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Emoni Jenkins English 112 April 23, 2013 Megan Keaton Abstinence vs. Contemporary Sex education in schools has been a debated topic since the 1940s when they first introduced it into the public school system. Since then, arguments over how to teach our students about the birds and the bees have grown to epic proportions. Abstinence only vs. contemporary, this is the debate that has been raging on among parents and school officials for decades. Teens are getting pregnant and contracting STDs at alarming rates and they are becoming sexually active at much younger ages. Something needs to change in the way we teach our children about sex, but what? Do we speak honestly and openly about sex and sexuality to our children, or should we save to conversations for the privacy of the home? Most conservatives believe that conversations like these belong in the home and in the church where young people can get wholesome teaching, while many liberals feel that it is completely appropriate for students to learn these things from reliable sources within schools. They (liberals) also believe that sex education should include knowledge about birth control, STIs, and safe sex measures young people can take if they choose to engage in relations with their peers. We are all aware of the fact that sex education is a very important topic in a students life (especially as they enter puberty) but what is the best way to teach them? I believe that comprehensive sex education is the best method of teaching students of this generation. In this paper, I will first explain why I believe comprehensive sex education is the best method for teaching students, and I will explore

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the arguments of other authors who support my opinion as well as the arguments of abstinence only sex education proponents and provide evidence that the claims made by these conservatives are not in the best interest of the teens they are attempting to protect. My goal is to show readers that abstinence only sex education is no longer the most valid method of teaching students about sex. The United States still has the highest teen birth rate in the industrialized world. Three in 10 girls in will be pregnant at least once before their 20th birthday. (Guttmacher) While this is a startling statistic, it is one that many people need to open their eyes to. Teens are becoming sexually active at younger and younger ages and many of them are failing to properly educate themselves on safe sex. That is why there are so many girls facing the reality of an unplanned pregnancy or of sexually transmitted diseases that could cripple them for life. There may have been a time when it was okay to leave teens in the dark about sex. Honestly, they were not doing it that much and those that were doing it had some knowledge of contraceptives; but that time has come and gone. "Abstinence-only-until-marriage programs promote ignorance in the era of HIV and AIDS" (Koebler) The fact of the matter is that unless something changes, and soon, the next generation of teens will be having more children and contracting more diseases than the previous. One of the biggest ways that we (as in this generation) can help prevent that is to introduce a more comprehensive sex education into schools. While some may feel that sex education is something that should only be spoken about in the home, the facts dont lie. And with a more comprehensive sex education, teens that choose to engage in sexual activities can be well informed on the different types of contraceptives as well as how to use the properly. They would also be informed on where they could obtain such contraceptives are little to no money. Places like Planned Parenthood offer free condoms as well as birth control for women. Their

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goal is not to condemn teens that become sexually active, but to protect them from some of the consequences that come with sex. Its the 21st century and there is no reason that teens that want to have safe sex should not be able to. Comprehensive sex education is the best method of teaching teens about sex, and the best method of protecting teens against STDs and unwanted pregnancies; especially if (or when) just say no loses the fight to raging hormones. Knowledge does not restrain teenagers, and those younger, from engaging in sexual activity. Many naive parents and educators think that if girls and boys are taught how pregnancy occurs that this will keep them from engaging in the act that produces pregnancy. Baloney!(Hastings) Apparently the argument that knowledge is power does not apply to the conservative Christians of America. They push abstinence only sex education. Abstinence only sex education basically tells teens that sex before marriage is wrong, and many of them believe that if you tell teens too much about sex, that they will want to go and do it. I would greatly fear what that knowledge, at that age, would do to him emotionally, morally and spiritually! (Hastings) Many proponents of abstinence only sex education believe that it is the job of parents to protect them from the lust filled world that their hormones throw them into once they reach a certain age. Many abstinence only proponents believe that teaching young children about sex is a mistake that could lead to future moral issues and that younger children need to be protected from such topics. They also believe that parents should be the main communicators with their children about sex and that parents should be pushing their children to remain pure. (Focus) In fact Focus on the Family, a popular Christian group that aims to help people raise godly families, says that Sexual abstinence is a directive approach that communicates the highest and healthiest expected sexual standard for children and teens: that they refrain from sexual activity until they are old enough to make a wise choice regarding a spouse and get married. And their

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recommendations dont end there. Because they (focus on the family) firmly stand behind abstinence they say that Those who are sexually active are directed to change their behavior away from high-risk sexual activity before their future potential is further compromised. How can a parent tell a child that if they dont remain abstinent until marriage that their futures will be compromised? Proponents of abstinence only sex education make the point that if teens are taught the ins and out of sex that they will want to go out and do it but that is simply not a fact. Statistically, students who participated in abstinence-only education had sex at the same age as students who had comprehensive sex education. They also had similar rates of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, and used birth control at similar rates as students who had comprehensive sex education (Koebler). The only difference between the two groups of teens is that one will have been taught about condoms and birth control pills thus reducing their chance of contracting something and the other will not have been taught those things and run the risk of pregnancy and STDs. Knowledge is power. Abstinence proponents also say that parents should be the main source of information. While is it important for the lines of communication to be open between teens and their parents, teachers and doctors are a valuable source of information that teens need. There is absolutely no evidence to support the claim that teaching younger children about sex could lead to moral issues later on in their lives. In fact there is a new policy being enacted in Chicago that The new policy mandates that a set amount of time be spent on sex education in every grade, beginning in kindergarten. (Mohney) They believe in the importance of teaching all of their students comprehensive sex education in the hopes that they would make good decisions later on in life. The goal of this style of teaching is not to corrupt the child but to give them knowledge that will not only help them through their teenage years but throughout their entire adult life. (Mohney)

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It is clear that abstinent only sex education is no longer the best method of teaching teens about sex. They are going to do it with or without the knowledge they need to protect themselves. I would rather help my child protect himself from illness then pretend that I am not aware of what he is doing. What needs to be done to fix this problem is a complete irradiation of abstinence only sex education in public schools; instead of telling teens the same thing that our parents told us and their parents told them (no sex until marriage), people need to tell them that if they are going to have sex, they are going to have safe sex. In place of the popular (yet ineffective) method of teaching sex education, we put in a more comprehensive sex education. We tell teens everything. How their bodies work, how people contract sexually transmitted diseases, and how people get pregnant. We also teach them how to protect themselves from these things. A law mandating contraceptives be offered for free in all public schools would eliminate the excuse that teens dont have access to protection. We also should create judgment free safe spaces in all public schools for teens to ask a knowledgeable adult any and all of their sex related classes. The general public should remove the automatic label of slut to females buying or using contraceptives and replace it with the label safe. And lastly, sex education should be taught beginning in kindergarden and cumulatively be built upon as the child progresses. With a few simple steps the number of teens with babies or STDs can gradually decrease until it is a thing of the past.

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Works Cited Hastings, Don R. "Should Sex Education Be Taught In Our Elementary Schools?." Conservative Christian Bible Study Materials. Truth Magazine, n.d. Web. 02 May 2013. Koebler, Jason. "Abstinence-Only Education Debate Resurfaces." US News. U.S.News & World Report, 28 Dec. 2011. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Mohney, Gillian. "Chicago Passes Sex-Ed for Kindergartners." ABC News. ABC News Network, 28 Feb. 2013. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. "Social Issues." Cause for Concern (Abstinence Ed). Ed. Focus on the Family Anaylist. Focus on the Family, 2008. Print. 04 Apr. 2013. State Policies on Sex Education in Schools." State Policies on Sex Education in Schools. Guttmacher Institute, 26 Mar. 2013. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.