With the current scourge of HIV and AIDS among the youth in Sub-Saharan Africa, sexuality education has been hailed as the vaccine against new infections. This places teachers at the forefront of the pandemic as facilitators of knowledge. This study explores women teachers’ experiences of teaching sexuality education in rural schools in the age of HIV and AIDS. As a participant researcher, I have worked through photo-voice, drawings, memory work, and focus group discussions with eight Basotho women teachers, and explored how womanhood and teacher-hood shape and reshape each other in becoming a sexuality education woman teacher. I highlight the gender dynamics characteristic of rural communities and how they play out in the construction of sexuality discourses in relation to women teachers, and how such constructions create im/possibilities for women teachers’ facilitation of sexuality education. An eclectic theoretical approach, with an emphasis on feminist theories, informed the study. A qualitative research design employing a phenomenological narrative approach has been used. The findings show women teachers experiencing the teaching of sexuality education as a challenge. Their experiences are reflected as shaping and being shaped by their understandings regarding sexuality, and their positioning as women and teachers within rural communities. Challenges that create impossibilities for women teachers’ effective facilitation of sexuality education include the patriarchal gender order in Lesotho, cultural practices, teachers’ own sexualities and teachers’ fears of contravening the social constructions of good womanhood. I argue that Basotho women teachers are facing a challenge of negotiating the socially constructed contestations between normalised womanhood and teacher-hood and thus choose to perform the normalised womanhood at the expense of teacher-hood. The womanhood they perform shapes their teacher identity such that woman teacher-hood in sexuality education becomes ineffective. This study makes unique contributions to the field of sexuality education in particular and feminist scholarship in general. The methodological contribution lies in the use of visual methods to illuminate women teachers’ positioning in relation to sexuality education. While previous studies in sexuality education have been on pedagogy, this study presents a body of knowledge based on a gendered analysis of women teachers’ embodied experiences of teaching sexuality education and the meanings they make of their experiences. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2010.

The aim of this research was to investigate the different methods incorporating HIV/AIDS education into formal academic curricula at the University of Natal. This research aimed to flag up examples of ways of incorporating HIV/AIDS into the different curricula, and also to look at some of the obstacles the different academic departments may have encountered in trying to incorporate such education into their curricula. I had guessed that a variety of HIV/AIDS awareness programmes, initiatives and education were being undertaken at the university and that on the whole students and staff were well aware of the basic information regarding the disease. What I wanted to look at in particular was how the university was responding to HIV/AIDS within the curricula. Were academic curricula being altered in any way to allow for the impact of HIV/AIDS and how was this being undertaken? The key issues to be addressed and the main questions posed by this research were: • What are the different ways that HIV/AIDS education is incorporated into academic curricula? • What do lecturers consider to be the specific links between their subject matter and HIV/AIDS? • What is the purpose of such education? Why are lecturers choosing to incorporate HIV/AIDS education into their programmes? • What aspects of HIV/AIDS are being covered within the programmes? • How do lecturers attempt to get students to relate disciplinary knowledge to HIV/AIDS in order to inform future decision-making? • What are the main positive features of the current HIV/AIDS programmes being undertaken? • What are the main difficulties/concerns encountered by the different schools in incorporating HIV/AIDS education into the curricula? Through examining different schools within the university it was hoped to come up with a variety of different and innovative ways that HIV education can be incorporated into the curricula. This research started with a search of the HIVAN database to find lecturers with programmes that are undertaking some form of HIV/AIDS education. From this initial search I gained a number of contacts, who were then able to direct me to further contacts within the university. I ended up with an initial sample of seventeen lecturers based across fourteen schools or programmes and spanning seven faculties. The sample included lecturers from the faculties of Community & Development, Human Sciences, Law, Management Studies, Engineering, Medical Sciences, and Education. (See appendix I) For this research I used a number of methods of data collection. The first data collection method used was to carry out semi-structured interviews with the lecturers in the sample. This method was the prime method and the vast majority of the data was collected using this method. The following methods were mainly used for triangulation purposes although a number of new insights were made from these. The second method used then was to review printed material made available to me from a number of the lecturers interviewed. This was mainly course outlines but in a small number of cases also included reports on the HIV/AIDS modules. The third method used was to observe a number of the chosen programmes and following this observation to interview students about the HIV/AIDS education. (See appendix 11 Interview Questionnaires) Initially I have presented the findings of this research by documenting and summarizing the responses to each research question. In order to make for an easy overview of the findings for the reader I have drawn up a table under each research question, these tables list the responses to the research questions. I then go on to look at the different models this research has shown for teaching HIV/AIDS education. I have taken each model in turn and shown how it works in practice through giving a detailed description of the example cases. Following this I have attempted to outline the main features of these HIV/AIDS programmes and to document the main insights emerging. Looking back at the literature reviewed in this field, I have then attempted to review the responses in terms of what was said in the literature regarding HIV/AIDS education. I have also outlined the questions and surprises brought to light by this study and have attempted to draw some conclusions regarding the teaching of HIV/AIDS within academic curricula. Finally, in the light of the findings, I have made recommendations for future work in this field. It was impossible from this study to say which programmes work better than others with regards to the teaching of HIV/AIDS education. What I have merely attempted to do is to describe the methods and approaches used at present in order that others wishing to undertake similar programmes may review these. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of Natal, Durban, 2002.

The school focused in this study is involved in promoting HIV/AIDS education among learners. Past attempts at HIV/AIDS education took the form of assembly talks and special assembly programmes which, unfortunately, yielded limited success. In response to this, a grade eight HIV/AIDS education programme, integrated into the mainstream curriculum, was developed and implemented. The HIV/AIDS education programme cuts across different learning areas and its impact on learners is the focus of this study. The study undertaken is located in a constructivist paradigm and draws largely upon qualitative research methods. However, the use of quantitative data has also been crucial in supporting the findings of the research. Research participants included a stratified sample of grade eight learners who were involved in the programme, educators who were engaged in the development and implementation of the programme, learners on the school's HIV/AIDS Committee, the Life Skills co-ordinator of the school and social workers who supported the programme. In view of the sensitivity surrounding various HIV/AIDS issues. this study draws special attention to ethical issues that impact on the research procedures adopted. Evidence from this research indicates that the implementation of the grade eight HIV/AIDS programme has substantially improved the acquisition of HIV/AlDS knowledge by learners who were engaged in the programme. The impact of the programme on high-risk behaviour is difficult to ascertain in the absence of longitudinal studies. However, the majority of learners have responded positively to the programme and emerging learner attitudes appear to be favourable to the promotion of behaviour patterns that are supportive of the prevention of HIV-infection. This study suggests that, in the quest to improve the effectiveness of HIV/ AIDS education, the programme in focus needs to engage more seriously with gender and cultural issues. The grade eight HIV/AlDS programme lends itself to further modification and this study recommends that the scope of stakeholder participation be broadened, particularly with regard to parental involvement. / Thesis (M.Ed.) - University of Natal, Durban, 2001.

This study sets out to examine understandings of gender and sexual risks amongst young Africans in the KwaMakhutha township, in KwaZulu-Natal. Young Africans between the ages of 16 to 17 years old were interviewed to ascertain what they perceive to be risky sexual behaviour and why young people engage in such activities. The study also aimed to understand whether young people understood the negative consequences of risky behaviour. Such insight from young peoples' perspectives is very helpful in understanding what schools can do to prevent risk taking activities especially in the context of AIDS. KwaZulu-Natal is the epicentre of the AIDS pandemic in South Africa and young people between the ages of 15-24 are very vulnerable with young women facing disproportionate vulnerability. A qualitative research method was used in this study and ten in-depth interviews were conducted in one of the high schools in the KwaMakutha Township, outside Durban. The study finds that gender inequalities is central in understanding sexual risk and constructions of masculinity and femininity reproduce sexual and gender relations of power where young women remain vulnerable. Schools should take the voices of young people seriously and address gender inequalities as a key area of intervention. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2011.

Since HIV and AIDS became a health problem in the world in the early '80s, education has been identified as one of the ways to control the spread of the virus, for the virus is mainly spread through specific risk behaviors. uMgungundlovu district ranks as one of the worst-affected areas in South Africa, with HIV prevalence figures of 40% and above over the past five years The study aimed to establish how people living with HIV acquired knowledge about the disease; to investigate how they responded to the knowledge acquired; and to identify factors that affect their implementation of the knowledge acquired in their daily lives. I hoped that this study would capture some of the realities that we live in, so that HIV education programme developers and implementers can start to grasp the factors that individual HIV positive persons experience, which can play a positive or negative role on how one uses the knowledge they acquire to improve their own health and also be able to protect the next person. The study was a micro qualitative research, with a feminist approach, drawing on both interpretive and critical paradigms. It focused on a particular group of people in a specific area. Through my personal reflections, the semi-structured in-depth interviews, focus group discussions and the review of other existing literature (published and unpublished), the study attempted to investigate perspectives of people infected with HIV on HIV and AIDS education. The study was conducted with consideration of the positions of women and men in the diverse South African cultures. The study findings showed how the intersection of gender, power and culture, the context of reception and implementation of knowledge, the individual‟s habitus and the multi-disciplinary support systems, impact on the reception, receptivity and implementation of HIV and AIDS education. The conclusion, recommendations and suggestions for future studies from the study are presented, positioning the person living with HIV at the centre of responses to slowing down the spread of HIV. / Thesis (M.Ed.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2010.

Child welfare agencies are currently being challenged to develop and implement educational and prevention programs that address sex education, STDs and HIV/AIDS. Based on two staff interviews, six adolescent and seven staff focus group discussions at Batshaw Youth and Family Centres, three main themes are addressed: first, that along with Batshaw Youth and Family Centres' mandate and initiatives, additional measures must be taken to translate policy into social work practice. Initiatives to educate staff and youth about sexuality, STDs and HIV/AIDS lacked consistency and continuity consequently, staffs and youth's experience and attitudes toward sex education, STDs and HIV/AIDS are affected. Implications for social work are also discussed.

Thesis (M.A. (Population and Reproductive Health Research))--Mahidol University, 2003.

This study explores the history of sex communication and education over a period of fifty years (1950 to the present), in a deep rural area of the Eastern Cape. It describes patterns of sex communication between peers, between siblings, between children and parents and between young people and other non-familial agencies within communities. Communication trends are traced from the period before contraception was introduced, through to the introduction of female birth control methods into the HIV/AIDS era where the focus has been on attempting to introduce condoms. Twelve semi-structured interviews and two four-person focus groups were conducted to gather information on how the participants acquired information about sexuality and their responses to the same. The findings of the present study suggest that the widespread use of injectable contraceptives has had a marked effect on the sexual culture of the community under investigation. It has led to the collapse of the regulatory practices which were previously in place. This in turn has significantly affected the sexual communication and negotiation context. Furthermore, it has had a determining influence on male involvement in sexual reproductive health matters and has created a poor context for the adoption of condoms as a prophylactic. There were no major changes in the sexual communication context within families and within communities in that education has always been limited to instructions to avoid pregnancy. Of note was a culture of collusion between adults and children surrounding sexuality, which absolved the parties involved in addressing sexuality. These factors are understood have mediated response to HIV/AIDS prevention efforts, and need to be taken into consideration in the development of sex communication and education programmes.

Submitted by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-16T15:01:43Z No. of bitstreams: 1 RODRIGUES_VivianiASilva_2015.pdf: 5684981 bytes, checksum: 7120a8cc00b014824a5b4856a4869d5f (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-16T15:02:03Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 RODRIGUES_VivianiASilva_2015.pdf: 5684981 bytes, checksum: 7120a8cc00b014824a5b4856a4869d5f (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Maria de Lourdes Mariano (lmariano@ufscar.br) on 2017-01-16T15:02:11Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 RODRIGUES_VivianiASilva_2015.pdf: 5684981 bytes, checksum: 7120a8cc00b014824a5b4856a4869d5f (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-01-16T15:02:18Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 RODRIGUES_VivianiASilva_2015.pdf: 5684981 bytes, checksum: 7120a8cc00b014824a5b4856a4869d5f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-07-17 / Outra / The way sexuality manifests itself is the product of a social, historical and cultural process, which goes beyond the biological dimension and it is evident in society through behaviors, attitudes and norms. During adolescence, when the values of an individual are consolidated, sexuality is strongly influenced by the media through the several possibilities of accessing information and dynamisms of social networks. Teaching and learning about sexuality, a process herein called Sexuality Education / SE, is a duty of various segments of society and mainly of educational institutions as they have an intentional and systematic duty of fully forming an individual. Therefore, SE taught in schools should preferably promote the students' autonomy under an emancipatory perspective, so they can fully enjoy their sexuality. With the aim of knowing and analyzing SE pedagogical practices adopted by Science teachers and checking how continuing education interferes in their conceptions and attitudes in Science classes, a quantitative and qualitative research was conducted with a group of teachers from the Educational Board of Votorantim / SP. Acting as continuing education teacher, the researcher sat in the classes and suggested continuing education meetings (Technical Guidelines / TG). In order to answer the research questions, an exploratory study was carried out with a questionnaire for 23 Science teachers to answer. Later, interviews with 7 of these teachers were held in order to obtain data for the research. The data was analyzed based on categories defined by descriptors and having the analysis of the discourse as reference. On the other hand, the same syllabus that limits also legitimates the teachers' proposals regarding their difficulties. Teachers who participated in this research reported in their speeches and practices biological-hygienic and/or moral-traditionalist approaches that are not consistent with an emancipatory approach. Based on the results of this research, it is suggested that the SE can be extended to other grades and that teachers' continuing education must be stimulated in order to encourage their moral position to be able to face their pedagogical challenges. / O modo como a sexualidade se manifesta é produto de um processo social, histórico e cultural, que extrapola a dimensão biológica e se evidencia na sociedade por meio de comportamentos, atitudes e normas. Na adolescência, quando se consolidam valores do indivíduo, a sexualidade é fortemente influenciada pela mídia em suas múltiplas possibilidades de acesso às informações e dinamismo das redes sociais. Ensinar e aprender sobre sexualidade, processo que aqui denominamos Educação Sexual/ES, é uma tarefa dos vários segmentos da sociedade e, sobretudo, das instituições de ensino, em sua tarefa intencional e sistematizada de formar integralmente o indivíduo. Para tanto, é desejável que a ES abordada na escola promova a autonomia do educando, numa perspectiva emancipatória, de modo que este possa usufruir plenamente de sua sexualidade. Com o objetivo de conhecer e analisar as práticas pedagógicas em ES, realizadas por professores de Ciências e verificar em que medida a formação continuada interfere em suas concepções e ações nas aulas, foi realizada uma pesquisa quali-quantitativa junto a um grupo de professores da Diretoria de Ensino de Votorantim/SP, onde a pesquisadora atuou como formadora docente, acompanhando aulas e propondo encontros formativos (Orientações Técnicas/OT) para formação continuada. Para responder as perguntas da pesquisa, foi realizado um estudo exploratório com aplicação de um questionário para 23 professores de Ciências; posteriormente, para obtenção dos dados, foi realizada uma entrevista com 7 desses professores. A análise dos dados foi realizada por meio de categorias definidas a partir de descritores, tendo como referência a análise do discurso. Observou-se que, quando se trata de ES, os docentes conhecem as demandas da comunidade escolar, têm interesse em atender as necessidades formativas dos alunos, reconhecendo que há precocidade na iniciação sexual; no entanto, apresentam dificuldades em enfrentar críticas, tabus, medos e preconceitos e em estender a temática para adolescentes mais novos, visto que não encontram respaldo no Currículo Oficial de Ciências. Por outro lado, o mesmo Currículo que limita, também legitima as propostas dos professores frente às suas dificuldades. Os participantes da pesquisa expressaram, em seus discursos e práticas, abordagens biológico-higienista e/ou moraltradicionalista, que não condizem com uma abordagem emancipatória. Com os resultados dessa pesquisa, propõe-se uma revisão curricular para que a ES se estenda aos outros anos do Ensino Fundamental e a formação continuada efetiva para subsidiar os professores, fortalecendo-os frente aos desafios pedagógicos que a temática impõe.

Acompanha: Caderno de orientações para o desenvolvimento da educação sexual com abordagens científicas e o auxílio da literatura infantojuvenil / Esta pesquisa partiu do questionamento: “Que estratégias de ensino, usando a literatura infantojuvenil, criariam situações de desenvolvimento para uma Educação Sexual de qualidade?”. E assim, resulta em uma proposta de trabalho para os educadores desenvolverem a educação sexual, auxiliados pela literatura infantojuvenil, para o desenvolvimento da Alfabetização Científica. Para a investigação, pautou-se nas seguintes reflexões: Educação Sexual; Legislação Federal, Estadual e Municipal; O papel do professor e da escola na Educação Sexual; Consequências sociais da Educação Sexual no Ensino Fundamental Anos Iniciais (regular); Alfabetização Científica; Ensino de Ciências; Literatura infantojuvenil. O objetivo é propor uma estratégia de ensino sobre sexualidade contemplada na literatura infantojuvenil e prevista nas diretrizes curriculares municipais. Para isso, foram realizadas duas etapas de investigação em que, na etapa 1, participaram 144 professores da rede pública municipal e, na etapa 2, participaram 27 alunos do 3º ano, 16 alunos do 4º ano e 28 alunos do 5º ano. Foram desenvolvidas propostas de trabalho auxiliadas pela literatura infantojuvenil. Pautado na análise das intervenções, foi desenvolvido um caderno de orientações ao professor. Os resultados do estudo apontam a literatura como facilitadora do processo de ensino e aprendizado. Considerando as problemáticas envolvidas na temática, este pode ser um recurso que possibilite atingir os objetivos da Educação Sexual. / This research started from the questioning: “What teaching strategies, using children’s literature, would create situations of development for a high-quality sex education?” Thus, it resulted in a work proposal for educators to develop sex education, aided by children’s literature, for the development of Scientific Literacy. The investigation was guided by the following reflections: Sex education; Federal, State and Municipal Legislation; The role of teachers and schools in sex education; Social consequences of sex education in the early years of regular primary schooling; Scientific literacy; Science teaching; Children’s literature. The objective is to propose a teaching strategy on sexuality contemplated in the children’s literature and provided for by law in the municipal curricular guidelines. For this, two investigation steps were carried out. Step 1 was attended by 144 teachers from the municipal public network, and step 2 was attended by 27 students from 3rd grade, 16 students from 4th grade and 28 students from 5th grade. Work proposals helped by the children's literature were developed. Guided by the analysis of the interventions, a notebook of guidelines was developed for the teacher. The results of the study point to literature as a facilitator of the teaching and learning process. Considering the issues involved in this matter, this can be a resource that can achieve the goals of Sexual Education.