Zoology professor’s sex ed course goes beyond classroom

While Chinese youth use social networking websites to get celebrity gossip or keep in touch with family and friends, students at Nanjing Agriculture University in Jiangsu Province are posting and re-posting quotes from a zoology teacher at their school, spreading his wisdom on sexual issues online.

Wu Fenglin, 59, an associate professor of zoology at the university, began offering an open elective course called The Structure of the Human Body in 2002. About one-third of the curriculum focuses on sexual education as few students have had adequate exposure to the topic prior to entering college, according to Wu, the Yangtze Evening Post reported.

"The structure of the human body is closely related to people's lives. Some students contact me when they are ill. In their minds, I'm like a doctor to some degree," Wu was quoted by the newspaper as saying.

Wu's students like sharing his teachings on reproductive health on the Web, informing each other on topics like menstruation and healthy weight for women.

Open elective courses should be interesting, Wu says.

"Since students lack sexual knowledge and are interested in it, I try to combine such knowledge with daily life and deliver it to them through simple language," Wu told the newspaper.

Wu's course is very popular among students. The class only has a capacity of 200 students per semester, but roughly 1,000 students apply for the class each term. Some students spend their entire college career trying to get into Wu's class, and they feel lucky if they get a spot, said the newspaper.

The zoologist also explained that he receives text messages from former students who went on to graduate and get married, and they ask him for help when they have problems related to sex or bad menstrual cramps. The associate professor explained that most of his phone bill goes toward this correspondence.

"I don't remember most of these graduates," he told the newspaper, adding that this is not necessarily a bad thing. "As they trust me, I should leave them some space to protect their privacy. It's not necessary to know them."

Wu's class has been well received on campus as students generally did not receive proper sex education during primary school or high school, Peng Xiaohui, a professor in human sexuality with Central China Normal University, told the Global Times on Monday.

The whole social atmosphere is more open and tolerant these days, which is good for promoting sex education, he explained.

"In such circumstances, many Chinese won't feel as nervous or embarrassed when discussing sex," Peng said.