THE BIG IF
LESSON PLAN · TEACHING SAFER SEX THIRD EDITION
Objectives
By the end of this lesson, participants will be able to:
1. Differentiate the risk for transmission of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) posed by a variety of sexual behaviors.
2. Identify the similarities and differences in the transmission of HIV/AIDS as compared with other STIs.
3. Describe the importance of partner choice as a factor in assessing one’s risk for contracting an STI.
4. Assess the difficulty of adopting different prevention behaviors and identify ways to overcome barriers to prevention.
Rationale
Misinformation about how STIs are transmitted is an important barrier to a person taking appropriate and effective precautions. Many people are uncomfortable talking about explicit sexual behaviors and this discourages learning that is necessary for prevention. The risk continuum strategy used in this lesson helps participants overcome discomfort with sexual words, evaluate the relative risks of various behaviors and compare modes of transmission.
