Popular media’s role in fostering sex education in middle schools: A comparative analysis of Netflix series Sex Education and Bollywood film Oh My God 2

Abstract

India as a country has always been seen as a repository of culture and heritage. The historical ruins, temples, scriptures of this ancient land foster liberty regarding sexuality and its significance in the advancement of civilization. However, sex education is still a taboo and an alien topic in the Indian education system. On the other hand, in the USA, one of the most advanced countries, sex education is a mandate, but sadly, there are middle schools in many states in the USA, which do not ponder over the subject at all.The reason behind this is the fact that there is no unified National Policy regarding Sex-Education in the USA, it is vested with the states individually. The USA government had been promoting ‘Abstinence-only-until-marriage’ (AOUM) education till Obama came. Even after implementing an evidence-based sex education system, the overall status of comprehensive sex education is unsatisfactory in the USA. This research aims at dealing with the issues associated with implementing and practising sex-education in the middle school and how the popular media deals with it and influences it. The paper takes into account the famous Netflix series Sex Education which is hugely applauded for its candid and inclusive approach towards sex and sexuality of teenagers and the recent bollywood film OMG2 which serves as a critique of the Indian education system which fails to provide proper knowledge on the subject and jeopardises the adolescent life.