Blog Response 1
Article
March 1, 2007 Why kids need sex education? Girl, 9, pregnant Case of Primary 3 pupil cited by counsellor at youth forum amid concerns about teen pregnancy By Yap Su-Yin
THE Primary 3 pupil was just nine years old, but she was already six months pregnant with a 14-year-old schoolmate's child.
The memory of the distraught parents and child sitting in her NuLife Care and Counselling Services office in Little India three years ago still sticks in counsellor Sheena Jebal's mind.
The girl could well be the youngest pregnancy case in Singapore, judging by a Straits Times check with local hospitals, youth social workers, teen shelters and pregnancy helplines.
But though her case is extremely rare, it highlights ongoing concerns about youth pregnancy.
Figures on the ground indicate that thousands of teens are experimenting sexually, say youth social workers and counsellors.
Last year, Ms Jebal's centre alone came across at least 30 cases of teens having sex. The youngest male was about 12 and the youngest female about 13.
A Straits Times check with restructured hospitals here revealed that between 2000 and this year, the youngest female to give birth at KK Women's and Children's Hospital was 12 years old. The youngest at Singapore General Hospital was 14. The National University Hospital declined comment.
As required by law, they were reported to the police as cases of underage sex.
Ministry of Health figures for 2001 to 2005 show an average of around 1,500 teen abortions every year. In 2005, the exact figure was 1,279 and in 2004, the number was 1,341.
Nearly all the teens who aborted their babies in 2005 were between 15 and 19 years old and unmarried. Slightly more than half were Chinese and a third were Malay.
The figures go to the heart of a controversy over the issue of how early children should be exposed to sex education in schools.
Ms Jebal cited the example of the pregnant nine-year-old during a youth forum to counter the complaints of one participant, who felt her sister in Primary 4 was too young to start learning about sex.
Called 'Yes/No' Youth In Relationships, it was organised by Republic Polytechnic's Indian Cultural Group and Narpani Pearavai Youth Executive Committee last Saturday.
Ms Jebal said the nine-year-old had begun to experiment with sex with a schoolmate at home when her parents, both professionals, were at work.
Recounting the tense one-hour discussion she had with the family to The Straits Times, Ms Jebal said: 'Her parents taught her how to use a sanitary napkin, but didn't educate her about menstruation or sex.
'They felt she was too young to know at her age. There is no such thing as being too young to know,' said Ms Jebal.
Ms Tan Bee Joo of the Singapore Children's Society cited several areas of concern, including lack of adult supervision over the use of the Internet, where teens can easily access pornographic sites and 'meet' strangers online.
'It creates opportunities for children to chat with strangers, go on blind dates, sell their bodies for money to satisfy material wants,' she warned.
Also, many parents are not giving their children the right sexual knowledge or instilling proper moral values in them at a young age, she said.
Ms Tan, who is head of the society's Students Service Hub in Bukit Merah, said: 'We have many students asking many sexuality-related questions, which many adults would never have thought children at this age know.
'Children need to be taught to take responsibility for their own actions, but this should be accompanied by providing them with the right information.'
yapsuyin@sph.com.sg
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JUDITH TAN
NEVER TOO YOUNG TO KNOW
'Her parents taught her how to use a sanitary napkin but didn't educate her about menstruation or sex. They felt she was too young to know at her age. There is no such thing as being too young to know.'
COUNSELLOR SHEENA JEBAL, on the nine-year-old girl who became pregnant after experimenting with sex with a schoolmate at home
Response
Pregnancy at nine? Many of us would have thought that something like this would never happen, that something like this was impossible. But now how can anyone ignore the cold hard facts?
For many of us I believe, this news was shocking. As a secondary school student and a teen in Singapore, I felt that it correctly portrayed the kind of situation or problems the society in Singapore would fall prey to in the near future. Teenage pregnancy had always been one of the social problems societies faced, and for Singapore, although the situation is not as serious as it is compared to that in the US, is still significant enough to turn too many a head. Statistics showed that in 2005, 1279 cases of teen abortions were made, and this figure does not include those individuals who actually conceived and gave birth to their child. These figures are a warning to us, telling us, cautioning us that it is high time we do something about this situation, and fast.
Now the crucial question here is how early our children should be educated about sex. Is nine years old too young? If the primary three pupil who was pregnant had been educated about sex, would things have changed? Every one of us have our different view points but for me, I feel that yes, things would have been different. If the primary three student was fore warned of the dire consequences of practicing unsafe sex, fear might be a strong deterrence for her. There is no such thing as being too young to learn about it. The only way we can stop this plague from invading into the stems and roots of our society is to be open about it. Coming from a boys’ school, I do not deny that we, a collective pronoun for the general RI guys, do talk and joke openly about sex. Sex should never be a taboo. It should never be classified as one of the “unspeakable”. Bringing in the perspective of a teenager, which is what I am, although we are open about the three letters, we are fully aware of the consequences and the impact it would have on ours lives and the lives of those around us if we were to practice it. Talking about something and doing it are two totally different things. Openness in the society, I feel that it would be the best way to counter the onslaught of corruption by the tabooed three lettered word, sex. Parents, teachers, and even peers should all play a part in preventing and eradicating underage sex.
On another point, I feel that the sexual education in Singapore still has room for improvement. In a sense, the sexual education here is not deep enough; it is not strong enough in terms of its foundations. I believe that many of us would choose curiosity or peer pressure over the current system of education. Thus, the crucial point here is for the Singapore officers to choose and develop a best method to eliminate as best as it can, teenage sex in Singapore. This is the challenge. Responsibility do not lie solely in the hands of the primary three girl, it lies in the hands of all of us.
March 1, 2007 Why kids need sex education? Girl, 9, pregnant Case of Primary 3 pupil cited by counsellor at youth forum amid concerns about teen pregnancy By Yap Su-Yin
THE Primary 3 pupil was just nine years old, but she was already six months pregnant with a 14-year-old schoolmate's child.
The memory of the distraught parents and child sitting in her NuLife Care and Counselling Services office in Little India three years ago still sticks in counsellor Sheena Jebal's mind.
The girl could well be the youngest pregnancy case in Singapore, judging by a Straits Times check with local hospitals, youth social workers, teen shelters and pregnancy helplines.
But though her case is extremely rare, it highlights ongoing concerns about youth pregnancy.
Figures on the ground indicate that thousands of teens are experimenting sexually, say youth social workers and counsellors.
Last year, Ms Jebal's centre alone came across at least 30 cases of teens having sex. The youngest male was about 12 and the youngest female about 13.
A Straits Times check with restructured hospitals here revealed that between 2000 and this year, the youngest female to give birth at KK Women's and Children's Hospital was 12 years old. The youngest at Singapore General Hospital was 14. The National University Hospital declined comment.
As required by law, they were reported to the police as cases of underage sex.
Ministry of Health figures for 2001 to 2005 show an average of around 1,500 teen abortions every year. In 2005, the exact figure was 1,279 and in 2004, the number was 1,341.
Nearly all the teens who aborted their babies in 2005 were between 15 and 19 years old and unmarried. Slightly more than half were Chinese and a third were Malay.
The figures go to the heart of a controversy over the issue of how early children should be exposed to sex education in schools.
Ms Jebal cited the example of the pregnant nine-year-old during a youth forum to counter the complaints of one participant, who felt her sister in Primary 4 was too young to start learning about sex.
Called 'Yes/No' Youth In Relationships, it was organised by Republic Polytechnic's Indian Cultural Group and Narpani Pearavai Youth Executive Committee last Saturday.
Ms Jebal said the nine-year-old had begun to experiment with sex with a schoolmate at home when her parents, both professionals, were at work.
Recounting the tense one-hour discussion she had with the family to The Straits Times, Ms Jebal said: 'Her parents taught her how to use a sanitary napkin, but didn't educate her about menstruation or sex.
'They felt she was too young to know at her age. There is no such thing as being too young to know,' said Ms Jebal.
Ms Tan Bee Joo of the Singapore Children's Society cited several areas of concern, including lack of adult supervision over the use of the Internet, where teens can easily access pornographic sites and 'meet' strangers online.
'It creates opportunities for children to chat with strangers, go on blind dates, sell their bodies for money to satisfy material wants,' she warned.
Also, many parents are not giving their children the right sexual knowledge or instilling proper moral values in them at a young age, she said.
Ms Tan, who is head of the society's Students Service Hub in Bukit Merah, said: 'We have many students asking many sexuality-related questions, which many adults would never have thought children at this age know.
'Children need to be taught to take responsibility for their own actions, but this should be accompanied by providing them with the right information.'
yapsuyin@sph.com.sg
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JUDITH TAN
NEVER TOO YOUNG TO KNOW
'Her parents taught her how to use a sanitary napkin but didn't educate her about menstruation or sex. They felt she was too young to know at her age. There is no such thing as being too young to know.'
COUNSELLOR SHEENA JEBAL, on the nine-year-old girl who became pregnant after experimenting with sex with a schoolmate at home
Response
Pregnancy at nine? Many of us would have thought that something like this would never happen, that something like this was impossible. But now how can anyone ignore the cold hard facts?
For many of us I believe, this news was shocking. As a secondary school student and a teen in Singapore, I felt that it correctly portrayed the kind of situation or problems the society in Singapore would fall prey to in the near future. Teenage pregnancy had always been one of the social problems societies faced, and for Singapore, although the situation is not as serious as it is compared to that in the US, is still significant enough to turn too many a head. Statistics showed that in 2005, 1279 cases of teen abortions were made, and this figure does not include those individuals who actually conceived and gave birth to their child. These figures are a warning to us, telling us, cautioning us that it is high time we do something about this situation, and fast.
Now the crucial question here is how early our children should be educated about sex. Is nine years old too young? If the primary three pupil who was pregnant had been educated about sex, would things have changed? Every one of us have our different view points but for me, I feel that yes, things would have been different. If the primary three student was fore warned of the dire consequences of practicing unsafe sex, fear might be a strong deterrence for her. There is no such thing as being too young to learn about it. The only way we can stop this plague from invading into the stems and roots of our society is to be open about it. Coming from a boys’ school, I do not deny that we, a collective pronoun for the general RI guys, do talk and joke openly about sex. Sex should never be a taboo. It should never be classified as one of the “unspeakable”. Bringing in the perspective of a teenager, which is what I am, although we are open about the three letters, we are fully aware of the consequences and the impact it would have on ours lives and the lives of those around us if we were to practice it. Talking about something and doing it are two totally different things. Openness in the society, I feel that it would be the best way to counter the onslaught of corruption by the tabooed three lettered word, sex. Parents, teachers, and even peers should all play a part in preventing and eradicating underage sex.
On another point, I feel that the sexual education in Singapore still has room for improvement. In a sense, the sexual education here is not deep enough; it is not strong enough in terms of its foundations. I believe that many of us would choose curiosity or peer pressure over the current system of education. Thus, the crucial point here is for the Singapore officers to choose and develop a best method to eliminate as best as it can, teenage sex in Singapore. This is the challenge. Responsibility do not lie solely in the hands of the primary three girl, it lies in the hands of all of us.
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posted by Bennie @ 7:22 AM
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