As a new venture, the Gramin avam Samajik Vikas Sanstha (GSVS), my host organization in the fellowship, in collaboration with Shiv Shiksha Samiti, conducted a five-day training programme for adolescent girls predominantly from Ajmer and Beawar districts. The training was done based on the Lalitha and Babu module.
After a lot of discussion and deliberation, we all came to the conclusion that sex education must be skipped as the girls might not be prepared for something that intense and bold.
Lalitha And Babu
The Lalitha and Babu module is designed for grassroots education, creating community learning spaces. It aims to make discussion leaders who, through facilitation, will build meaningful conversations fostering leadership skills. The module is modified for the Indian context, with the original being Swedish. First, it was adopted in Tamil Nadu in 2009. After this, it was adopted in many parts of the country.
Thirteen chapters deal with issues like understanding gender discrimination, addressing child rights, encouraging active participation, and promoting active citizenship. The module is based on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Children (UNHRC).
The External First
The eighth chapter, ‘Me And My Body,’ starts on the note that it is absolutely okay and necessary to talk about our bodies. Moving on, the girls were divided into two teams, and I was in one of the teams. The moderators gave each team the task of drawing the male and female bodies and naming all their visible parts. Our team was given the task of drawing the male body. One girl who liked drawing took it upon herself to sketch, and we all contributed by naming them. As soon as she came down to the organ between a man’s legs – the penis, all of them chuckled.
Although I am 24 years old and have had excellent teachers and a conducive environment supporting reproduction and reproductive health discussions, I couldn’t help but grin. What am I to say to the 13-18-year-old adolescent girls stepping out of home for the first time, holding the pen to draw the phallus, and discussing secondary sexual characters for the first time in a public space.
This was followed by naming the parts aloud by one girl from each team. There was awkwardness during this activity. as no one was able to name the secondary sexual characteristics with a straight face. A burst of laughter followed each time it came to the ‘forbidden parts’. The moderators patiently repeated that it was absolutely okay and necessary to talk about the same each time there were distractions because of discomfort.
The Internal Now
This activity was followed by drawing the internal reproductive organs of the other sex, the opposite of what was initially assigned to each group. So, we were expected to draw the female (internal) reproductive organs. Confused, since this chapter was skipped for most adolescents present there, I realised I had to come in for the rescue and drew the outline. It did help to an extent. The drawing was finally done.
Another significant aspect of this task was to name the parts. The teams were given labels carrying the names of the organs. Interestingly, instead, as it should be given the region and context, the names were in Hindi. The words अंडवाहिनी, योनि, अंडाशय seemed alien to my anglicised education. With my mobile not around, I became a useless participant. Later, I learned that these Hindi terms meant fallopian tube, vagina, and ovaries, respectively.
The girls on my team, i.e., the ones who got female reproductive organs, did a decent job. There were issues with naming the male organs as people had far less clue about the male reproductive system. The moderators were well prepared for this and knew exactly what to do, as they had encountered this several times in their previous sessions. Even during this session, there were a lot of chuckles. The moderators tirelessly and patiently repeated, assuring us that it was okay and necessary to talk about these organs as they are no different from our eyes and ears.
Some More Details
The moderators also took a short session on menstruation, explaining the egg’s journey from the ovaries to the uterus and, the ultimate ejection of the egg and the uterine secretions from the body if not fertilised. They also spoke about the duration of a usual menstrual cycle, which is 28-35 days, and talked about the consequences if the number of days in the cycle decreased or increased.
After giving ample time and space for the girls to finish giggling as an act of making them comfortable with sex ed, the moderators delved deeper. They never failed to constantly remind us that it is absolutely okay and necessary to talk about our private parts. Then, they spoke about the problems that occur when one does not take sex education seriously, such as teen pregnancies and Sexually Transmitted Diseases. They also highlighted how, in our patriarchal society, there is more onus, rather more severe consequences for girls, especially concerning the cases mentioned above.
By this time, the girls started taking him seriously. This was followed by an activity where the girls were asked to discuss the case studies that dealt with negligent sex health and hygiene like UTI, fungal infection, unnecessary and excessive bleeding during intercourse, and teen pregnancy; presented to them, explain the reasons and possible solutions to the current problem, along with prevention of the same. This furthered the cause of this particular chapter, and everyone was on the same page understanding why it was important to learn these things.
Contraception And Choice
Session on STDs and contraceptives as the case on the same had come, and no girl had any clue – along with this came the discussion on abortion. The moderators, while discussing abortion complications and the dirty business surrounding the same, later highlighted why contraceptives are way better alternatives. However, as per the mentors, the best option was to be careful in teens as it is a fragile and yet crucial time that can make or break a person’s life.
It Ended Well
Finally, the session ended with a recap of all the activities and learnings. There was complete silence in the end. During the review day, where everyone had to explain a chapter of their choice, two girls conducted a session on this chapter, and everyone cooperated.
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