Moordale Secondary, or as its most recent nickname suggests “sex school,” has recently returned to the small screen. Whereas the first two seasons of the show focused on sex positivity and the founding of a student-led clinic to discuss taboo topics and seek advice, season three looks at the new head teacher’s attempt to clean the school’s image by teaching abstinence and implementing harsh rules. Although the borderline satirical show offers a very hyperbolized version of what happens in some schools today, the message remains the same: ignoring something doesn’t make it go away. In essence, how are teenagers supposed to act responsibly around sex if they aren’t being taught how to do that?
Sex Education has a smaller emphasis on being realistic, rather than choosing to be startling and informative. In the first two seasons, taboo topics seldom discussed in schools or even in close friend groups are tackled with normality. The show doesn’t try to fit into the far too common heteronormative and male-dominated view of sex. Instead, every episode features a new problem with new characters facing different issues within their relationships, which are treated equally and respectfully. Nonetheless, the third season breaks away from the utopia of the earlier episodes in favor of a more extreme imitation of schools often tackle the subject.
However, students had already started to find educational information through Otis and his sex therapist mom. As such, even when being repressed by the school's administration, the adolescents still seem more comfortable in themselves and their bodies than in prior seasons. This shows their evolution once sex education became commonplace at the school (through Otis’ and Maeve’s clinic). In this season, even more, representation is shown, and the creators aren’t scared to dive into sensitive issues. Aimee deals with the repercussions of her sexual assault from the previous season, and Maeve gets with Isaac -- a disabled man from her trailer park. Adam and Eric have an open discussion about sex and, Nigeria’s anti-gay legislation is shown through Eric’s lens. Two non-binary characters are introduced, whose experiences help spotlight issues of importance to the LGBTQIA+ community.
At the same time, Moordale Secondary welcomes a new headteacher: Hope. She starts her reform by implementing an abstinence-only education program, forgetting comprehensible protection and consent lessons in favor of outdated presentations and traumatizing videos of women in labor. Maeve is quick to speak up and so is Otis, but they are ultimately just silenced by being kicked out. Additionally, the school dress code and male-female sex-ed classes alienate non-binary students and Hope publicly humiliates and suspends anyone who doesn’t follow her rules.
During the opening day of Moordale’s rebranded Sparkside Academy, these unfair occurrences culminate in an intervention by the students. They organize a protest against the classes, where they talk about topics that Hope wants to be silenced. The events don’t end very well for them as the school ends up being sold, but they are congratulated for their bravery and commended for “doing the right thing.”
Even though the feat is presented as a solution to speak up for themselves, it’s a fictional TV show. In reality, we are unlikely to start seeing many students hijacking school events with videos talking about sex while dressed up as genitals, but the show serves to bring forth the message that students should advocate for their own rights and success in its mission to inform. In 2017, a report from the Journal of Adolescent Health found that abstinence-only sex education resulted in more teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections than an informative sexual education program. Still, many schools insist on abstinence programs. Sex Education tells us more about this in a light and humorous manner, targeted exactly to who needs it the most. In all, it’s a must-watch for anyone seeking entertainment, diversity, and social critiques.
Newman-Bremang, Kathleen. “If Your ‘DIVERSE’ Teen Show Isn't Giving What Sex Education Gives, I Don't Want It.” Why Netflix's Sex Education Is The Best Teen Show On TV, www.refinery29.com/en-us/2021/09/10685183/whats-good-sex-education-season-3-teen-tv-netflix.
Nunn, Laurie, et al. Sex Education, Netflix, 11 Jan. 2019.
“Second Take: Netflix's 'SEX Education' Offers What Many Schools Fail To.” Daily Bruin, dailybruin.com/2020/01/22/second-take-netflixs-sex-education-offers-what-many-schools-fail-to.
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