Under the Regime of Images and Fear: Myths about Sex Learning in Thai Education and the Missing Role of Thai Schools in Supporting Sex Learning
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Abstract
Sex education and sex learning are challenging issues Thai education. Sex learning contributes to sexual literacy, positive attitudes toward sexuality, and proper practice. Nonetheless, Thai society still limits communication about sex, and people avoid talking about this topic in public. Thai schools as “learning spaces” are expected to combine traditional values with knowledge about sex, resulting in Thai students having to seek knowledge about sex in private within the school context.
This multidisciplinary research combined sociological and psycho-neuroscientific approaches using critical discourse analysis and studying participants’ attitudes and satisfaction with sex learning. The research aimed to 1) investigate myths about sex learning in Thai schools; and 2) study the impact of myths about sex learning on the wellbeing of teachers and students in the Thai educational system. This research applied the Regime of Images and Culture of Fear to analyze the myth of sex learning within the Thai context.
Findings showed that schools did not provide safe spaces for teachers and students to learn about sex. In addition, suppressing sex learning to protect a positive image of school could affect relationships among people within schools. This research encouraged Thai schools to adjust their attitudes and roles regarding sex learning.
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