Felisa - Final Reflection

Two months ago, when this class began, I identified four primary barriers to healthy adolescent sexuality: the abstinence-only approach to sex education which denies youth the information they needed to make informed decisions; conflicting messages about sexuality from family and the media or peers; lack of access to contraception; and a focus on sexual risk behaviors instead of the development of healthy sexuality. As a result of this class, I can see that people are working in various ways to address each of these barriers. Additionally, I have been exposed to techniques that I personally can utilize to target different topics or populations. My favorites were creation of a sex plan and sociodrama.

For me, conducting the workshop was the highlight of the class. It felt good to directly target the barrier of lack of information about and access to contraception for the youth in the Bell Multicultural High School summer program. I was energized by their interest in the topic and their willingness to share their knowledge and acting skills with the others in the group. They were eager to learn about how contraceptives work, where they can obtain them, and how they can negotiate their use with their partners. By observing the other workshop, I got to see how adolescents process information and are in fact very perceptive. I found the youth very inspiring.

Although I still do not come across adolescents regularly, I am less afraid to interact with them as a result of this class. I understand that if I can work with them, or engage them in the task or conversation, they are likely to respond positively. A big lesson that I am taking from this class is the importance of allowing youth to provide input on the things that affect them. This learning will surely be applied in any adolescent programming I conduct in the future.

One of the things that I am still struggling with is how to be an effective health promoter without getting sucked into the multiple issues faced by youth. Alis and Sarah provided many examples of how youth may ask questions that reflect other challenging aspects of their living environment, family situation, or developmental process. We learned that it is important to acknowledge the issue raised, but focus on the element of health education in our responses. This is something that is particularly relevant for health educators who conduct workshops regularly as contact with youth and time may be limited. I’ve noted four barriers above, and my classmates have named many more. I understand the need to focus on the task at hand or fulfill the responsibilities of the role as a health educator, but I am a firm believer in the need for comprehensive approaches to behavioral change. I would be most satisfied working with youth in a capacity that allowed me to be part of a team that could meet several needs of youth instead of just their sexual health needs, although these are extremely important in my view.

I am encouraged that the Obama administration has eschewed abstinence-only education in favor of evidence-based interventions and believe that this will help adolescents avoid STIs and unintended pregnancy. One thing I think we as a society can do better is reframe adolescent sexuality as a natural and positive development instead of focusing on the potential negative consequences. With the skills I have gained in this class, I hope to work with others who share similar goals of improving adolescent sexual health within the larger context of positive youth development.