No Sex Please, We're Teenagers

Weeellll.. seems like everyone has an opinion. I have held off posting as I am kinda wondering whether I have got anything of value to say that hasn't been said.... which I probably don't but y'know, I'll stick in my tuppence (hhhmm not sure that is the phrase now but you get the drift)....Anyhows, I think that the programme was fascinating. I think that it's really brave for Christian youth workers to get involved in the medium of tv cos it is so easy to get misrepresented and misunderstood. However, I felt that Dan and Rachel handled things very well and I got a real sense that they were generally concerned for the group and the individuals that they were working with.

The comments from the young people showed that they were really engaging with the Academy and getting valuable stuff from it. The comments about people having sex in less than ideal situations were in one sense heart breaking but in another sense it was great to hear young people being so honest and up front about what they had experienced. It was also good to hear of the positive impact that the project was having - one girl said something about receiving more respect and felling better as she was choosing to not have sex etc at parties. It seemed as if the young people were starting to evaluate their choices and think through their decisions, which is fantastic.

There was an obvious link between drinking and sexual activity and I've read some criticisms of why the project chose to focus on sex rather than the 'overdone' subject of teenage drinking. However, as far as I could see, the academy is all about getting young people to think through their actions and I could already see that the teenagers were linking bad choices being made when under the influence of drink - at the weekend away.

The trip to America was... interesting. However, i think it was relevant cos the abstinence thing is so huge over there and I think it was beneficial for the group to engage with other young people from a different culture and social setting . The American pastor didn't come off too well but in the clip that I saw, he didn't listen or respond too well to the young people... this could partly be a cultural thing though.

It will be interesting to see what happens next week as the website suggests that the remainder of the project had a great impact on a number of the group.

The programme looks as if it will be fantastic for clips and fits with the way that I like to approach the sex/relationship thing... I think that it is important to look at the subject of relationships holistically, rather than unhelpfully separating sex and making it a list of what you can and can't do, which is often unhelpful and irrelevant. It looks as if the Romance Academy is not simply about asking young people to abstain for a few months, but looks at the deeper issues surrounding relationships, commitment and making informed decisions. Looking forward to Tuesday... (9pm on BBC2!) Tired now - must sleep.......