Digital space helping spread sexuality, gender awareness

Individuals are going online to address the gaps in our school and college curriculum

Many individuals, worried over the lack of a formal sex education curriculum, are using digital platforms to spread awareness.

Swati Jagdish, a sexuality health educator based in Coimbatore, began as a lactation counsellor six years ago. “I was invited by colleges to talk to their students about parenting and breastfeeding. It was there that I first noticed that students were uncomfortable about these topics,” she says.

She realised young people had received no prior education in such matters. This was leading to real life consequences, such as the inability to use menstrual cups and the acceptance of slut shaming.

“I knew that sex education was the solution and I realised that waiting for someone else to do it would take too long,” she says.

Brindaalakshmi K is an advocacy professional who was already working in the digital space when they realised that there was a lack of information about the impact of technology on the different issues related to gender and sexuality. “Talking about sexuality in an online space seemed important to understand the growing impact of technology on issues around gender and sexuality,” they add.

The label of ‘sex educator’ is a bit of a misnomer for them and others like them, they believes, as it tends to pigeon hole their work, they prefer the ‘sexuality educator’. “I look at gender and sexuality as it is broader and more comprehensive than just the act of sex,” they explain.

They take workshops for adults across age groups and genders on the topics of consent, mental health requirements of gender and sexual minorities and also the broad understanding on gender and sexuality.

Swati, on the other hand, concentrates on parents of young children and hopes to arm them with knowledge about how to answer age-appropriate sex-related questions.

“I use a lot of my experience as a mother of a six-year-old,” says Swati, who holds an international certificate in sexuality health education.

Brindaalakshmi has found that the key to getting people to listen is to create an interactive experience. “I use everything from video to illustrations. Creating an intimate space and encouraging engagement is most important,” they explains

Before the lockdown Swati used to conduct three classes a month in schools across south India. “Since February everything has gone online. The change has opened up my classes to parents across the world,” she says.

She adds that online classes allow the luxury of anonymity. “Parents are comfortable with sharing their problems and asking questions as they are not judged,” she says.

For Brindaa, both online and offline platforms have their own merits. “The digital space has definitely been beneficial in expanding my reach. However, offline spaces are far more intimate and function as better safe spaces for participants to open up more easily. I’ve been exploring different ways to create similar safe spaces even on online platforms,” they say.

Swati agrees. “There should be a mixed approach as in-person sessions are more impactful,” she says. Even after sex education is introduced in schools and college, parents should be taught how to respond to questions from children, she believes.

“Schools teach facts while parents inculcate values. Open communication allows a smoother transition into puberty,” she explains.