Over 3,000 schoolchildren were asked about their mental and physical health as well as about alcohol and drug use, screen time and experiences with bullying in the report issued on Wednesday.
The statistical snapshot of the lives of Island teens shows they are more anxious about school work and exams than ever before, with three-fifths worrying about it daily.
Half of the Island’s teens are sexually active by Year 12, the survey found, rising from 28 per cent of 14 and 15-year-olds who reported being sexually active in Year 10.
By then, one in four boys is turning to online porn to learn about sex, but that number jumps over the next two years, according to the survey.
Experts warn that getting sex education from online porn can lead to unrealistic expectations, sexual violence and poor self image in young people.
‘Research showing that young people are getting the majority of their sex education from pornography is concerning, but unfortunately is not surprising,’ said Isabel Inman of Brook, a UK-based charity which specialises in sexual health for under-25s.
‘It’s important for young people to understand that most pornography is nothing like real sex, and that they know where to go if they think pornography is having a negative impact on their lives.
‘This could include feeling disappointed by “real” sex, engaging in unprotected sex (as you rarely see condoms in porn) and having low self-esteem or body image issues as a result of comparing their bodies to a porn star.’
She said teenagers needed quality sex education in order to develop healthy sexual relationships if and when they were ready.
Some of Jersey’s teens also reported troubling attitudes toward sexual abuse, with one in ten respondents saying they would just submit if someone wanted to have sex with them but they did not want to.
More girls than boys reported that they would ‘just say no’ in that situation, with almost one in five boys saying they would submit by Year 12.
That trend reversed for girls, with them seemingly becoming more confident to reject unwanted sexual advances. While eight per cent of Year 10 girls said they would accept unwanted sex, that figure fell to three per cent by Year 12.
But 11 per cent of the students overall said they would ‘probably not or definitely not tell someone if somebody tried to take advantage of them sexually’.
Those who were likely to speak out about sexual exploitation said they would tell a friend, and 15 per cent of secondary school children said they ‘personally knew’ someone who had been a victim of child sexual exploitation.
By Year 12, one in four girls said they personally knew a victim.
Those reporting that they were sexually active by Year 10 was at its highest level since 2010, with a third of boys and a quarter of girls saying they had already had a sexual relationship.
Fifteen per cent reported having sex for the first time before the age of 14.
And one in ten of the Island’s teens surveyed from Years 8, 10 and 12 said they had sent someone a sexual video or photo of themselves.
That number rose to one in five by Year 12, while over half of children in that age group had received pornographic material.
While the vast majority (84%) of Jersey schoolchildren by Year 10 and 12 know where to get free condoms, among those that are sexually active, a third of Year 10 students and half of Year 12 pupils did not use protection the last time they had sex, the survey showed.
