Future RSE research should standardise terminology, fully describe pedagogy, and use rigorous evaluation¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 5 claims (5 for) · 1 study (1 review), q3 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 5 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The review's forward-looking agenda for the field: "Future research should seek to identify consistency in terminology and content, identify pedagogical approaches that are fully described building on the field of expertise in education, and engage highly rigorous methods and expertise in evaluation". It further argues the field of sex education must be recognised socially and institutionally so appropriate funding and resources can be distributed to progress the field.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Institutional and social recognition of sex education as a field to secure funding and resources

Constraints¶

• Applies to universal school-based RSE research; the review excludes targeted cohorts and abstinence-only approaches

Target Learners¶

• children aged 4-18 in school settings

Target Learning Goals¶

• relationships and sexuality education knowledge, skills, behaviours and critical thinking

Claims¶

• Most RSE studies do not report the teaching approach used [+W]
• Growth in RSE research has been accompanied by divergence rather than convergence of content [+W]
• Evaluation methods for RSE are varied and hybridised, with qualitative methods most common [+W]
• Over a third of RSE studies report no outcomes, and student outcome measurement prioritises knowledge [+W]
• Most RSE studies in the review corpus did not define their central term [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Research recommendations: broaden program descriptions, account for prior experience and context, define outcomes, and use longitudinal mixed-methods designs
• Future research should improve definitions, operationalizations, and causal tests of authentic learning

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• van Leent, Lisa, Walsh, Kerryann, Moran, Claire, Hand, Kirstine, & French, Sally (2023). Effectiveness of relationships and sex education: A systematic review of terminology, content, pedagogy, and outcomes. Educational Research Review, 39, Article number: 100527. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2023.100527