Childhood and adolescent sexuality, Islam, and problematics of sex education: a call for re-examination

Abstract

This paper offers a critical examination of the problematics of childhood and adolescent sexuality and sex education in an Islamic context. By exploring conceptions of (pre-marital) sexuality, childhood, and maturity/adulthood, it is suggested that: (i) ‘childhood’ and ‘sexuality’ do not coexist harmoniously in Islamic traditions since the latter is recognised as the exclusive realm of adulthood; and (ii) the twin concepts of ‘adolescence’ – as a distinct pre-adulthood life-stage – and ‘adolescent sexuality’ have scarcely been acknowledged in Islamic traditions. Sex education for children and adolescents is widely regarded by Muslims as ‘dangerous knowledge to the vulnerable’ that ‘awakens’ premature (i.e. premarital) sexuality and undermines Islamic identity. Such an understanding is partly rooted in a common (mis)interpretation of the Islamic emphasis on children's ‘deficient capacity’ and their ‘need for protection’, as well as in the invisibility of adolescent sexuality and agency in most Islamic traditions. The increasing overlap between ‘immaturity’ and ‘sexuality’ in the lives of contemporary young people has rendered childhood/adolescent sexuality and sex education a challenging issue for many Muslims in present times. This calls for an acknowledgement of childhood/adolescent sexuality and agency as crucial subjects of (re)examination, particularly in Islamic studies and with reference to young Muslims’ sex education needs.

Keywords::

• childhood
• adolescence
• sexuality
• Islam
• sex education
• innocence
• maturity

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Mark Halstead and Colleen McLaughlin for their valuable comments on this work.

Notes

^1. According to Yip (2009, 2), ‘[T]his discourse constructs a highly essentialist view of Islam as a belief system, as well as individual and social practice … This essentialist view, often reinforced by the vast majority of Islamic religious leaders and lay believers, also does not offer a nuanced picture of individual agency, namely the capacity of individuals to construct lived experiences by resisting, contesting, and adapting religious orthodoxy and cultural hegemonic systems; and the empowering and constraining potentials and outcomes of such an engagement’.

^2. ‘Say: Are they equal – those who know and those who know not?’ (The Qur'an, 39:9).

^3. According to Ariès (cited in Thane 1981, 6):

In medieval society, the idea of childhood did not exist; this is not to suggest that children were neglected, forsaken or despised. The idea of childhood is not to be confused with affection for children: it corresponds to an awareness of the particular nature of childhood, that particular nature which distinguishes the child from the adult, even the young adult. In medieval society this awareness was lacking. That is why, as soon as the child could live without the constant solicitude of his mother, his nanny or his cradle-rocker, he belonged to adult society.

^4. As noted by Hashemi (2007), when a reference to early (classical, historical, or traditional) Muslim public and family law is concerned, the terms Shari'ah, Muslim law, Islamic law, Islamic legal traditions (ILTs) or Muslim legal traditions all have similar meaning. Consistent with this, in this paper the term ILTs is used, since ‘legal traditions’ or ‘religious legal traditions’ are more familiar terms for non-Muslim readers.

^5. Consistent with the provision of Article 1 of the CRC, although Muslim states have adopted the age of 18 as the official age of maturity and criminal responsibility, some Muslim states refer to ILTs' criteria for determining the age of maturity and criminal responsibility. See Hashemi (2007) and Rajabi-Ardeshiri (2009) for a comprehensive discussion on this issue.

^6. Sexual subjectivity may be defined as ‘the capacity to own one's sexuality, to feel pleasure in one's body, and to be the subject of one's own desire’ (Schalet 2009, 142).

^7. ‘The very idea of sexual subjectivity as something produced by sex education’ (Chambers, van Loon, and Tincknell 2004, 566) is probably one of the strongest rationales for the absence of sex education in many Muslim (and non-Muslim) societies.

^8. For an overview of current legal frameworks relating to sex education in the UK, see Family Planning Association (2011).

^9. State-funded schools are required to follow the National Curriculum for England, but this is not compulsory for independent (private) schools or academies. Approximately 93% of English schoolchildren attend state-funded (maintained) schools which provide education to pupils without charge.

^10. Comprehensive sex education can be defined as a rights-based approach which ‘seeks to equip young people with the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values they need to determine and enjoy their sexuality – physically and emotionally, individually and in relationships. It views “sexuality” holistically and within the context of emotional and social development. It recognises that information alone is not enough. Young people need to be given the opportunity to acquire essential life skills and develop positive attitudes and values’ (International Planned Parenthood Federation 2010, 6).

^11. ‘All children and young people have a right to quality sex and relationship education’ (Sex Education Forum 2011, under ‘notes’).

^12. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, parental consent for marriage is required if a participant is between the ages of 16 and 18.