Sex, Etc.
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Topics covered:
Girls' health, guys' health, sex, love & relationships, GLBTQ (gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer), contraception, sexually transmitted infections, pregnancy, teen parenting, adoption, abortion, emotional health, abuse & violence, body image, alcohol & drugs.
Brief description and Critique:
A comprehensive website of "sex education by teens for teens" overseen by Rutgers University in the USA. It includes teen stories and experiences, information on a wide range of topics, and multimedia from blogs to comics and videos. Registered users can post on forums, enter contests, and send questions to experts. Fans can friend the site on MySpace or join their Facebook group.
Marie Stopes International
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Topics Covered:
Contraception, sexually transmitted infections, pregnancy, abortion, health check-ups/tests.
Brief Description and Critique:
Very good for a brief overview into the issues of sexual health. The user is frequently referred on to the www.likeitis.org website for more detailed information.
A lot of the information regards the services Marie Stopes provides for people in the UK, so the services information is less useful for Australians.
Like It Is
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Topics Covered:
Puberty, sexuality, peer pressure, sexual practices, contraception, teenage pregnancy, sexually transmitted infections.
Brief Description and Critique:
Information is easy to understand and appropriately pitched to adolescents, particularly younger teenagers. Includes a Dr Phil section where a doctor answers three submitted questions a month – questions are very realistic, unique and personalised, and responses are very accurate, honest and up-to-date.
Contains a list of help lines and websites categorised by state.
Occasionally refers to Marie Stopes International throughout the site for services.
Telling It Like It Is.tv
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Topics covered:
Condom use, sexually transmitted infections and screening
Brief review:
Teachers and parents may cringe as the characters from FurTV demonstrate the importance of safe sex but teenagers will find Lapeño, Mervin and Fat Ed’s videos both hilarious and straight to the point.
Aimed primarily at getting young men to use condoms, tellingitlikeitis.tv consists of five short video clips and a short list of safe sex tips.
It’s not for everyone, but tellingitlikeitis.tv provides education and humour in a winning combination.
Family Planning Victoria
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Topics Covered:
Safe sex, fertility, periods, breast examination, contraception, sexually transmitted infections, the law regarding sexual activity.
Brief Description and Critique:
Useful, easy-to-understand information that is generally well-presented. The “YouthCentre” tab is very useful for teenagers. FPV provides a range of services for teenagers, which are detailed on the website. Generally easy to read, although some areas have large chunks of information which is hard to follow.
Very comprehensive website “Links” menu.
Your Sex Health
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Topics Covered:
Contraception, pregnancy (planned and unplanned), fertility/infertility, menopause, sexually transmitted infections, sexuality/gender issues, sexual practices, decisions about sex, unwanted sex, relationships, psychological/emotional/communication issues, sex & drugs/media/internet/culture/society, legal issues surrounding sex/marriage/contraception/abortion, normal physiology, screening/health checks.
Brief Description and Critique:
Very thorough and comprehensive information on a wide range of topics. Some sections (fertility, pregnancy, menopause, screening/health checks) seem to be aimed at older adults rather than adolescents. Covers some less-explored areas in detail such as the influences of changing culture & society, and screening for non-STI-related problems. Includes many videos based on real-life stories.
The Melbourne Sexual Health Centre
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Topic covered:
Normal sexual function, sexually transmitted infections, contraception (including emergency contraception), pregnancy, details about MSHC services (including clinics, testing and telephone assistance).
Brief description:
This site has a wealth of information. It is most useful if the visitor is specifically searching for information about a specific topic. It isn’t particularly youth friendly with limited information specifically targeting young people. Apart from information about courses dealing with sexual health, the site is of limited use as a resource for teachers.
There is the opportunity for visitors to check when they should visit a doctor based on symptoms they may be experiencing. There is also information written specially for men who have sex with men (MSM).
The Hormone Factory
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Topics covered:
Normal puberty (separate sections for girls and boys), pregnancy, contraception, body image, keeping safe on the internet, sexual assault and harassment, quizzes to test visitors’ knowledge, parents and teachers’ section.
Brief description and critique
This site is targeted towards young people aged between 10 and 12. The website therefore only scratches the surface on different topics and is not a great site for teenagers outside this range. The teachers and parents’ section goes into a little more detail and provides advice about discussing sexual health topics with young people. The website is easy to navigate with accurate diagrams and colourful characters.