Centennial talks sex
By: Josh Ungar
Courier Staff
The first sign that something different was happening was the bustling crowd chatting excitedly outside of the classroom—half an hour early.
“You can always get better,” shouted third-year microbiology student, Jonathan Burgess, as he joined the growing group.
No, these students were not lining up to listen to their professor lecture about math or science, they were here to talk about sex.
On Wednesday, Feb. 10, Sue Johanson, the veteran sex educator from the “Sunday Night Sex Show,” visited Centennial College’s Morningside campus to talk a little sex with the students.
Every seat in the small classroom was filled by the group of about 85 students, with many students being forced to stand to get a chance to listen to Johanson.
The two-hour presentation covered topics ranging from sexual health to ideal sex positions and had students laughing and paying attention like no ordinary morning lecture could.
A professor outside the room commented she had “never seen a class so excited to get in. This could only be for sex with Sue.”
Students had every reason to be excited. The 78-year-old Johanson wasted no time getting into the sex talk, quickly using humour to break the ice.
“Talking about sex is harder than jumping into bed and having a humping, thumping good time,” Johanson said.
With youthful energy Johanson jumped right into her graphic form of sexual education, using sound effects and props to teach students about things most parents wouldn’t dream of bringing up.
“We didn’t do a very good job of teaching you guys sex education,” Johanson said. “I’m going to cover some of the myths you picked up from magazines, pornography and your friends.”
Johanson also held an anonymous question-and-answer session at the end, where she used jokes to lighten the mood, while still giving serious answers to the students.
“One guy said he masturbated an average of 22 times a day, I asked him, when do you make time for lunch?” responded Johanson to the question how many times men can safely masturbate in a day. “But regardless, it is a completely safe behaviour.”
Johanson said she loves talking to college students about sex because of their “eagerness to learn and their reactions.”
As a mother, she also knows how hard it can be to talk to your own child about sex.
“I can talk all I want to kids your age about sex, but when it comes to my own children, not so easy,” Johanson said.
The students seemed to enjoy and the presentation, and agree that talking to Johanson was much easier than their parents.
“Someone with the knowledge like Sue has, this is a great place for people to ask questions and get real answers among their peers,” Burgess said.
Johanson has been travelling the province talking to college students for several years, and made an appearance at Centennial’s Progress campus last year. The vice-president of the Centennial College Student Association Inc., Jay Patel, hopes to bring back Johanson next year.
“I was very pleased this year, hopefully next year we will have more time to plan and get a bigger venue to hold her in,” Patel said.
