Sex education is a major cause of arguments among parents and their school’s board of directors. Some parents argue that sex education should be taught at home or in their religious institution based upon their values. Should the public education system teach sex education to students? There has not been a solution that can be agreed upon unanimously. Sex education isn’t yet a necessity in every school but community support for it is slowly increasing. Sex education needs to be implemented in schools throughout the nation for the protection of today’s youth and further generations from the dangers of unsafe sex and to teach them to understand what sex means. Many problematic situations arise from the current status of sex education in the United States. Almost all of the problems in relation to this idea are results of the youth’s lack of knowledge about sex. Sex education can greatly impact the student’s future by preventing the alarming statistics being created by teenagers. The United States has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy, birth, and abortion compared to other developed nations (Kaneshiro B.). “Of the approximately 750,000 teen pregnancies that occur each year, 82% are unintended. Fifty-nine percent end in birth and more than one-quarter end in abortion ("Facts on American Teens' Sources of Information About Sex")”. However, the opposition would like to see it stay the way it is and for future children to fall into line with these bad trends. The opposition calls upon parental guidance for teaching children about the dangers and responsibilities of sex. They feel that it is a parental responsibility to inform their children of sex, the consequences of sex, and the necessity to have safe sex. The challeng... ... middle of paper ... .../www.avert.org/sex-education.htm>. Sullivan, Amy. "How to Bring An End to the war of Sex Ed." Time Magazine U.S.. Time Magazine, March 19, 2012. Web. 12 Apr 2012. . Weiser, Dana A., and Monica K. Miller. "Barack Obama Vs Bristol Palin: Why The President's Sex Education Policy Wins." Contemporary Justice Review 13.4 (2010): 411-424. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Feb. 2012. Wilson, Kelly L., and David C. Wiley. "Influence Of Materials On Teacher Adoption Of Abstinence-Only- Until-Marriage Programs."Journal Of School Health 79.12 (2009): 565-574. Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition. Web. 24 Apr. 2012. Zain Al-Dien, Muhammad M. "Perceptions Of Sex Education Among Muslim Adolescents In Canada." Journal Of Muslim Minority Affairs 30.3 (2010): 391-407. Academic Search Premier. Web. 28 Feb. 2012.
Nineteen-fifty five marked the debut of sex education programs in schools in the United States. Along the years, many have argued whether or not sex education should be taught in schools. Many believe that the education of sex encourages students to engage in sexual activities which lead to a higher number of pregnancies and sexual transmitted diseases (STD’s). As the number of unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases climbs higher and higher every day in our country, one can only think that sexual education is a necessity in our school systems. Teens as young as fourteen years old have admitted to already engaging in sexual activities. No teen should be engaging in such acts at that age. Many schools give parents the choice to have their child opt out of the lesson or class. Few states are required to teach sex education to students in secondary schools unless they were withdrawn from the class by their parents.
Everyone has an opinion about sexuality education. From vocal parents at PTA meetings to state governors who must decide whether to apply for federal funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs or more comprehensive sexuality programs, or both, or neither. From school pri...
"Comprehensive Sex Education Is Inappropriate and Harmful." Do Abstinence Programs Work? Ed. Christina Fisanick. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. At Issue.
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.
Malone, Patrick, and Monica Rodriguez. "Comprehensive Sex Education vs. Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage Programs." Human Rights Magazine 38 (2011). Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. .
Quindlin, Anna. "Sex Ed." The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues across the Disciplines. By Gilbert H. Muller. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011. 275-77. Print.
Sonfield, Adam. "Sex Education Remains Active Battleground." Contraceptive Technology Update 1 Mar. 2012. Academic OneFile. Web. 4 Apr. 2012.
Sex education in the United States has been an bi-polar opinionated topic within the education system. It's use and curriculum are affected by many forces such as politics, public health concerns, and religious affiliation to name just a few. There has though been clearly documented need for publics support for sex education programs in schools. What is often unknown, is Sex education was been introduced into the education systems as early as 1912. At this time the National Education Association requested for teachers to be trained in sexuality education. In the 1940s the United States Health Services supported Sex education programs in the school systems saying there was an urgent need for awareness. Though it wasn’t till 1955 that the American Medical Association in union with National Education Association published five pamphlets which were to be used for sex education in schools. Although even with the support of teachers and public health officials the use and implementation of sex education programs in school were heavily debated by many.
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.
Sawyer, Kate. “Sex Education Is The Key To Curbing Teen Sex.” Teen Sex. Olivia Ferguson. Michigan: Greenhaven Press, 2011. 29-39. 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.
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...
Sexual education has been a heated topic for years. The topic started in 1912 when the National Education Association wanted teachers to begin lecturing in sex ed programs.(Pardini, Priscilla) In 1940 the U.S. Public Health Service labeled sexual education an “urgent need” and strongly advocated it in schools.(Pardini, Priscilla) Though sexual education had support from health officials and educators, there were many opponents.(Pardini, Priscilla) Conservatives and health advisors battled over how sex ed benefits and how it should be taught in schools.(Pardini, Priscilla)
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
Before moving on, one must know that sex education is about, but not limited to the discussion of sexual intercourse. As a Buzzle article states, it involves a multitude of topics that introduce human sexual behaviors such as puberty, sexual health, sexual reproduction, sexuality, and more (Iyer). If formally received in school, these topics are brought up and discussed at age-appropriate times over the course of children’s junior high and high school education. Moreover, as I have introduced earlier, the way sex education should be taught is divided into two approaches. It is between taking either a conservative, abstinence-only approach or a more liberal, comprehensive approach. Abstinence-only education, approaches students by stressing the importance of “no sex before marriage” as be...