Malaysia has implemented sex education as part of its mainstream school curriculum about half a decade ago. However, the controversy and lack of knowledge on sex education among the public, specifically parents, continue despite evidence that comprehensive sex education can effectively promote healthy development. In the perspective of sex education, various previous studies have pointed several insights within the context of sex education in Malaysia in general but lacked understandings on the context of sex education in early childhood education. In addition, sex education, which has been a topic of taboo among most Asian parents, including Malaysia lacked clear research conclusions. With the existing visible gap in literature, this qualitative study was hence designed to explore Malaysian parents’ understanding of sex education and their perspectives on the implementation of sex education at the early years. A qualitative method using semi-structured interviews among ten conveniently selected parents provided valuable findings which was then developed into five major themes for discussion – parents understanding of sex education, parents' understanding on the importance of sex education in the early childhood context, parents' involvement in teaching sex education to children, method preferred by parents in implementing sex education among children, and range of age to receive sex education. Based on the findings, this study suggests that future researchers should look into designing effective sex education programs in partnership with parents and schools to ensure sex education in early childhood education can be more meaningful and impactful.
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