Parents' contribution to sex education is increasingly receiving research attention. This growing interest stems from recognition of the influence that parental attitudes may have both on young people's sexual attitudes and behaviour, and on school-based sex education. Studies regarding parental attitudes towards sexuality are, however, still rare. The two main objectives of this study were to explore parental views about sexuality and to understand parental attitudes towards sex education. Four focus group discussions were conducted with parents from high schools in Cuenca, Ecuador. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. The study revealed that parents held a restricted view about sex education, grounded in traditional religious ideas about sexuality, which led parents to understand it as a morally and physically dangerous activity. Although parents expressed a willingness to make good quality sex education available to their children, they reported having insufficient personal resources to fulfil that objective. The results of this study provide important information about the need to develop and adapt sex education to each specific cultural context, thereby confirming the importance of knowing about the cultural traditions and religious beliefs that may form obstacles to effective sex education for young people in Ecuador.

The recognition given to the role teachers play in sex education, and, at the same time, the apparent lack of knowledge in the area of sexuality, reflected in current literature, has led to the development of this research study. The objective of this study was to know the teachers’ perceptions about sex education in Cuenca. Specifically, we aimed to understand the assessment they have about their own knowledge, teacher satisfaction, modality, conceptions and teachers’ prejudices in classrooms. The mixed method used a sequential, explanatory strategy according to which, during the first stage, we explored the teachers’ perceptions about sex education, using a quantitative study with a survey applied to 180 teachers. Based on the results of the quantitative phase, in the second stage, the teachers’ opinions were collected through a qualitative inquiry by implementing focus group discussions. The results are shown in four categories: 1) assessment of knowledge; 2) teaching satisfaction; 3) modality; and 4) conceptions and prejudices about sex education. The categories of the study showed that sex education presents shortcomings especially related to the lack of training and knowledge in teachers, resulting in providing an education with the same prejudices that those teachers have about sexuality.

El embarazo adolescente es una realidad que genera preocupación a nivel mundial ya que su prevalencia – especialmente en contextos Latinoamericanos – se mantiene alta pese a las diferentes iniciativas que se han realizado para prevenirlo. En este sentido, se ha reconocido el potencial del sistema educativo para proveer educación sexual que contribuya en la prevención de embarazos adolescentes. No obstante, la producción científica en este tema es limitada y el conocimiento generado de forma contextualizada es escaso. Así, el objetivo de este estudio fue sistematizar investigaciones en torno a propuestas de educación sexual que se han generado, desarrollado o vinculado con el sistema educativo formal en relación a la prevención del embarazo en adolescentes. Se revisaron 43 estudios publicados en revistas indexadas en los últimos 10 años. Los resultados de esta revisión revelan la escasez de investigaciones en la temática sobre todo en las regiones donde el embarazo adolescente es más alto – América Latina, por ejemplo –, la poca participación o involucramiento de adolescentes en las propuestas de educación sexual, y la falta de claridad en la definición del enfoque de educación sexual abordado y sus formas de implementación.

En ese artículo se presentan los resultados de un estudio de conocimientos y actitudes en sexualidad y en educación sexual dirigido a docentes de 17 colegios públicos de la ciudad de Cuenca-Ecuador. Se evaluó el impacto de un curso de capacitación sobre sexualidad que fue planificado por el proyecto VLIR-UOS “Promoción de la salud sexual en Adolescentes” de la Universidad de Cuenca-Ecuador. Con el objetivo de evaluar el efecto del curso, se aplicó a los docentes y 2 grupos de profesores no asistentes como testigos, una evaluación diagnóstica y una evaluación final, a través de 3 cuestionarios: el cuestionario de conocimientos sobre sexualidad y educación sexual con los siguientes ejes temáticos: sexualidad y actitudes, docencia y educación sexual, sexualidad y adolescencia, sexualidad: diversidad y bienestar personal-social y metodología en educación sexual. El cuestionario de actitudes hacia la sexualidad, con los siguientes ejes: valores personales claros, actitudes hacia la sexualidad en la vida, actitudes hacia la anticoncepción, actitudes hacia las relaciones prematrimoniales y autoestima. Finalmente, se aplicó el cuestionario de actitudes hacia la educación sexual. Los resultados muestran avances significativos en el nivel de conocimientos del grupo de capacitación; en la valoración inicial los docentes obtuvieron una media de .76 (DE = .07) y en post test este valor se elevó a .81 (DE = .07). En las actitudes hacia la sexualidad las diferencias no fueron estadísticamente significativas, la media inicial fue de 3.92 (DE = .52) y posteriormente fue de 4.16 (DE = .81). En las actitudes hacia la educación sexual, el valor medio inicial fue de 1.79 (DE = .58) que descendió a 1.52 (DE = .29) lo que indica una mejoría significativa en este aspecto. Se considera que variables tales como la edad de los participantes, perfil profesional y la modalidad del curso tuvieron una marcada influencia en el resultado de esta capacitación en sexualidad y educación sexual. Se discute sobre las medidas correctivas para mejorar la eficacia del curso.

Although transnational migration and its impact on families and society has received considerable attention from scholars, still little is known about its effects on the family members who stay in their home country. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore adolescents' experiences of close relationships in the context of transnational migration. The study was based on in-depth interviews with male and female adolescents whose parents had migrated. For administration of these interviews, a tool consisting of 15 pieces of wood was developed in order to invite participants to represent family members in an expressive modality that could facilitate discussion and decrease tension provoked by parental migration. Thematic analysis showed that adolescents experienced growing up within tri-generational families whose structure and dynamics allow for a sense of stability. In these families, adolescents experience meaningful relationships that are important sources of support to cope with the delicate emotional situation inherent in transnational families. However, the present study also revealed that adolescents experience the relationship with their migrant parents as a recurrent source of distress and emotional ambivalence, leading to a potential perspective on the parent-child separation in the context of transnational migration as an experience of an ambiguous loss.

Despite recognition that sexual well-being is an important part of adolescent sexual and reproductive health, a clear description of adolescent sexual well-being does not yet exist. Through six in-depth interviews and four focus group discussions with 56 young people in two distinct contexts (Belgium and Ecuador), we used the social-ecological framework to identify factors influencing adolescent sexual well-being. According to respondents, the main factors that influence adolescent sexual well-being are not only situated at the individual (having knowledge and skills and being physically, sexually and mental mature and healthy) and interpersonal levels (positive attraction towards others and communication about sexuality), but at a broader societal level, including social acceptance of sex, gender and sexual diversity and its (legal) translation into comprehensive sexuality education and the ready availability of contraceptives. Our results go well beyond two existing definitions of (adolescent) sexual well-being to contribute to understanding and measurement from the perspective of young people themselves, adding substantively to ongoing discussion about the definition of the concept.