Cognitive and informative level of knowledge about puberty among primary school pupils in Croatia

Abstract

Children need to be adequately prepared for puberty, for all the changes, relationships and contexts. Children should acquire the necessary knowledge before its onset, when they are primary school pupils. Knowledge is the sum of the acquired knowledge gained in the learning process and expresses the pupils' awareness. The cognitive level of knowledge represents the level of instruction and expresses the quantity and quality of information. Adolescence is a broadly defined life stage that culminates in reproductive capacity and the completion of physical growth. In adolescence, psychological and social changes occur in parallel with biological changes. Puberty is an important element of sex education on a global scale. Our pedagogical research investigated the level of knowledge about the definition and meaning of puberty among primary school pupils in Croatia and in the context of other selected countries (Czech Republic, Sweden, China, Spain). We used a didactic knowledge test to collect data. The content of the 9 test items focused on the concept of puberty; on defining puberty; on the age range of the puberty process; on knowledge of changes in physical features in boys and girls; on knowledge of other changes that occur during puberty and on the importance of puberty in a person's life. The non-parametric Kruskal-Wallis test was used to detect statistically significant differences in pupils' responses across countries. The results pointed to the fact that prepubescents have not built up the right knowledge and do not perceive the relationships and connections with puberty issues comprehensively. Incomplete knowledge proves that prepubescents do not see the importance of puberty in a comprehensive way, but only partially, in the form of different combinations in the biological, psychological or social field.