Parental evaluations of a sex education course for young adolescents

Parental evaluations of their children's participation in a school-based sex education program for young adolescents were conducted by interview using a structured questionnaire. Parents were asked questions concerning: course objectives, course content, instructional materials, expectations, perceived effectiveness, and important outcomes of the instruction. The sex education course was six weeks in length, meeting for 50 minutes daily. The program was comprehensive and did not avoid areas typically thought of as controversial. The results indicated parental support for the sex education program and the evaluation provided useful information for program revision. An examination of the findings suggest a paradox in that parents want their children to be informed about sexuality and to be able to make decisions that would avoid problems, but they are uneasy about dealing directly with sexual behavior.