For years, the question “Should schools teach sex education?” has been asked in American households; and many families have agreed that they would rather not have the schools teach sex education to their children. In each region of the country, there are families that feel the money should not fund sex education, especially funds put into public education, because that is “a duty for the parents.” A question remains, however, why people do not discuss sex with their children, and does this lack of communication between child and parent affect the child’s future. This lack of communication has been proven through studies to be harmful to the lifestyles and well-being of members of society. The importance of family involvement and communication in sex education should be emphasized to reduce the future risks of sexually transmitted infections, prolonged psychological trauma, or confusion in the United States. Studies have shown that sexual education between parents and children does show progress in decreasing premature sexual activity and STI rates. The debate about what should be taught to the children is another issue; as is, how much of that information should be taught. Currently, eighteen states and the District of Columbia require schools to provide sex education and thirty-two do not. In some states, such as Louisiana, students may learn about HIV/AIDS, but not about any other sexually transmitted infections or how to prevent pregnancy. In other states, like Washington, teens receive information on everything from birth control pills to homosexuality. However, this once again raises the question about who should be educateing these children about sex and how to do it. The family unit has been shown to be a determining fa... ... middle of paper ... ...y Adolescents' Sexual Behavior." Journal Of School Health 83.11 (2013): 810-817. Academic Search Complete. Web. 28 Feb. 2014. Haglund, Kristin A. "The Association of Religiosity, Sexual Education, and Parental Factors with Risky Sexual Behaviors Among Adolescents and Young Adults." Journal of Religion and Health. 49.4 (2010): 460-472. Print. McCarty-Caplan, David Milo. "Schools, Sex Education, and Support For Sexual Minorities: Exploring Historic Marginalization And Future Potential." American Journal Of Sexuality Education 8.4 (2013): 246-273. Academic Search Complete. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. Winter, Torsten, Sakari Karvonen, and Richard J. Rose. "Associations Between Sexual Abstinence Ideals, Religiosity, and Alcohol Abstinence: A Longitudinal Study of Finnish Twins." Journal of Sex Research 51.2 (2014): 197-207. Academic Search Complete. Web. 1 Mar. 2014.
When it comes to monitoring and ensuring the well being of school-aged children, the agendas of most our nation’s parents, teachers, and public education policy makers seem to be heavily focused on topics such as bullying, drug awareness, and social development. Although each of these issues is very important and deserving of the attention it receives, there is one topic-sex education in the public school system-that holds just as much relevance amongst today’s youth, and yet it continues to be denied the same consideration. With underage sex being one of the nation’s long lasting taboos, one would assume that effective Sex Ed programs in the public school system would be geared towards today’s youth. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case, especially for those residents of the state of Florida.
Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began in the U.S. in the early 1980s the issue of sex education for American youth has had the attention of the nation. There are about 400,000 teen births every year in the U.S, with about 9 billion in associated public costs. STI contraction in general, as well as teen pregnancy, have put the subject even more so on the forefront of the nation’s leading issues. The approach and method for proper and effective sex education has been hotly debated. Some believe that teaching abstinence-only until marriage is the best method while others believe that a more comprehensive approach, which includes abstinence promotion as well as contraceptive information, is necessary. Abstinence-only program curriculums disregard medical ethics and scientific accuracy, and have been empirically proven to be ineffective; therefore, comprehensive sex education programs which are medically accurate, science-based and empirically proven should be the standard method of sex education for students/children in the U.S.
Chen, Grace. “Schools, Parents, and Communities Should Contribute to Educating Teens About Sex.” Teenage Sexuality. Ed. Aarti D. Stephens. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. From “Public Schools and Sex Education.” Public School Review. 2008. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.
How does sex education affect teen pregnancy and the AIDs epidemic, and how is it tolerated in schools? For many years sex education in schools has been a controversial topic in the United States. Sex education in schools is highly debated because some think it encourages students to engage in sexual behaviors that can lead to a STD or teen pregnancy.The AIDs epidemic was one reason sex education became mandatory in many states. The younger the students receiving sex education the more effective it seemed to be. The deliberation about sex education in schools explains why it is still a controversial topic in America.
National Abstinence Education Association. “Comprehensive Sex Education Is Inappropriate And Harmful.” Do Abstinence Programs Work?. Christina Fisanick. Michigan. Greenhaven Press, 2010. 33-42. Print.
Two drastic Emergency Room cases were handled in 1998 at Mary Washington Hospital. Concerned mothers brought their 12 year old daughters into the hospital thinking they were suffering from severe stomach pain or even appendicitis…both girls were actually in labor (Abstinence, 2002). The United States has the highest teen pregnancy, birth, and abortion rates in the Western world (Planned Parenthood, 2003). Are teens getting enough knowledge on sex and how to prevent STDs and unwanted pregnancies? Another heartbreaking statistic is that teenagers have the highest rate of STDs of any age group, with one in four young people contracting an STD by the age of 21 (Sex-Ed Work, 2003). Is sex education really working in school? Or do we need to change the type of curricula that is taught? There is no question that sex education should be taught in schools, but the question is how? The purpose of this paper is to determine which curricula of sex education should be taught in schools to be most effective in lowering STD and pregnancy rates among teenagers.
Quindlin, Anna. "Sex Ed." The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues across the Disciplines. By Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 275-77. Print.
Sex education in public schools has been a controversial issue in the United States for over a decade. With the HIV and teen pregnancy crises growing, sex education is needed.
Kirby D. (2007) “Sex and HIV Programs: Their Impact on Sexual Behaviors of Young People Throughout the World.” Journal of Adol
Santelli, J., Ott, A., Lyon, M., Rogers, J., Summers, D., &Schelifer, R. (2006). Abstinence and abstinence-only education: A review of U.S. policies and programs. Journal of Adolescent Health 38 p.p.72-81.
The government likes to pretend that if high school students get taught the “abstinence-only” method they would never think of taking part in sexual activities. Statistically this is incorrect. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “56 percent of high school students are virgins”(Martin). For the 56 percent abstinence only is doing them well, but there are still 44 percent of high school students engaging in sex without knowing the precau...
Sex education is an informational class that teaches human anatomy and puberty, protection options for those who decide to have sex, and the basics of STD’s. In Arizona, sex education is optional; schools do not have to teach this class if not wanted. If schools decide to have sex education in the health class curriculum, it is usually taught to students anywhere from fifth to eighth grade. Very few schools offer sex education and according to the Senate Bill 1309 “The Parents Bill of Rights”, parents are required to sign a permission slip before their child attends the class (Innes). Most parents are opposed to sex education, because they want to be the person to talk to their child about sex. A problem with this opin...
Martinez, Gladys, Joyce Abma, and Casey Copen. “Educating Teenagers About Sex In The United States”. CDC.GOV. Center of Disease Control and Prevention, 15 Sept. 2010. Web. 09 Feb.2014
Rates of sexually transmitted disease and teen pregnancy are higher in the United States than in any other domesticated country. Not surprising since American culture has brought sex to the forefront over the last few decades. The need for comprehensive sex education in schools can teach children that the romanticized relationships and sexual interactions in the media aren’t showing the whole story. For children with ...
The condoms display in the Hidden Heroes: the Genius of Everyday Things exhibit is a showcase that would cause an individual to wonder about adolescents’ overall knowledge of human sexuality. In today’s society, children are susceptible to learning about such a delicate topic not only from their families and peers, but through the media as well. These sources often provide misrepresentations of the information due to ignorance and biased views. Therefore, in order to inform individuals more accurately, sex education programs have been created with the intention to be implemented into schools across the country. This has led up to being one of the most controversial issues hovering over educational institutions, where the inclusion of such programs has been hotly debated. However, recently, the dispute is not so much about whether sex education should be taught in schools, but rather what content should be taught and what approach should be taken.