Girls in special education are more likely to experience sexual boundary violations

Cluster 4 schools are attended by young people with psychiatric disorders or severe behavioural problems. The study also included young people with intellectual disabilities at schools for children with severe learning difficulties (zmlk), as well as young people with physical disabilities at mytyl schools. The study shows that girls at cluster 4 schools have more sexual experience than girls in mainstream education. One in three girls (35%) has experience with sexual intercourse, compared with one in six (16%) at mainstream schools. In addition, 25% of girls at cluster 4 schools have at some point sent a nude photo or sex video of themselves, compared with 6% of girls at mainstream schools.

Falling in love and relationships

Almost all the young people who took part, from young people with severe behavioural problems to those with physical or intellectual disabilities, have been in love. Most of them also enter into romantic relationships. In this respect, they do not differ from young people in mainstream education or from one another.

Mytyl schools and zmlk schools

Young people at zmlk schools and young people at mytyl schools appear to have less experience with kissing and sex than young people in mainstream education. Young people at mytyl schools have less knowledge and also indicate that they receive less information about sexuality than young people at mainstream schools.

Points for consideration

Hanneke de Graaf, senior researcher at Rutgers: “The study shows the areas in which young people in secondary special education are particularly vulnerable and provides points for consideration regarding where more attention is needed at school, for example sexual boundary violations at cluster 4 schools or sex education at mytyl schools. All these young people deserve adequate sex education with a specialised approach to ensure that they receive proper guidance.”

Research

The study ‘Sex under 25: Secondary special education’ is a follow-up to the 2017 study ‘Sex under 25’. A total of 1,133 young people took part in the study: 807 young people at cluster 4 schools, 99 young people at zmlk schools and 227 young people at mytyl schools. The respondents completed an online questionnaire. Where necessary, it was administered orally.