Meaningful evaluation of sex and relationship education

Abstract

Effective sex and relationship education promotes agency and targets sexual practice as it is socially produced. The aim of evaluation therefore is to contribute to good sexual health through identifying when and how education is promoting agency and changes in sexual practice. Good evaluation takes account of the complexities of the specific object being addressed—sexual practice—which is fluid and essentially social. Innovative study design and the use of rigorous and transparent methods enable evaluators to track and understand the slow, unsteady and sometimes unpredictable mechanisms of change. The data gathered (both quantitative and qualitative) require interpretation, and interpretations inform the development of sex and relationship education programmes. Randomised controlled trials do not meet these criteria of meaningful evaluation, nor do evaluations of one‐off interventions. This paper considers the role of cross‐sectional and longitudinal surveys, in‐depth qualitative studies, and reviews in evaluating whether education works, how it works, how its messages are being actively taken up and transformed by the target population, and in informing the development of future education.

Notes

1. Geertz (1975, pp. 6–7) distinguishes ‘thin’ from ‘thick’ descriptions by comparing a ‘twitch’ with a ‘wink’. A twitch is an uncontrolled eye movement, whereas a wink is a deliberate communication to someone in particular. It imparts a particular message according to an established social rule or code. Unlike a twitch, a wink is a culturally inscribed gesture and in need of interpretation.