Men engaging boys in healthy masculinity through school-based sexual health education

ABSTRACT

Young people’s sexual health is a significant concern to parents, educators, health professionals and policy makers in Canada. However, challenges exist with respect to the nature of school-based sexual health education content and mode of delivery. These include the lack of attention paid to the impact of gender ideologies on the development and expression of youth sexuality, and the tendency to exclude boys and young men by focusing primarily on the sexual and reproductive needs of girls and young women. This article discusses findings from a participant observation and focus group study conducted with the facilitators of WiseGuyz, a school-based sexual health and healthy relationship programme, which involves boys aged 13–15 years in Calgary, Alberta. Findings suggest that the process of facilitation is as important as curriculum content in securing positive outcomes for young men. Implications for school-based sexual health education and further research in this area are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Sex education
• boys
• young men
• masculinity
• norm critical approaches
• Canada

Acknowledgments

I thank the WiseGuyz Facilitators and Calgary Sexual Health Centre for providing access to regular team meetings and for participating so enthusiastically in the research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.