Effects and development of an experience-based sex education program for adjustment to puberty in upper elementary students

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to develop an experience-based sex education program to improve adjustment to puberty in elementary school students in the upper grades and to verify its effectiveness. Methods: This study had a pretest-posttest nonequivalent control group design. The subjects of this study were a total of 95 sixth-graders in Y city (experimental group: 48, control group: 47). The measurement variables were sexual knowledge, body image, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life. Four sessions of the experience-based sex education program to improve adjustment to puberty, consisting of 40 minutes per session, were provided to the experimental group. Results: Children's sexual knowledge, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life in the experimental group, which participated in the experience-based sexual education program to improve adjustment to puberty, showed a significant increase compared to the control group. However, there was no statistically significant difference in body image. Conclusion: This study presents the development of an experience-based sex education program for adjustment to puberty to overcome the shortcomings of existing sex education programs that are limited to sexual knowledge and attitudes, and also verified that the sexual knowledge, self-esteem, and life satisfaction of the elementary school students who were provided with the program improved meaningfully.