Comprehensive Sexual Education

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Recommended: Comprehensive sexual education vs abstinence

The birds and the bees is the quintessential “sex talk” that most parents give to their children when they think the time is right. However, the typical sex talk in schools is quite different than what most parents prefer. Seventy five percent of parents want their children to be taught using the comprehensive sexual education curriculum. Only 15% of parents support abstinence only education (Kelly). Goldman writes in his article, Sex Education, comprehensive education is much more than what many people think. A comprehensive programme of school-based sexuality education addresses biological and reproductive knowledge, rational, moral and ethical values, communicating skills, decision making, negotiating relationship skills, socio-cultural understandings, and self-concept and self-esteem enhancement within the context of being a participative member of a democratic society and a responsible citizen, integrated in a cross-curricular and multi-subject approach, and delivered professionally through each year level of the school life. Comprehensive sexual education is more beneficial to students than any other curriculum because students need to know all of this information. With parents supporting such a curriculum, why are more schools not listening? Children are maturing faster and need all the information available to them before they make a decision. Sexual education laws and funding are changing with Barack Obama in office. Recent action in The House of Representatives “approved amendments to the Healthy Act bill that would allow a more comprehensive approach while still maintaining the traditional message of abstinence until marriage” (Clark 1). The REAL Act, The Responsible Education About Life Act, funds programs ... ... middle of paper ... ... are taught all of the aspects of a comprehensive curriculum. Works Cited Advocates For Youth. Oct. 2006. Advocates for Youth. 20 March 2010. Bruggink, Heidi. “Miseducation: The Lowdown on Abstinence Only Sex Ed Programs.” Humanist (2007): 4 Points of View Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 22 March 2010. Campos, David. “Sex, Youth, and Sex Education.” Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, INC., 2002. Clark, Rebecca. “Sex education to see changes this fall.” Star, The 01 July 2009: Points of View Ref Center. EBSCO. Web. 22 March 2010. Goldman, Juliette. “Sex Education” Kelly, Katy. “Just Don’t Do It.” US News and World Report 17 October 2005: 8. Business Source Premier. EBSCO. Web. 22 March 2010. Luker, Kristin. “When Sex Goes To School.” New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2006. Williams, Mary E. “Sex: Opposing Viewpoints.” San Diego: Greenhaven Press Inc., 2006.

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