There are a lot of unhelpful things we were taught in health class. Like how radiation treatment for cancer literally burns your skin and is extremely painful. I’m sure that’s comforting for the kids who had parents going through cancer treatments or who will go through treatments themselves. That will definitely encourage kids to get regular checkups or get things looked at when WebMD tells them they may have cancer.
We were taught to wash our faces properly and regularly because kids tend to start getting pimples during puberty. What we weren’t taught is that acne and pimples are heavily caused by environmental factors such as food, genetics and hormones. Telling us to wash our faces to avoid pimples is just another way to put a target on acne sufferers for other kids to pick on. Pimples are normal. Acne is a medical condition that sometimes requires prescription medications and creams to treat. It can also be very painful for some people and should be normalized more.
Self-breast exams. We were informed about possibilities of breast cancer. And thankfully they were at least informative enough to mention that it’s not just a “women’s disease” and that men can get breast cancer. We were told to get abnormalities checked by a doctor. What we weren’t taught was how to actually check for these. Regular self-checks are important. Getting to know your own body is an important part of keeping yourself well and I think it should be taught in schools, or at least passed out in a pamphlet.
The same goes for testicular cancer and other male-only cancers. How do they check for them and when should they worry?
Oral contraceptive pills (otherwise known as birth control) are for more than just preventing babies. All we are taught is that these pills have a certain percentage of accuracy for preventing pregnancies. We should also be taught that they can help treat acne in women. They can help balance hormonal issues. They can help with irregular, painful periods. If we are going to teach kids about “the pill”, why not talk about all of its benefits?
Cramps. What should be considered normal, and when is it time to seek help? Period cramps were something that was barely touched on in health class.
Consent. We had a whole unit about what the age of consent means and what it is in our province. All I got from that is it’s illegal to have sex with a person of a certain age. I don’t remember being taught what consent actually means. That no matter how old a person is, if they are too drunk to drive, they are too drunk to say yes. If a person changes their mind, their decision is to be respected. That I will punch several different guys at several different parties and outings because they think I’m “playing hard to get”. And that they will call me a bitch after I stand by my own morals. We should teach our children to respect each other’s bodies and each other’s privacy and right to say no. We should teach our boys that it’s perfectly acceptable to not participate in lockeroom talk. And that no one is any less of a man or woman for turning someone down. And that no one is any less of a man or woman for being turned down.
We need less labeling diagrams of male or female anatomy and more about mental health. Kids should know the signs of mental illnesses. They should learn how to cope better with stress. They can learn about the various functions of male anatomy in biology class. Health class should be based on things that will actually help them in their daily life.
I’m not a teacher, and I’m certainly no life expert. I’m still figuring life out and realizing that health class was focused way too much on telling kids that abstinence is more important than learning about how the human body actually does its thing. These are things that would have been good to learn in the classroom. And there are so many more.
Chronically Ashley 