Sexuality Education To Be Implemented In School Next Year

PUTRAJAYA, Dec 20 (Bernama) -- Sexuality education would be implemented in schools including the pre-schools early next year after the guideline on it is approved by the Cabinet.
Education Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the National Sexuality Education Guideline would be presented to Cabinet at the latest by the first week of January along with the memorandum which would be distributed to other ministries for feedback.
The guideline would be launched in February and the implementation committee had been set up for it.
"With the guideline approved by the cabinet, we would assess the available programmes at the respective ministries. We would add if it is insufficient, replan and take into consideration new phenomena such as indecent elements in the Internet as soon as possible.
"Other issues related to the rampant social ills should be taken into account in our effort such as rape, incest, sexual harassment, sexual exploitation and child abuse, all these have been listed in the guideline," he told reporters after chairing a meeting on the matter, here Tuesday.
The meeting was jointly chaired by Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil.
Hishammuddin said the guideline would not only focus on students but also parents, non-government organisations (NGOs) and community leaders.
He said it was divided into five age groups, which were level 1 between four and six years old (pre-school), level 2 between seven to nine years old (children), level 3 between 10 and 12 years old (early teenage), level 4 between 13 and 18 years old (teenagers) and level 5 which was above 19 years old (adults such as university students, parents and senior citizens).
"If we can ensure the guideline is understood, community leaders ranging from ministers, deputy ministers, parliamentary secretaries and people's elected representatives can not only influence certain parents and family units but also change the society's perception that this matter is serious," he said.
The guideline contained various aspects divided into six main parts namely human development, relationship, marriage and parenthood, living skills, health and sexual behaviour, and society and culture.
"It is related to family institution, the role of the parents, religious values, approaches related to new developments such as AIDS, indecent elements in the Internet and how it would affect out children," he said.
The sexuality education would be absorbed into the existing subjects such as Islamic education, Moral, Health, Science, Biology and Bahasa Malaysia but there were plans to make it as a core subject as contained in the ministry's Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP).
"I would love to see it to be a main subject but we have to balance it with other needs and priorities. Like I said, a lot depends on infrastructure as long as our school are on two sessions, it is impossible for us to accommodate all but it does not mean within five years we cannot have the project.
"What we have decided just now, there will be certain schools in the 9MP that we want to look at it as a subject," he said.
Shahrizat meanwhile said: "It is hoped with the availability of methodology to educate them, they would be able to tackle the problems that they face. The foundation is important, this is what we are providing for, a stronger foundation for our young to face the challenges of the world."