Sexual Ideology and Schooling: Towards Democratic Sexuality Education.

Sexual Ideology and Schooling: Towards Democratic Sexuality Education. By Alexander McKay. London, Ontario, Canada: The Althouse Press, 1998, ii + 214 pgs. Paper, $23.95.

In years past, the battle was whether sexuality education should be taught in the schools. Now the battle is over whether we teach comprehensive sexuality education or abstinence-only education. Among abstinence proponents there is another fight regarding the right type of abstinence education. The attention that is currently focused on sexuality/abstinence education is fueled by federal dollars. Passed as part of welfare reform, the most recent federal involvement in abstinence education includes block grants of $50 million to states each year for five years. State governments and/or local grant recipients are expected to provide three matching dollars for every four federal dollars received. In addition, the Office of Adolescent Pregnancy Programs (the federal abstinence agency established in 1981) continues to fund abstinence education programs. This means that over a five year period, more than a half-billion dollars will be spent as part of the federal government's abstinence education efforts.

To qualify for these federal funds abstinence education programs can not simply encourage young people to wait until they are older or to say no, but if you choose not to say no, be responsible. These are programs which must not be inconsistent or in violation of the federal government's definition of abstinence education. This is an eight part definition (often referred to as the A-H definition) which requires, for example, that abstinence education programs receiving federal Title XX or Title V funds teach that "a mutually faithful monogamous relationship in the context of marriage is the standard of human sexual activity" (part D of the definition) and "... that sexual activity outside of marriage is likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects" (part E of the definition) (Block Grant, 1997).

The current federal involvement in abstinence education is clearly driven by the ideology of the New Right. Thus, this is a perfect time for a book dealing with sexual ideology and sexuality education. If you are involved, in any capacity, in sexuality or abstinence education, then you must read Sexual Ideology and Schooling by Alexander McKay.

McKay provides a thoughtful analysis of the conflicts around human sexuality (and sexuality education) that permeate Western culture. He helps us understand that these "conflicts are, first and foremost conflicts of ideology" (p. 7). We are not talking about simple differences of opinion, but conflicts that "represent a clash of opposing systems of belief about the nature of the world and human kind" (p. 7).

McKay's premise is that "democratic societies are founded, in part, on the principle that moral pluralism is to both be tolerated and respected" (p. 9). In democratic societies, we endorse as a basic given the individual's right of freedom of belief. Thus, society and sexuality education should encourage respect for differing beliefs in regard to sexuality issues. In contrast, the actual situation in many schools today is that sexuality education "functions as an instrument of ideological indoctrination, rather than as an educational forum for critical deliberation and intellectual development" (p. 8).

Sexual Ideology and Schooling consists of an introduction, which effectively sets the stage for the eight chapters that follow--Sexuality and Sexuality Education, Restrictive and Permissive Sexual Ideologies, Sexual Ideology in the Schools, Discovering the Truth About Sexuality, Sexuality, Moral Pluralism and the Concept of Liberal Democracy, Sexuality Education: Towards Democracy, and A Democratic Approach to Key Issues in Sexuality Education: Sexual Orientation, Gender Equality, and Unwanted Pregnancy/STD Prevention--and a conclusion which addresses Sexuality Education and Social Justice.

When we think of the term ideology, it often conjures up visions of those wrong-headed idiots who dogmatically hold to beliefs that are diametrically opposed to the right set of beliefs (i.e., the ones we hold). McKay, however, helps us see that we are all sexual ideologues. We often make the assumption that our truth is the truth; the way things really are. If we can see (and this will be a big "if" for many people) that our truth is not necessarily the truth, but is a truth to us because it "corresponds not necessarily to the universe, but to the internal reality of our ideology" (p. 96), we can be open to "new avenues of thinking about many of the issues that divide us as a

society" (p. 96).

McKay's approach to sexuality education truly reflects the characteristics of a democratic society. It does not attempt to impose a particular ideology; it attempts to promote critical thinking. McKay states:

   ... sexuality education programs need to teach students to identify
   prevailing ideological positions on sexuality and what they suggest about
   what it means to live the good life. Students need to familiarize
   themselves with the modes of decision making employed by these ideologies
   and teachers need to help students apply critical thinking skills to
   compare and evaluate them. Most importantly, through this process teachers
   can help students discover and clarify which ideological perspectives are
   most appropriate as guides to making decisions about their own lives. This
   type of education is fully consistent with the principles of democratic
   living. (p. 149)

McKay's book is sure to be controversial, because while we might say we believe in democracy, many of us are not ready for his approach. School board members and school administrators, even those who completely agree with McKay (and certainly many will not), will not be anxious to offend those in the community who view the role of the school as the promoter of their personal ideology. In addition, a sizable number of us are just more comfortable omitting critical discussions or controversial topics. After all, it is much less trouble that way. Finally, for some of us, the basic problem is that we find it difficult to acknowledge that people have a right to a belief that differs markedly from our own.

Alexander McKay has given us a guide to democratic sexuality education. I think we should all write him a note to say thank you. His is not a five easy steps to sex education, nor is it a sure-fire program that everyone in your community will love. There will be nothing easy about implementing the type of sexuality education McKay recommends. Attacks from both the right and left are almost guaranteed. This will not be a comfortable position, but it is the place that sexuality educators need to be. This is the way to do sexuality education in a democratic society.

REFERENCE

Block Grant Application Guidance (1997) for The Abstinence Education Provision of the 1996 Welfare Law, Public Law 104-103, New Section 510 of Title V of the Social Security Act, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, Department of Health and Human Services.

Reviewed by Michael Young, Ph.D., FAAHB, Professor, Program in Health Science and Director, Health Education Projects Office, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR 72701.