China Sex Ed Dolls: Kindergarten Class Uses Realistic Dolls To Teach Sexual Education (PHOTOS, POLL)

Now this is one way to teach sex ed.

Last week, Shanghaiist posted pictures of young children learning about the human body by playing with dolls that feature very lifelike parts, including genitalia with pubic hair.

According to ImagineChina, the agency that provided the images to HuffPost, the photos are from Yaolan Kindergarten, a school in Zhengzhou, the capital city of Henan province in central China. The pictures were taken in April.

POTENTIALLY UNSETTLING PHOTOS BELOW

The dolls have, naturally, drawn criticism from some parents. "I am worried that it's not good for the kids to know sexual knowledge so early," one parent said, according to Shanghai Daily.

But China, which has one of the highest abortion rates in the world, is, like many countries, grappling with how to effectively teach sex education in schools.

The Associated Press reports that a 2009 study found that while two-thirds of adolescents and young adults in China "had very limited levels of sexual reproductive health knowledge," they were also open to premarital sex.

From the Associated Press:

The survey found 22 percent had had sex before; of those, more than 50 percent used no contraception during their first sexual encounter. A 2009 survey of American high schoolers by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control found 46 percent of students had had sex and 85 percent used contraceptives during their most recent sexual activity.

According to China Daily, a state-run newspaper, almost two-thirds of abortions performed annually are on women between the ages of 20 and 29, most of whom are unmarried.

In August, the country announced an experimental -- and controversial -- sexual education program in 18 primary schools in Beijing, China Daily reports. Beginning this term, students as young as six years old will be taught about sexuality from "Growing Steps," a textbook that features graphical depictions and descriptions of sex.

China isn't the only country being criticized for how it's teaching sexual education. Last week, the Vatican blasted New York City public schools for teaching condom usage to middle school students, calling it "useless, and even harmful."

Do you think these dolls are effective for teaching sexual education to children? Are the children too young? Take a look at the slideshow below and let us know in the comments. You can also vote in the poll following the images.

LOOK: Dolls used to teach sex ed:

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Comments

[banana republican]

04:22 PM on 10/30/2011

My classmates and I were in kindergarten in the 50's, long before these incredbily smart people who recognized the importance of teaching sex education at that age, even came along. It's a miracle we survived.

[Rabbitstick]

04:16 PM on 10/29/2011

they have such good control of their media over there. look how many girls there are in that class. ill bet its never that many!

[MexiChick67]

08:27 PM on 10/19/2011

It's best to teach children about their bodies first. I don't think that it was necessary to provide kindergartners with dolls that have adult genitalia.

[Michaela Degenaro]

04:03 PM on 10/16/2011

Wow, I remember I didn't even learn sex education until my freshman year of highschool. I didn't even see a penis! but these Kindergartners have? At that age, they're learning their ABC's, they don't even have the mind capacity to even know what sex is. I am all for sex education, but not at this age level.

[julietjdx3]

12:02 PM on 10/14/2011

thats sick

[msgap]

03:13 PM on 10/13/2011

The pictures of the children playing with the dolls are cute and hilarious and wrong all at the same time. The kids look so happy and innocent. If this is all done in an educational setting with teachers that they already know and respect, I don't think it can be too wrong. Also, I would hope that the parents know what is being taught, so they can follow up at home.

[Elinore Hooven]

01:31 PM on 10/13/2011

I really feel like these children should be learning this knowledge, more because of what the AP said was their blatant lack of sexual protection. In a country where the abortion rate is SO high and more than likely so are the sexual transmitted disease rates, children need to know about the world that they are going into. I honestly do not think that a doll, that actually looks nothing like an anatomical figure (something that might be a bit off-putting to a young child) but still has that required message. I just hope that this program continues and that students and possibly their parents continue to gain from it.

[AcademicFreedom]

07:53 PM on 09/26/2011

The government knows best; so, the government should teach our children what they know. That way, from a very early age, the children will know how to act. Let teachers tell then what are good feelings and bad feelings. Also, at this same age, children should be taught that the government is good and that if there is not support that is bad; so, if mummy and daddy believe that teachers should not teach sex education and that sex education be funded with lots of money, well then, mummy and daddy are wrong. That way when it comes time to vote, the now legal children will know how to vote.

[tashanicholeh09]

12:40 AM on 10/10/2011

Is this sarcasm?

[stelwel15]

07:57 PM on 10/13/2011

I would rather have the government be in charge of my child's education than a 2,000 year old book.

[WET]

11:44 PM on 09/17/2011

It's humorous to me that nudity in dolls makes this NSFW. I'm not even sure what NSFW means anymore.

[Katherine Hompes]

07:21 PM on 09/17/2011

I think that children start learning early, but that this progresses in stages according to age and maturity. My 4 year old knows body parts, and the proper names for them (ie. penis and vagina). She has also learned (as part of a nationwide initiative in Aus) what private parts are, and "good" and "bad" feelings. I highly approve of this kind of teaching- as it does help children become aware, and can help to prevent child sexual abuse.

She also knows that babies grow in bellies (due to knowing some of my friends, who are pregnant), but has no knowledge of how they get there, nor how they come out (according to her, they come out your mouth!).

Being open and honest with your children, is very important- instilling knowledge (at an early age) of private parts and what to do if they get a "bad" feeling is also important. But I see no need to push sex ed on children when the knowledge is above their age or maturity level.

[dbrett480]

06:04 PM on 09/14/2011

I don't have a problem with sex ed, I just don't think it should be taught during kindergarten.

[BigWillyG]

04:40 PM on 09/15/2011

Yeah seems really young. Kindergartners have barely gotten to the age where they can go to the bathroom by themselves. I don't think they'd even understand any of whats being taught.

[tashanicholeh09]

12:40 AM on 10/10/2011

Exactly

[Fromageball]

04:29 PM on 09/08/2011

Kids have questions and, in my opinion, are never too young to get honest answers.

Young kids are already exploring their bodies anyway - some of these kids are even...gasp...masturbating! I think it's healthier in the long run to be open about this kind of thing. The boys and girls know about their own respective bodies, and I don't see how it would do any harm to learn about the other - maybe then people will be less ashamed of their own bodies and more responsible later on when it comes to sex.

[FaceTheTruth00]

08:07 AM on 09/08/2011

(Continued)

I don't know why people think this has to be done so early. We had "hygiene" class in 9th grade, which incorporated sex ed into health/anatomy. No one gave me "the talk", but my friends and I talked all about sex, menstruation, etc.

That's what kids today do as well. I remember one girl being pregnant at graduation (mid-90s). The rest of us figured out how to use protection.

And lastly, the comments about children "playing with themselves". Yes, there is natural exploration. There are also times and places for it. One person was talking about a child running around naked outside the house and touching themselves.

Now that is the kind of thing that is going to get a child in trouble. It's not exactly hygienic, nor particularly considerate of others, for one thing. But for another, teaching a kid to engage their sexuality in public can certainly be an invitation to a predator.

There is nothing wrong with teaching a child that yes exploration is ok. But there is also nothing wrong with teaching children that not every time and every place is an appropriate situation.

[FaceTheTruth00]

07:55 AM on 09/08/2011

Five is too young. I have a 6 y.o. nephew and this would be the last thing on his mind. He's all about Spongebob and mechanical stuff. If they opted for about age 8 or 9, as a precursor to actual sex ed, that would probably be better.

Some of these comments though. People saying that playing with dolls with genitalia will make kids unashamed of their bodies? Ok first off, who says many, much less most kids are ashamed of their bodies? In fact, I would say quite the opposite, since we're seeing kids as young as 10 having sex and getting pregnant.

Those kids aren't ashamed, If anyone is, it's the teenagers who start worrying about what their genitalia look like compared to others. Especially when they start looking at things like Playboy. Tweens and teens are the ones having body images.

Secondly, some are making the argument that this will somehow prevent abuse. You don't need an anatomically correct doll to teach good and bad touches. I'd be willing to bet the vast majority of us here did not have such dolls growing up; and yet we still understood right from wrong; and most of us were never molested.

What hurts kids more are tv shows and media campaigns dressing 10 y.o.s up like women. And "pageants" where 3 and 4 y.o. are dressed up like hookers and given fake breasts.

[Fromageball]

04:41 PM on 09/08/2011

Why is any age "too young"? Kids are talking about this stuff long before adults think they're old enough.

What is wrong with anatomically correct? It seems like having "gender neutral" dolls would do more harm than good. Why are we so ashamed of our bodies and their differences? They're not going away.

I agree that the pageant shows are harmful to kids, but learning about body acceptance early on could deter negative feelings that result from watching that sort of thing.

[JackJones]

05:30 AM on 09/08/2011

1. Anatomy lessons are not sex lessons.
2. Would you rather kids learnt from their teachers, or from ignorant classmates?

[AcademicFreedom]

07:54 PM on 09/26/2011

Actually, they should learn it from their parents.