Pitt sex courses teach integral lessons

Pitt offers plenty of ways for students to learn about sex — and not just through traditional sexual education. 

80% of public universities offer some kind of course on sex, including Pitt. Across various departments, there are numerous courses for students to gain a greater understanding of sex in culture, history and representation.

Joshua Warren, a visiting lecturer in sociology, teaches the course SOC0436, “Social Aspects of Sexuality.” Warren said his class covers a variety of topics about sex, including the history of sexuality, gender and different identities.

“We talk about religion and pop culture and how those institutions affect sex and sexuality and gender,” Warren said. “We talk about politics, such as legal issues that we see throughout history and also currently. We wrap up [by] looking to a more positive future — where we go from here and why we should be joyful in our sexuality.”

Warren said being open to learning about sex and looking for classes that discuss it can be beneficial to a student’s education. 

“It is really important to be able to have conversations like this even though we are in a safer environment than others might be,” Warren said. “It is really valuable and important getting out of the bounds of gatekeeping academia.”

Oftentimes, students come into college with differing levels of knowledge on sex. Warren said that is what makes learning about sex in an actual classroom so important.

“A lot of [students] had good sex education. A lot of them did not have good sex education,” Warren said. “So there’s obviously some value in taking what they might or might not know and expanding on that to better understand it, especially in the classroom setting where other classes might shy away from those conversations.”

Michaela Albers, a junior film and media studies major, is currently enrolled in the course FR0012, “French Kiss: Love, Sex, France.” Albers said she has particularly enjoyed learning about sex through a cultural lens.

“It’s wonderful being able to learn about culture that surrounds ideas of sexuality, gender, body and sexual representation in other countries,” Albers said. “It’s a way to get a little more culturally diverse knowledge in the ways that other countries during different time periods would view those kinds of concepts.”

Learning about sex in class has helped Albers tackle the discomfort that might come with talking about sex, she said.

“It definitely helps whenever it comes to having those taboo conversations with friends,” Albers said. “I’m someone who works in a more creative field, and I think it helps with those conversations and getting comfortable with sharing ideas and conversations that surround those concepts.”

Molly Martin, a junior natural sciences major, has taken multiple classes that center around sex, including GSWS0550, “Sex and Sexualities,” and ENGLIT0630, “Sexuality and Representation,” for her gender, sexuality and women’s studies minor. Martin’s sexuality-focused classes have covered topics including the history of sex work, the AIDS crisis and different sexualities. Martin said learning about these concepts has helped her both in and out of the classroom.

“I remember talking about a lot of these concepts with my roommate, and she didn’t know any of this stuff,” Martin said. “She did not have sex ed in high school, so I think it’s definitely something really useful for people who might not know any of this information.”

Martin said learning about sex in college can have real-world implications for awareness and safety, including becoming aware of other cultures and areas where certain sexual orientations are heavily discriminated against or illegal.

“There is history behind sexuality, and in current times there’s been a lot more activism, and a lot more people are open to talking about their sexuality,” Martin said. “But it’s still good to know some places you don’t really want to talk about stuff like that, or maybe there’s laws preventing you from being able to do certain things.”