Learning Through Technology: Development of a Sexual Health Education Application for Adolescents and Youth in Benin

In Benin, to support the promotion of sexual health education, the government has made the improvement of sexual and gender health conditions in schools one of its priorities. The introduction of technological tools, Internet access (ADSL/Wifi) and the growing importance of the use of digital social networks by many school children in Benin constitute a challenge for the entire educational community. In order to respond to the lack of digital educational materials to improve knowledge and change attitudes towards sexual health among adolescents and young people, we designed a digital tool, in the form of a sexual health education application, and then used it as educational materials in several high schools and colleges in Benin. After the experimental use of the application in the chosen school environment, a survey was conducted to study the attitudes of adolescent students towards this mode of learning. The results obtained show a general increase in learners’ interest in sexual health education through the device. Learning seems to have a more playful aspect that keeps learners engaged and maximizes accessibility to key concepts in sexual health education. However, further data collection from learners is needed before appropriate ways to integrate sex education can be deduced. The long-term impact of the application needs to be studied further in order to reach more formal and decisive conclusions.