counting or classi-
fying instances of sexual behavior. These facts do
represent aspects of sex and they do need to be
known. But the significance of human sexuality
can be fully understood only by relating it to the
total adjustment of the individual in his family and
society. Developing these relationships becomes
the task and scope of sex education. Anything less
is shallow, distorted, and ineffectual.

Most people assume that, in the absence of direct
Instruction, no sex education takes place. Actually
the parents' reaction to themselves and to each
other as sexual beings, their feelings toward the
child's exploration of his own body, their attitudes

toward the establishment of toilet habits, their re-
sponse to his questions and his attempts to learn
about himself and his environment, their ability
to give and express their love for each other and
for him, are among the many ways in which they
profoundly influence the child's sexual conditioning.
Avoidance, repression, rejection, suppression, em-
barrassment, and shock are negative forms of sex
education. That fact cannot be escaped. Parents
cannot choose whether or not they will give sex
education; they can choose only whether they will
do something positive or negative about it, whether
they will accept or deny their responsibility.

Common Weaknesses of
Sex Education Programs

Certain weaknesses presently characterize most sex
education, particularly programs designed for chil-
dren and adolescents.

1. The sex education usually received by children
can more accurately be labeled "reproduction edu-
cation" or "moral instruction" than sex education.
Even those families that provide reproduction in-
formation easily and adequately usually fail to go
beyond this level. Once the child has come to ado-
lescence and needs to deal with sex in terms of
human interaction and as an aspect of relating to
others, for all practical purposes he is left without
help from the adults who care for him most. Edu-
cation with reference to the use of sex in relation-
ships and its meaning in interpersonal associations
is left by parents and teachers almost entirely to
chance. Actually most of what the child receives is
supplied by his peer group.

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The focus on reproduction and physical develop-
ment is appropriate mainly at the childhood level,
when boys and girls are consumed with curiosity
about life and the world about them. They seek to
understand origins, to know what they themselves
will become. Even at this age, however, they should
be helped to understand the placeof men and women
in the family and in out-of-family situations. It is a
propitious time for attitude formation.

Reproductive and physiological information is
more impersonal and has more preciseness about
it than have discussions involving dating relation-
ships, sexual behavior, and moral codes. The
security of teachers or parents is threatened when
they move to a consideration of issues and have to
cope both with deep-seated feelings and a lack of
knowledge. As a result they prolong the period for
imparting biological information into adolescence
and permit this postponement to crowd out consid-
eration of the sensitive issues involving relationships
. and standards so much needed by adolescents. This
Insecurity also leads indirectly to the second
weakness.

2. Sex education is something imposed— some-
thing "given. "

That more and better education is obtained by
Interchange and the free interplay of ideas is an
established educational principle. But few parents
< 1 1 teachers are adequately informed or sufficiently
secure to engage in free and open dialogue with
youth in matters of sex, especially when questions
of standards, personal behavior, and development
<>l moral values arise. A didactic approach may
provide a feeling of security for the adult, but it
teaches the child that free exchange and ready com-
munication between the generations is impossible.

The openness of approach that is clearly needed,
and the assumption that youth and adults are on
the same plane in their freedom to express their
views, are seldom present. As a result, the educative
process fails to eliminate fears, misconceptions, and
perplexities. Usually when specific sexual relation-
ships become the focus of discussion, what youth
then receives are injunctions and moralisms that
provide little or no insight into situations facing
them. The fundamental questions that youth of to-
day faces in adjusting to human sexuality are
seldom acknowledged and even less often discussed.

3. Sex education is considered a" telling" process.
The widespread acceptance of this view can be

demonstrated by asking adults concerned with sex
education to list questions about which they are per-
plexed. These questions almost always dwell on the
timing, methods, techniques, and niceties of "telling"
children about sex. This view overlooks the fact
that much sex education is given and many attitudes
are created during the normal day-by-day process of
living — in the home, the school, and the community.
Some of the most potent aspects of sex education are
those experienced through nonverbal channels.

4. Some education is regarded mainly as an in-
surance against moral" disaster. "

One could anticipate that most parents, could they
but be assured that their children would lead con-
ventional lives and would "stay out of trouble"
without being "given" sex education, would doubt-
less heave a sigh of great relief. That sex education
has further functions, for instance that it might serve
_to_bring about, richer, fuller, more successful man-
woman relationships and therefore more complete
lives, is seldom cited as a reason for sex education
among rank-and-file teachers and parents. Even

8

when parents and teachers do recognize this, how
to attain this objective through the processes oi
education is not clearly understood.

J Sex education is regarded as a wholly individ-
ual matter that is to be accomplished through read-
ing or individualized teaching, and that is to in-
valve as few persons as possible.

This concept probably is not as strong now as it
was formerly, although many persons are still
fearful of the consequences of group instruction
and/or interchange. Because many believe in the
overwhelming power of the sexual impulse if it is
Kiven any recognition whatsoever, coming together
lor group discussion is seen as a situation likely to
produce sexual stimulation and desires. Those who
hold this view are generally interested in confining
and limiting discussion as narrowly as possible.
Mule or no recognition exists of the value and need
far many different approaches on many different
occasions, with much to be gained from person-to-
|M .son, peer group, mixed group, sex-segregated
group, and cross-generational group discussions.
' u Sex education is considered to be a function of
the home and an obligation of parents only.

Although this belief is seldom realized in practice,
ii probably still remains as an ideal for many per-
■.ons, one that is both impractical and undesirable,
even If it were attainable. It is impractical because
parents are inadequately prepared to undertakethis
responsibility. No one or two persons can be ade-
quately prepared in a cosmos that has become as
,-omplex and as varied as is today's world. This is
W ha1 makes sex education confined to the home less
effective than that derived from many sources. In the
latter circumstances children are much more likely
to l>c well prepared to cope with the numerous and

h

,ct>

conflicting views and practices they will meet in
out-of -family living than if their education is limited
strictly to what the family can provide.

Even if the family is considered to have the great-
est influence, the school, the church, and other
institutions have important individual and collective
roles to play. Unfortunately, the achievements of
the school in sex education have fallen below hopes
and expectations. There are numerous reasons for
this deficiency, the main one probably being that
the school as a cultural institution reflects the fears,
prejudices, and biases of society. As a result teachers
are being inadequately prepared to provide the
kind of sex education needed and are limited in
opportunities for obtaining the needed preparation.
The excessive fear of administrators and teachers
of arousing possible criticism if they do attempt sex
education is another deterrent. Each school and
each teacher giving sex education usually feels in-
secure and isolated, so that the litde that is attempted
in sex education is done as quietly as possible in an
effort to avoid possible attack.

Thus, comparatively few schools include aspects
in their programs that can legitimately be called
sex education, especially if sex education is broadly
defined.

The church has an important and essential con-
tribution to make to a comprehensive sex education
program because it plays a vital role in the formu-
lation of ideals and in the development of moral
values. Instruction concerning ethical and moral
standards must be approached positively and should
include all aspects of life and all periods of the life
cycle. The central problem is always the develop-
ment of a philosophy of life, the creation of a set
of socially meaningful and understandable values,

and the enthronement of a wholesome personality
for oneself and for others as a major goal of life.

The churches are in the process of overcoming
their former reluctance to deal openly with sex, and
many denominations are now developing creative
programs of sex education that will be a real con-
tribution to their members.

It is clear that sex education is not a task for any
one institution alone. Only as each contributes from
its particular vantage point and its unique strength
can one hope for a broadly balanced, societally-
based- and- supported sex education program.

Objectives of Sex Education

The foregoing discussion suggests the following
as desirable objectives of sex education:

1. To provide for the individual an adequate
knowledge of his own physical, mental, and emo-
tional maturation processes as related to sex.

2. To eliminate fears and anxieties relative to
individual sexual development and adjustments.

3. To develop objective and understanding at-
titudes toward sex in all of its various manifesta-
tions—in the individual and in others.

4. To give the individual insight concerning his
relationships to members of both sexes and to help
him understand his obligations and responsibilities
to others.

5. To provide an appreciation of the positive
satisfaction that wholesome human relations can
bring in both individual and family living.

6. To build an understanding of the need for

10

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the moral values that are essential to provide ra-
tional bases for making decisions.

Z- To provide enough knowledge about the mis-
uses and aberrations of sex to enable the individual
to protect himself against exploitation and against
injury to his physical and mental health.

8. To provide an incentive to work for a society
in which such evils as prostitution and illegitimacy,
archaic sex laws, irrational fears of sex, and sexual
exploitation are nonexistent.

9. To provide the understanding and condition-
ing that will enable each individual to utilize his
sexuality effectively and creatively in his several
roles, e.g., as spouse, parent, community member,
and citizen.

Scope of Sex Education Programs

Since sex behavior is a function of the total person-
ality, sex education must be broadly conceived,
concerning itself with the biological, psychological,
and social factors that affect personality and inter-
personal relationships. It must be reality-oriented,
dealing not just with ideal norms but with actual
sexual patterns.

While no one has ever officially defined the scope
of an ideal sex education program, the following
areas for emphasis are important. Each should be
included in a comprehensive sex education program.

/. Biological. This emphasis should include an
understanding of the anatomy and physiology of
the reproductive processes, sex as a universal bio-
logical function, the influences of body physiology
upon sexual behavior, the relation of mental pro-

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cesses and attitudes to physical urges, the nature of
biological sexual maturity, genetics and eugenics.

2. Social. This emphasis should include consider-
ation of sex in its broad social aspects and implica-
tions. The relation of sex to the family as a social
institution; the relational aspects of sex; sex as a
part of the total personality; the social significance
of its uses and purposes within and outside of
marriage; sex in its relation to population growth;
the causes and treatment of deviancies; the social
factors involved in such issues as abortion, control
of obscenity, illegitimacy and prostitution — are suit-
able topics. The individual and social management
of sex through education and the development of
mores and appropriate legislation also need to be
considered. The objective should always be to point
toward a rewarding and fulfilling use of sex in in-
dividual lives and in its social setting.

3. Health. This emphasis should embrace the
relationship of sex to general physical and mental
well-being. The elimination of needless worries and
concerns over normal aspects of sexual development
and functioning, e.g., masturbation, sex play, and
curiosity; cleanliness; the meaning of and adjust-
ment to early or late maturation; the mental and
physical health aspects of continence; information
concerning venereal diseases; the basic patterns of
individual and family living and relationships that
promote mature and adequate expressions of sex-
uality—all of these provide suitable content here.

4. Personal adjustments and attitudes. This em-
phasis should include much material considered
elsewhere, but the chief concern is for direct appli-
cation of the material to the needs of individuals.
Such topics as premarital standards; boy-girl asso-
ciations; personal sex habits and practices; the

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building of proper attitudes; a clear understanding
and acceptance of specific manifestations of sex;
and questions centering about personal develop-
ment should be explored. Discussions concerning
many of these topics have been found to be most
fruitful when conducted in small groups under
competent leadership. Provisions for individual
counseling are also important in aiding personal
adjustment.

By the time the individual reaches adolescence,
he has formed a whole series of strongly-rooted
emotional attitudes about sex. These attitudes can-
not be changed by a casual, superficial kind of sex
education but only by a process of serious educa-
tion that recognizes the importance of emotional
re-education and reconstruction.

5. Sex in interpersonal associations. Much of the
material included here comes also under the pre-
ceding headings. The emphasis is so important,
however, that it is listed separately. This emphasis
should help each individual to understand and
accept changing and evolving sex roles, and to
work out his relationships to others immediately
associated with him. It is essential for individuals
to be aware of differential sex patterns, and to be
able to accept and interact harmoniously with
those whose sexual norms differ from their own.
The importance of a sense of social responsibility
and a desire to contribute to the good adjustment
of others must be stressed. The family and its sex
attitudes and sex education program are especially
important.

6. The establishment of values. This is a difficult
emphasis to oudine in terms of specific topics, yet
it is exceedingly important. The objective is to help
individuals build values by which to live and stand-

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ards by which to make important decisions, not
only about sex conduct but about all other matters
relating to individual and group well-being.

Building a value system is made especially diffi-
cult by the fact that we are in a period of transition
that is characterized by a basic shift from sex
denial to sex affirmation throughout our culture.
No single system of sex values is currently accepted
in theory or in practice by the great majority.

Because of this, many of the core values of sex
education must be sought within the values accepted
as inherent in a democratic society: respect for the
basic worth, equality, and dignity of each human
being; the right of each individual to self-determina-
tion; recognition of the need for cooperative effort
for the common good; and faith in the free play
of critical intelligence. , L-J r ^ ?

Sex Education—
A New Look

The inadequacies and the narrowness of the tradi-
tional concepts of sex education that have been
suggested earlier also point to new ways of looking
at / sex education.

Us Once and for all, adults must accept as fact
that young people of all ages are sexual beings
with sexual needs. The purpose of sex ed ucation is
not pri marily i o_jQQn>rol - andjHiprjress sex jacpres-
sion, as in the past, biit-iaJridicate the immense^
po ssibih ties for human_fulf ilment that human sex-
uality offers. Sex education must attempt to give
tKeTndiviHual sufficient understanding to incorpo-
rate sex most fruitfully and most responsibly into
his present and future life.

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2. Sex education must be thought of as being edu-
cation— not moral indoctrination. Attempting to
indoctrinate young people with a set of rigid rules
and ready-made formulas is doomed to failure in a
period of transition and conflict. Instead, the time-
tested principle accepted in other areas of education
must be applied: to equip youngsters with the skills,
knowledge, and attitudes that will enable them to
make intelligent choices and decisions.

3. Sex education must help us understand sex in
its relationship to social patterns and development.
This can be approached from two points of view.
First, the distinction between what was and is per-
sonal in sex and what has social significance has
changed greatly. Formerly, the chief social concern,
as it related to sexual expression, was the repression
of all aspects of sexuality from public consideration.
Even such accepted aspects of sex as intercourse in
marriage were seldom discussed. The sexual con-
duct of persons who were following conventional
patterns of chastity and who were nonexploitive
was never mentioned nor openly recognized as
meriting approval and support. This is still the case.
Today the significance of such sexual expression
as youthful erotic play, masturbation, homosexu-
ality between consenting adults, mouth-genital con-
tacts, and other variations from genital hetero-
sexuality is being re-examined in the light of new
knowledge. The enhanced capacity among educated
people to look at sexuality with objectivity suggests
that some things formerly considered to be of social
concern might now be reclassified as private, per-
sonal concerns — or, if having social concern, for
different reasons than formerly.

Second, a number of issues that involve sexual
expression in relation to social decisions are now
facing the American public. These can, perhaps, be

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best expressed in the form of questions that in their
answering obviously involve sex attitudes and prac-
tices. Shall laws regulating abortions be altered and,
if so, in what ways? What is the relation of sexual
expression and sexual standards to the public dis-
semination of contraceptive information, and to
population control? What should be the legal and
social attitudes toward homosexuality? Toward sex-
ual offenders? What is a sexual offense and what
makes it so? To what extent and in what ways
should sexuality be emphasized in commercial en-
terprise? What sexual attitudes should the mass
media stress? These are issues upon which rational,
constructive policies need to be developed.

Such considerations point to the desirability of
expanded and redirected programs for sex educa-
tion. The social significance and implications of
sex need to be understood by everyone.

4. Sex education for adults must be given much
greater emphasis. Children and youth have typically
been singled out as needing sex education. This has
not been an error; they will continue to need help.
But it cannot be repeated too often that adults are
the ones most in need of help. Since a viewpoint on
sex in keeping with advancing scientific knowledge
and its relationships to individual and social living
is so important, the needed education cannot be
successfully crammed into early childhood and
adolescence. It can be begun then, but it must be
continued as long as life lasts.

Adults need sex education in their own right for
several reasons: (a) to make their own sex lives
and marriages more satisfying and creative; (b) to
provide the informed public opinion needed to sup-
port desirable changes in attitudes, education, and
laws as they relate to sex; and (c) to facilitate
intergenerational communication.

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5. Those providing sex education must take into
account the current freedom in choosing and in
personal decision-making that now exists. Forty or
50 years ago, sex education scarcely recognized the
possibility of choosing among alternative patterns
of sexual behavior. There was only one "right"
way. Only one course of action was considered
acceptable: renunciation of all sexual expression in
nonmarital situations. In the face of such mono-
lithic unanimity the thought of consciously weigh-
ing and choosing a course of sexual behavior
occurred only to the brash or highly emancipated.
The flouting of conventional standards did occur
surreptitiously, but it was regarded as a violation,
rather than as a matter of choice.

Quite a different situation now exists. There is now
a very real freedom for adolescent couples to speak
far more openly and frankly about sexual matters
than their parents or grandparents could ever have
believed possible. Many young people in high
school dating relationships mention discussions
with dating partners about the possibility of inter-
course. Explicit references to sex not only enter
many dating relationships very early, but are con-
stantly to be found in commercial advertising, books
and magazines, the press, television, radio and
movies, and phonograph records.

As a consequence, young people of high school
age and above are faced frequently with situations
that require them to decide for or against participa-
tion in some kind of sexual relationship. This holds
true not only for premarital intercourse itself, but
for other forms of sexual involvement as well. This
emphasizes their need for insights, factual knowl-
edge, and understanding that will lead to sound
decision-making.

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6. The chief determinant of sexual conduct is not
factual information but the general feeling of satis-
faction and worth that the individual has been able
to develop about himself as a person. One's pattern
of sexual behavior is a reflection of one's total life
pattern. An individual who feels he is accomplishing
something with his life and feels reasonably success-
ful in his endeavors will likely have enough satis-
faction with life that the management of sex is no
great problem. He will not be driven by guilt,
anxiety, or compulsion to engage in sex with little
regard for what this means to other persons or to
his total situation. In other words, he is in a posi-
tion to direct and manage his sexuality.

What does this mean for sex education? It means
that, like all personal conduct, problems of sexual
conduct need to be understood in terms of inter-
personal relationships. The formation of patterns
of fulfilling and responsible behavior (including
sexual) will be facilitated by providing knowledge
and, most of all, social experiences that enable in-
dividuals to set up meaningful, satisfying, and
responsible interpersonal associations. As the in-
dividual finds increased satisfactions in his emo-
tional relations with others, he will find decreased
need for casual, irresponsible, and self-centered
experimentation with sex.

7. The core of the educational structure that can
provide for the kind of sex education needed must
extend far beyond the public schools. This does not
minimize or depreciate the role the schools should
play, nor does it assume they will play a dimin-
ishing role. But other facets need to be regarded as
integral to the sex education structure.

a. Mass media. The mass media are potent edu-
cational forces, but too often their thrust seems to

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be toward casual, irresponsible sexuality. Motivated
by the possibility of commercial gain, the mass
media tend to emphasize the sensational, to play up
"slants, " to ignore the really educational in favor
of the exploitative. This is not universally true;
there have been some outstanding TV and radio
programs, many good magazines articles, and a
number of good books. These are overbalanced,
however, by the massive overemphasis on the other
side.

b. Professional preparation programs. Schools
that provide education for the various professions
need to give increased attention to teaching their
professional trainees about man's sexual behavior
in all of its many aspects. Physicians, teachers,
nurses, religious workers, social workers, lawyers,
journalists, and law enforcement officers are espe-
cially important categories. Schools that prepare
these and other professional workers must incorpo-
rate this aspect of education in their preparatory
and in-service training programs, and in their pro-
fessional conferences.

c. Adult education programs. Churches, public
schools, service clubs, YM and YW Associations,
and similar groups typically develop programs of
interest to adults. They provide an avenue for
reaching many persons beyond school age, as do
the mass media.

d. Higher education. Colleges and universities can
make a highly significant contribution at this level.
They have enrolled professional students as well as
future community leaders. These people will play an
important part in molding public opinion. Sex edu-
cation should not only give help and insight for the
present, but point the recipients to future leadership
roles in their professions and their communities.

Selected Bibliography

1. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science,
March, 1968, Vol. 376, "Sex and the Contemporary American Scene."
(3937 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19104. J2.50)

A wide range of subjects is covered, including the double standard,
ethnic and social class sexual patterns, sexual deviance, prostitution,
abortion and sex offenses.

2. Ausubel, D. P.: Theory and Problems of Adolescent Development.
New York: Grune & Stratton, 1954.

The best theoretical discussion of adolescence, including aspects of
development.

3. Baruch, D.: New Ways in Sex Education. New York; Bantam Books,
1962. (Paperback).

For parents, it emphasizes handling feelings.

4. Broderick, C. B., and Bernard, J., eds.: The Individual, Sex and So-
ciety: Background Headings for Sex Education. Baltimore: Johns Hop-
kins Press. (In press for 1969)

A special SIECUS publication, consisting of 18 papers that provide a
basic background for educators and other professionals.

Calderwood, D.: "Adolescents' Views on Sex Education," Journal of
Marriage and the Family, May, 1965. (Available from SIECUS as re-
print #019, $.50)

All the questions and many of the answers are here, in the words of
the teenagers themselves.

Child Study Association of America: What To Tell Your Children
about Sex. New York: Duell, Sloan and Pearce, 1964.
Provides sample questions and suggested answers for various develop-
mental levels.

7. Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry: Normal Adolescence, GAP
Report No. 68, February, 1968 (419 Park Avenue S., New York,
N.Y. 10016, $1.50)

Authoritative guidance by a group of leading psychiatrists, clarifying
psychosexual development and other aspects of physical and emotion-
al development.

8. Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry: Sex and the College Student,
GAP Report No. 60, November, 1965. (419 Park Avenue S., New York,
N.Y. 10016, $1.50)

Recommendations from the authoritative Group for the Advancement
of Psychiatry.

9. Ellis, A., and Abarbanel, A., eds.: The Encyclopedia of Sexual Behav-
ior. New York: Hawthorn Books, revised ed., 1967.

A comprehensive reference for the sex educator.

20

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Gan non, I ,, H : "Sexuality and Sexual Learning in the Child," Psychia-
try. August, 1965. (Available from SIECUS as reprint #017, $.50)
A highly useful analysis of how sexual learning takes place in the
young child, with the educational implications to be drawn from this
analysis.

1] ' jHj£gg r> R - A -> and Harper, F. R.: "Education in Sex," in Ellis, A, and
Abarbanel, A., eds., Encyclopedia of Sexual Behavior. New York: Haw-
thorn Books, 1961, pp. 344-349.

A forthright and challenging discussion of the meaning of sex educa-
tion.

12.

13.

14."

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

Hettlinger, R. F.: living with Sex: The Student Dilemma. New York'

Seabuxy-rfers, 1966.

One of the most useful books for mature adolescents and young adults.

Johnson, W. R.: Human Sex and Sex Education— Perspectives and Prob-
lems. Philadelphia: Lea & Febiger, 1963.

An informal, provocative and forthright discussion by the head of a
university health education department.

Journal of Marriage and the Family, May, 1965. Special issue, "The
American Adolescent."

An excellent series of articles, including several on sex education.
Journal of Social Issues, "The Sexual Renaissance in America."
Edited by 1. L. Reiss, the issue consists of articles by leading behavioral
scientists. Excellent background material. (Available from Box 1248,
Ann Arbor, Mich., for $1.50)

Linner, B.: Sex and Society in Sweden. New York: Pantheon Books

1967.

The most recent information on the fresh look now being taken by

Swedish educational authorities on their own programs.

Manley, H.: A Curriculum GuideinSex Education. St. Louis: State Pub-
lishing Co., 1964.

Presents curricula and background material for teachers and children
in primary, intermediate, and senior high school grades.

National Board, YWCA: Sex Morality Teaching Kit. New York: 1965.
Two 12-inch double-faced 33 1/3 records, program materials, pamph-
let, bibliography, and instructions. Designed for use of community
leaders interested in developing sound sex education programs.

National Education Association: What Parents Should Know about
Sex Educationin theSchools. Washington, D.C.: theAssociation, 1964.
Questions and answers on sex education programs in schools.

Reiss, I. L.: Premarital Sexual Standards in America. New York: The
Free Press of Glencoe, Inc., 1960.

An analysis of all the major social science studies on premarital sex
with the goal of developing from them a coherent view of the major
American sexual standards.

21. Rubin, I., and KirkendaU, L. A., eds.: Sex in the Adolescent Years -
New Directions in Guiding and Teaching Youth. New York: Associa-
tion Press, 1968.

A comprehensive selection of 38 articles on teenage sex guidance. Al-
though the book is directed at parents, teachers and persons engaged
in adolescent guidance, many of the articles can be profitably read by
older adolescents.

22. Rubin, I.: "Transition in Sex Values - Implications for the Education
of Adolescents," Journal of Marriage and the Family, May, 1965.
(Available from SIECUS as reprint #018, $.20)
A basic paper stressing the need for creating an "open forum" in a
period of conflicting sex values.

Stokes, W.: "Sex Education of Children," in Biegel, H. G.,ed., Ad-
vances in Sex Research. New York: Hoeber-Harper, 1963, pp. 48-60.
A report of a project undertaken with seventh-, eighth-, and ninth-grade
boys and girls.

University of California School of Medicine (San Francisco): The Un-
certain Quest: Dilemmas of Sex Education. Proceedings of Conference
held April 10 and 11,1965.
Papers containing provocative and suggestive ideas.

Note: For up-to-date references in the developing field of sex education, see
SiECUS Report, published bi-monthly.

23.

24.

22

23

SIECUS is a voluntary, nonprofit health
organization dedicated to the establishment and
exchange of information and education about
human sexuality. All SIECUS Study Guides are
subject to review and acceptance by the SIECUS
Board of Directors.

SIECUS

No.

1-

No.

2-

No.

3-

No.

4-

No.

5-

No.

6

No

8

No

9

No

10

No

11

No

12

No

13

No

14

Study Guides in print include the following titles:

—Sex Education

-Homosexuality (Revised Edition]
—Masturbation

—Characteristics of Male and Female Sexual Responses
—Premarital Sexual Standards
—Sexual Relations During Pregnancy and the Post-
Delivery Period
-Sexuality and the Life Cycle
—Sex, Science, and Values
—The Sex Educator and Moral Values
-Sexual Encounters Between Adults and Children
—Sexual Life in the Later Years
—Concerns of Parents About Sex Education
-Teenage Pregnancy: Prevention and Treatment

Distributed for SIECUS by Behavioral Publications,
72 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10011.

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