An evaluation of Youth Sexualities in South African schools
In South African schools there is a vast misconception on what youth sexualities are. Socialization plays an enormous role in how one represents their sexuality. In schools, the youth are sexualized by their educators. Youth and youth sexuality are sexual constructs. Therefore, they are hegemonic and become rife, enduring and are expressed universally (Frizelle, Jwili & Nene, 2013). Youth sexuality is constructed as dangerous, deviant and taboo in African societies. In South Africa, programs such as LoveLife and Tsha Tsha have shifted from sentimental constructs on the youth to positioning them as social agents and engaged citizens (Frizelle, Jwili & Nene, 2013).
The education system encourages and promotes heterosexuality. Those who fall outside binary gender spectrums are excluded, ignored and sidelined in both schooling and societal environment. School pupils in schools are positioned as asexual, childlike, innocent and dependent on adults for guidance and protection (Frizelle, Jwili & Nene, 2013). Schools are not just spaces of learning academic subjects but places where young people and their teachers do a lot of construction of their identities in different ways around sexuality which are closely connected with struggles around sexuality (Francis, 2017). According to Francis (2017) schools remain largely unexplored spaces, yet no studies in South Africa have utilized research and literature on how LGBTIQ youth experience schooling.
An evaluation of Youth Sexualities in South African schools
Original Source: CSSR
