Educating the educators: how education and training can transform representations of comprehensive sexuality education

Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) is increasingly recognised as essential for promoting gender equality, sexual health, and youth empowerment. However, its effectiveness depends not only on curricula but also on the symbolic and emotional frameworks of educators. This study examines how 127 educators from five European countries revised their views on CSE after participating in a targeted capacity-building programme within the EU-funded LOVEACT project. Using Grid Elaboration Method and lexicometry analysis (similarity and hierarchical cluster analysis with IRaMuTeQ), we examined participants’ free associations with CSE. Pre-training representations emphasised risk prevention, biological knowledge, and moral norms. Post-training, they shifted towards inclusive, relational, and affectively centred perspectives, emphasising communication, empowerment, diversity, and emotional well-being. These findings highlight the potential of structured training to reshape the symbolic and affective dimensions of sexuality education, advancing beyond the delivery of information towards a pedagogical transformation. The study contributes to scholarship on CSE teacher training and underscores the value of evaluating European educational initiatives through qualitative, culturally sensitive approaches.