Talking About Sex

Talking About Sex: Sexuality Education for Learners with Disabilities makes an essential contribution to advocating for self-determination of persons with developmental disabilities by taking up a subject that educators and other human service professional have historically overlooked. Educational practices have focused on academic and self-help skills while largely ignoring issues of sexuality. Understanding sexuality is an equally important life skill that empowers young adults with disabilities. Individuals with developmental disabilities are at the greatest risk for sexual abuse and need an awareness of both normal and deviant sexuality. These individuals have the same rights as people without disabilities to engage in sexual and relationship exploration, including knowledge of safe sex practices, consent, and ethical behavior. In addition to exploring the topic, the authors offer instructional approaches for sex education that are adapted for special populations. Talking About Sex: Sexuality Education for Learners with Disabilities is a must-read for parents, counselors, providers, and virtually anyone engaged in the field. -- Henry B. Reiff, coordinator, Graduate Program in Special Education, professor of Special Education, McDaniel College, vice-president for student members, International Academy for Research in Learning Disabilities (IARLD), author of Teaching for the Lifespan
In my role as a special education leader for over 20 years, one of the biggest gaps in programming for students with IDD and Autism is in the area of curriculum to provide direct instruction in sexuality education.  In just the last two years, I have seen the number of individuals with IDD and/or Autism who get in trouble with the law increase exponentially  simply because they lack a basic understanding of societal norms when it comes to sexual behavior while also having instant and often unmonitored access to social media. “Talking About Sex: Sexuality for Learners with Disabilities” is one of the first books I’ve seen on this topic and it provides a well-researched approach that will help inform educators and caregivers of the need for sexuality education for this population.  It does a great job of identifying topics that need to be discussed while also providing hands on curriculum suggestions and resources for teachers and parents to use to help this population learn to safety navigate the complicated world of human sexual behavior. -- William P. Gillet, director of student services, Big Spring School District, Newville, PA