Date of Award

January 2020

Document Type

Open Access Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Public Health (MPH)

Department

School of Public Health

First Advisor

Shayna D. Cunningham

Abstract

This paper describes the development of a comprehensive sex education (CSE) curriculum for The Country School (TCS), a coeducational, independent school in Madison, CT that serves approximately 200 students in Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade. CSE describes a wide array of sex education programs and curricula that are scientifically accurate, culturally and age-appropriate, gender-sensitive and life skills-based. The goal for this project is multi-pronged: adapt existing health education programming, build out a new health and wellness program with a distinct scope and sequence for each grade level that includes resources and supports for ongoing parent education and professional development. To inform the development of this curriculum, a literature review for best practices and exemplary domestic and global models, semi-structured interviews with experts in the field of sex education, and surveys of TCS faculty, alumni (n=7), and parents (n=59) were conducted. This data collection yielded results that showed widespread support of implementing CSE for young students, and led to the development of a recommended scope and sequence for each grade level and the compilation of resources for parents and educators, including books and publicly available lesson plans, for use at TCS.

Comments

This is an Open Access Thesis.

Open Access

This Article is Open Access

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