Design and application of digital tools for comprehensive sexuality education: working from virtuality during the pandemic

Abstract

In Mexico, sexuality education is still in process of development. Despite the progress made in this area in the 1990s and 2000s, we currently face a lag and stagnation on the needs of children and youth, and the frameworks established by global organizations such as WHO, UN and UNESCO. The lack of legislation, ultraconservative groups, and obsolete programs and teaching materials represent a series of obstacles in the formation of effective and appropriate comprehensive sexuality education (CSE). This qualitative research addresses comprehensive sexuality education and the problem of its implementation and acceptance in the Latin American context, specifically in Mexico and Querétaro. The study focused on analyzing the specific needs of 3rd grade students in a student community in the city of Querétaro; with the aim of creating digital and interactive didactic material appropriate to their cognitive level and social context, in order to address thematic areas of CSE such as gender equality and body care. An intervention was carried out through extracurricular sessions, via videoconference due to the contingency of COVID-19, to observe the effects of addressing specific themes such as corporal autonomy, consent, and the deconstruction of gender roles.