Explainer | Is badminton the Hong Kong answer to sexual impulses in schoolchildren? We ask the experts
A set of teaching materials recently released by the government which advises Hong Kong pupils to avoid premarital sex and consider going to play badminton together to curb sexual urges has been criticised for being “out of touch”.
Critics said the focus should be on teaching young people to respect themselves and be responsible for intimate relationships and that a blanket condemnation of premarital sex was unrealistic.
But the Education Bureau defended its position and emphasised the suggestions it made for the citizenship, economics and society curriculum for Form One to Three pupils was designed to help them make “responsible decisions”.
Here is what the public needs to know about the controversy and how sex education is taught in other places.
1. What does the Hong Kong teaching material suggest?
The support resources for the module on adolescents and intimate relationships under the subject of Citizenship, Economics and Society for Form Three pupils, sex education should not just about teaching young people whether they should have sex, but also nurture the proper values.
Pupils are expected to acquire the knowledge through four topics, including the relationship between love and sex; the importance and ways of setting limits of intimacy; ways to cope with sexual fantasies and impulses, and the consequences of poor handling of intimate relationships.
“Lovers who are unable to cope with the consequences of premarital sex, such as unwed marital pregnancy, legal consequences and emotional distress, should firmly refuse to have sex before marriage,” the material says.
The bureau also underscores the importance for young people to set limits on intimacy early in a relationship.
Pupils in one suggested activity are asked to fill in and sign a “commitment form” to set limits on intimacy.
They are asked to pledge that they would control their sexual impulses in certain ways and promise they would develop “self-discipline, self-control, and resistance to pornography”.
2. What are pupils advised to do?
The teaching material says sexual impulses can be dealt with by either avoidance or diversion.
Pupils are asked to suggest what they should do in a variety of situations to avoid having sex.
In one scenario where a young couple saw another pair engaging in intimate behaviour in the bushes in a park at night, it is suggested they avoid temptation by “leaving the scene immediately” or diverting themselves by “enjoying the sight of flowers and trees in the park”.
In another scenario where a boy got a physiological reaction while studying at home alone with his girlfriend, the similar advice is to leave the scene immediately or “go out to play badminton together in a sports hall”.
The suggestion sparked online mockery, with internet users suggesting an invitation to play badminton should become the Hong Kong version of “Netflix and chill,” a euphemism for sexual activity.
3. How do academics and lawmakers view the advice?
Lawmaker Doreen Kong Yuk-foon said the bureau’s suggestions on how young people could restrain their sexual desires were “out of touch” and unrealistic.
She also pointed out that there was a significant proportion of young unmarried couples who lived together and that it was unrealistic for them to just refuse premarital sex.
Legislator Gary Zhang Xinyu also hit out at the way the teaching materials were written.
“We should teach young people to love themselves and be responsible for intimate relationships,” he said.
He added that education should focus on teaching minors about laws covering sex.
Professor Diana Kwok Kan, a sex therapist who specialises in gender studies at the Education University of Hong Kong, said authorities should teach young people how to “face” or “understand” their sexual development instead of emphasising the need to control them.
4. How does the Education Bureau react to the criticism?
The Education Bureau rejected criticism that it was “out of touch”.
“The concept of sex education in the Hong Kong school curriculum is to cultivate students to become people with comprehensive values and enable them to make informed and responsible decisions about sexual issues in the future when their thoughts and conditions are mature,” the bureau said on its website on Friday.
“It is unprofessional and irresponsible to encourage students who are unable to bear the consequences to make so-called informed decisions.”
The bureau stresses the importance of adequate protection for underage youngsters and reminds them that Hong Kong imposes severe penalties for sex offences.
5. How is the topic taught in other places?
The guidance on Relationships, Sex and Health Education (RSHE) for secondary school pupils in England says the subject should cover contraception, the development of intimate relationships and how to deal with pressure to have sex.
The guidance adds the topic should support people “throughout life, to develop safe, fulfilling and healthy sexual relationships, at the appropriate time”.
It adds that knowledge about safer sex and sexual health is crucial to ensuring that young people are equipped to make “safe, informed and healthy choices”.
The English curriculum adds there should also be an equal opportunity to explore the features of stable and healthy same sex relationships.
The devolved administrations in the rest of the UK set their own rules on sex education in schools.
The Character and Citizenship Education syllabus in Singapore suggests that students in lower secondary school should be taught the importance of respecting boundaries for themselves and others in relationships, along with advice on safety and protection from sexual abuse, sexual grooming and cyber flashing.
Additional reporting by Kahon Chan
