The Missing Piece in Development: An Examination of Teachers’ Knowledge and Attitudes in the Sexual Education of Children with Special Needs
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.63556/ankad.v10i2.399Keywords:
Sexual Education, Children with Special Needs, Teacher Attitudes, Privacy EducationAbstract
The purpose of this study is to examine special education teachers’ knowledge of and attitudes toward sexuality education and the relationship between these variables among teachers working with children with special needs. The study was conducted using a quantitative descriptive and correlational survey design. The study group consisted of 140 special education teachers working in public schools across Türkiye who voluntarily participated in the research. Data were collected via Google Forms. The Personal Information Form, the Attitude Scale developed by Akın et al. (2013), and a Knowledge Test developed by the researchers were used as data collection instruments. Descriptive statistics, independent samples t-tests, one-way ANOVA, and Pearson correlation analysis were employed in the data analysis.
The findings indicated that teachers’ knowledge levels regarding sexuality education were at a moderate to high level, while their attitudes were generally positive. No significant differences were found in knowledge and attitude scores according to age, gender, field of graduation, teaching level, or professional experience. Having previously received sexuality education was found to significantly increase teachers’ knowledge levels; however, no statistically significant relationship was identified between knowledge and attitudes.
The results suggest that positive attitudes alone are not sufficient and that structural strengthening is needed to ensure that knowledge is effectively translated into attitudes and educational practice. In this context, holistic approaches that simultaneously address both knowledge and attitudes in preventive and protective domains—such as privacy education, identifying risky situations, and protection against abuse—are of critical importance. It is recommended that structured sexuality education content be integrated into pre-service teacher education programs and that practice-oriented in-service training be expanded for in-service teachers.
References
Akdemir, B., & Sarı, O. T. (2019). Zihinsel yetersizliği olan bireylerle çalışan öğretmenlerin cinsel eğitime yönelik tutumları ve etik durumlarının karşılaştırılması (Comparison of the attitudes and ethical situations of teachers working with individuals with intellectual disabilities towards sexual education). Eğitimde Kuram ve Uygulama (Theory and Practice in Education), 15(3), 267-282. https://doi.org/10.17244/eku.425276
Akın, A., Yıldız, B., Uysal, R., Demir, O., Kaymaz, B., Aşut, S. & Erguvan, F. M. (2013, Mayıs). Zihin engelli bireylerle çalışan öğretmenlerin cinsel eğitime ilişkin tutum ölçeği: Geliştirme, geçerlik ve güvenirlik çalışması. 5. Ulusal Lisansüstü Eğitim Sempozyumu (National Graduate Education Symposium), Sakarya.
Alptekin, A., & Tepeli, K. (2019). Farklı yetersizliği olan 48-72 ay çocuklarda cinsel gelişimin incelenmesi (Examination of sexual development in 48–72 month-old children with different disabilities). Ankara Üniversitesi Eğitim Bilimleri Fakültesi Özel Eğitim Dergisi (Ankara University Faculty of Educational Sciences Journal of Special Education), 20(4), 737-762. https://doi.org/10.21565/ozelegitimdergisi.526557
Aydın, H. (1998). Cinsellik ve cinsel işlev. Temel psikiyatri, 2, Hekimler Yayın Birliği, 605-615.
Bayrak, G., Başgül, Ş. S., & Gündüz, T. (2011). Ailede cinsel eğitim: çocuk ve ergen eğitiminde rehber kitap. Timaş.
Büyüköztürk, Ş. (2018). Sosyal bilimler için veri analizi el kitabı. Pegem Akademi Yayıncılık, 001-214.
Christian, L., Stinson, J., & Dotson, L. A. (2001). Staff values regarding the sexual expression of women with developmental disabilities. Sexuality and Disability, 19(4), 283-291. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017957409670
Cohen, J. (1994). The earth is round (p<. 05). American psychologist, 49(12), 997.https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.49.12.997
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2017). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Sage publications.
Çok, F., & Kutlu, Ö. (2010). Ergenlerin cinsel eğitimi: Bir program denemesi. Pegem Akademi.
Eliküçük, A., & Sönmez, S. (2011). Examination of opinions of parents about sexual development and education six years old children. Journal of Social Policy Studies, 25(25), 45-62.
Ellis K., Sakellariou D. (2020). Occupational therapy’s role empowering sexuality for individuals with disability. In: The Routledge Handbook of Disability and Sexuality. Routledge; 2020. p. 463-473. https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/137937
Field, A. (2024). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics. Sage publications limited.
Finkelhor, D. (2009). The prevention of childhood sexual abuse. The future of children, 169-194.
Fisher, R. A. (1925, July). Theory of statistical estimation. In Mathematical proceedings of the Cambridge philosophical society (Vol. 22, No. 5, pp. 700-725). Cambridge University Press.
Gendel, E. S., & Bonner, E. J. (1992). Sexual disfunction, gender identity disorders and parafilias. Review of General Psychiatry, Appleton and Lange. Connecticut, 306-326.
George, D., & Mallery, P. (2001). SPSS for Windows step by step: A simple guide and reference 10.0 update. Allyn & Bacon.
Gigerenzer, G. (2004). Mindless statistics. The Journal of Socio-Economics, 33(2), 269-276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socec.2004.03.004
Gonzálvez, C., Fernández-Sogorb, A., Sanmartín, R., Vicent, M., Granados, L., & García-Fernández, J. M. (2018). Efficacy of sex education programs for people with intellectual disabilities: A meta-analysis. Sexuality and Disability, 36(4), 331-347. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-018-9545-9
Gökçe, F., & Sezer, G. O. (2012). Öğretmen adaylarının öğretmenlik mesleğine yönelik tutumları (Uludağ Üniversitesi Örneği). Journal of Uludag University Faculty of Education, 25(1), 1-23.
Gökdeniz, Ş. (2008). İlköğretimde cinsel bilgiler eğitimi konusunda öğretmen ve veli görüşleri (Teachers’ and parents’ opinions on sex education in primary education) (Yayımlanmamış yüksek lisans tezi). Uludağ Üniversitesi/Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü (Uludağ University/Institute of Social Sciences), Bursa.
Gümüş, S. S., & Altınsoy, M. (2015). Hatay okullarında engellilerin cinsel eğitimi durum değerlendirmesi. Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Eğitim Fakültesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi, 6(2), 63-72.
Gürol, A., Polat, S., & Oran, T. (2014). Views of mothers having children with intellectual disability regarding sexual education: A qualitative study. Sexuality and Disability, 32(2), 123-133. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-014-9338-8
Gürsoy, E., & Gençalp, N. S. (2010). The importance of sexual health education. J Soc Pol Stud, 23(23), 29-36. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/spcd/issue/21111/227376
Hsu, J. (1996). Multiple comparisons: Theory and methods. Chapman & Hall.
Hui, S. F. E. I. (2024). Sexual education for adolescents and adults with intellectual disabilities: Systematic review. Sexuality and Disability, 42(1), 119-147. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11195-023-09813-y
Jeyachandran, V., Ranjelin, S. D., & Kumar, A. (2024). Sexual health and safety of adolescents with intellectual disability: Challenges and concerns among special educators in India. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities, 28(1), 104-117. https://doi.org/10.1177/17446295221136224
Johnson, R. L., Sendall, M. C., & McCuaig, L. A. (2014). Primary schools and the delivery of relationships and sexuality education: the experience of Queensland teachers. Sex Education, 14(4), 359–374. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681811.2014.90935
Kağıtçıbaşı, Ç., & Cemalcılar, Z. (2014). Dünden bugüne insan ve insanlar: Sosyal psikolojiye giriş. Evrim.
Leech, N. L., Barrett, K. C., & Morgan, G. A. (2005). SPSS for intermediate statistics: Use and interpretation (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Lomax, R. G., & Hahs-Vaughn, D. L. (2021). Statistical concepts: A second course (5. baskı). Routledge.
Martin, J., Riazi, H., Firoozi, A., & Nasiri, M. (2020). A sex education program for teachers of preschool children: a quasi-experimental study in Iran. BMC public health, 20(1), 692. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-08826-y
McGuire, B. E., & Bayley, A. A. (2011). Relationships, sexuality and decision-making capacity in people with an intellectual disability. Current opinion in psychiatry, 24(5), 398-402. https://doi.org/10.1097/YCO.0b013e328349bbcb
Miller, K. S., Fasula, A. M., Dittus, P., Wiegand, R. E., Wyckoff, S. C., & McNair, L. (2009). Barriers and facilitators to maternal communication with preadolescents about age-relevant sexual topics. AIDS and Behavior, 13(2), 365-374. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-007-9324-6
Mkumbo, K. A. (2012). Teachers’ attitudes towards and comfort about teaching school-based sexuality education in urban and rural Tanzania. Global journal of health science, 4(4), 149. https://doi.org/10.5539/gjhs.v4n4p149
Mohd Yazid, F. S., & Rahman, P. A. (2022). Parents’ perspective of sexuality among down syndrome children. Malaysian journal of medicine & health sciences, 18(15), 58-64.
Oliveira, C., Ozorio, S., Gomes, V., Araújo, S., & Lopes, J. (2025). Sex education for ındividuals with ıntellectual development disorder (ıdd): a scoping review. Education Sciences, 15(6), 685. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci15060685
Özcebe, H. (2011). Çocukluktan ergenliğe cinsellik. Cinsellik ve Cinsel Eğitim, 32.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods 3rd. ed. Sage publications.
Paulauskaite, L., Rivas, C., Paris, A., & Totsika, V. (2022). A systematic review of relationships and sex education outcomes for students with intellectual disability reported in the international literature. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 66(7), 577-616. https://doi.org/10.1111/jir.12952
Sexuality ınformation and education council of the united states [SIECUS]. (1996). Issues and answers. Fact sheet on sexuality education. SIECUS Report, 24(6), 1–4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12348715/
Sexuality ınformation and education council of the united states [SIECUS]. (2004). Guidelines for comprehensive sexuality education. Kindergarten-12th Grade (3rd Edition).
Sterling, R. (Ed.). (2023). Sexual education around the world-past, present and future issues. BoD–Books on Demand.
Sürücü, S. (2009). 11-17 Yaş orta düzeyde zihin engelli kız ergenlerin temel cinsel bilgi ve cinsel istismarı algılamalarının belirlenmesi (Determination of basic sexual knowledge and perception of sexual abuse in 11–17-year-old moderately intellectually disabled female adolescents). Yayınlanmış Yüksek Lisans Tezi (Published Master’s Thesis). Marmara Üniversitesi (Marmara University), İstanbul
Tavşancıl, E. (2005). Tutumların ölçülmesi ve SPSS ile veri analizi (Measurement of attitudes and data analysis with SPSS). Nobel Yayıncılık (Nobel Publishing), Ankara.
Treacy, A. C., Taylor, S. S., & Abernathy, T. V. (2018). Sexual health education for ındividuals with disabilities: a call to action. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 13(1), 65–93. https://doi.org/10.1080/15546128.2017.1399492
Tuzcuoğlu, N., & Tuzcuoğlu, S. (1996). Çocuğun cinsel eğitiminde ailelerin karşılaştıkları güçlükler. Marmara Üniversitesi Atatürk Eğitim Fakültesi Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi, 8(8), 251-262.
UNICEF: UNICEF Fact sheet: Children with disabilities. UNICEF (2022). https://www.unicef.org/media/128976/file/UNICEF%20Fact%20Sheet%20,%20Children%20with%20Disabilitiesa.pdf. Accessed 11 Apr 2024
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization [UNESCO]. (2009) International technical guidance on sexuality education: an evidence-informed approach for schools, teachers and health educators. UNESCO.
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization [UNESCO]. (2018) International technical guidance on sexuality education: an evidence-informed approach. (Revised edition) UNESCO.
Walker-Hirsch, J. L. (2007). The facts of life and more. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes. Publishing Co.
Wiefferink, C. H., Poelman, J., Linthorst, M., Vanwesenbeeck, I., Van Wijngaarden, J. C. M., & Paulussen, T. G. W. (2005). Outcomes of a systematically designed strategy for the implementation of sex education in Dutch secondary schools. Health Education Research, 20(3), 323-333. https://doi.org/10.1093/her/cyg120
World Health Organization [WHO]. (2006). Defining sexual health: report of a technical consultation on sexual health, 28–31 January 2002. Geneva: WHO Press.
World Health Organization [WHO]. (2010). Standards for sexuality education in Europe: A framework for policy makers, educational and health authorities and specialists. Cologne: Federal Centre for Health Education.
Yavuz, M., Tekcan, C. A., & Vural-Batık, M. (2013). Zihinsel engelliler sınıf öğretmenlerinin cinsel eğitime ilişkin tutumları (Attitudes of special education teachers towards sexual education). 23. Ulusal Özel Eğitim Kongresi (23rd National Special Education Congress), 30.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of Anatolian Cultural Research
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
