Peer sex education in China’s higher education: A peer educator’s perspective

Thesis

Peer sex education (PSE), as an effective approach to deliver knowledge and skills to young people, has been adopted in Chinese higher education institutions to complement the insufficient school-based sex education in China. Most existing studies in the field focus on university-led PSE in China’s higher education, while the contribution of student-led PSE has received little attention. To bridge the gap in literature, this qualitative study set out to examine PSE in China’s higher education, especially student-led peer sex education, through the lens of peer educators. Using semi-structured interviews with 14 peer educators from five Chinese higher education institutions, this study investigated peer educators’ ways of engagement in PSE, peer educators’ motivations, and the benefits and challenges of PSE in China’s higher education as perceived by peer educators.

The findings show that peer educators engage in PSE in China’s higher education by covering a comprehensive list of topics, including those not addressed in university-led PSE. By adopting participatory and learner-centred pedagogy, peer educators empower students through both formal and informal activities. Organised in the form of student associations run independently by students, student-led PSE has a strong community spirit and more freedom than university-led PSE. Peer educators are responsible for accessing resources, self-training, and evaluation by themselves. Results show that intrinsic motivations stemmed from personal experience and self-identity constitute the main driving force for peer educators to participate in PSE. Specifically, peer educators are motivated by their interest in sex education and the aspiration to improve sex education in China and promote equal rights for women and LGBTQ+. In terms of the benefits of PSE, evidence shows that both students and peer educators benefit from increased knowledge and skills and the community support brought by PSE, while peer educators also enhance their transferrable skills and have a sense of achievement. By accommodating LGBTQ+ students and raising the public’s awareness of equal rights, PSE also contributes to the overall sociocultural environment. Meanwhile, peer educators encounter challenges on the individual, organisational, institutional, and cultural levels. As noted by the participants, the limited capacities of peer educators and organisational issues can negatively influence the quality and sustainability of PSE, while strict control by the institution and cultural barriers largely restrict the scale and impact of PSE. The findings of this study imply that joint efforts by stakeholders in different sectors and the change in social attitudes towards sex education and relevant topics are required to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of PSE.

Authors: Xie, Z

• Type of award: MSc taught course
• Level of award: Masters
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: CIE2021; CIE; Higher education; China; Peer sex education; Interviews
• Subjects: China; International education; Education, Higher; Interviews; Comparative education; Sex instruction