Our sense of identity is one of the basic contributors to our health and wellbeing. It impacts on our thoughts and behaviours, relationships, feelings of connectedness and resilience. Gender and sexual identity are both important aspects of a person’s identity and sense of self. Social and cultural environments shape the way individuals learn about and express their sexuality.
Why is it important?
Feeling comfortable about difference helps us feel better about ourselves. This learning lays the foundations for how to interact, how to feel good about ourselves and how to respect others.
By applying these sub-concepts students can assess and make judgments about the impact of family, culture and media on one’s thoughts, feelings, values, and behaviours related to sex, sexuality and sexual health. Where students can examine the world around them for biases based on gender, sexual orientation, culture, ethnicity, and race, they can question and reject stereotypes, avoid discriminatory attitudes and behaviours and advocate for the rights of others.
Sub-elements of identity, culture and human rights
- Sexuality, culture and human rights – society influences what people believe and how they feel about sexuality.
- Sexuality and the media – the media has a profound effect on sexual information, values, and behaviour.
- Social construction of identity and roles – society portrays and shapes our views on masculinity or femininity and male and female roles and stereotypes.
- Privacy and body autonomy –some parts of the body are private. t is not OK for others to touch the private parts of people's body without permission or unless they are ill, injured or need help to look after themselves.
- Abuse, violence and harassment –no one has the right to coerce, abuse, or assault another person.
- Sexuality and the law – laws govern our sexual and reproductive rights.
- Diversity – our society has a diversity of sexual attitudes and behaviours and these should be respected.