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Mikayla Sizer
8/2/16
Eng 101
Professor Kim
Sex Education: Too Much or Not Enough?
No matter how shielded parents think their children are from anything sex related, there
is always some form of exposure throughout their adolescence and beyond. When I was in public
high school, there were no sex education classes available. However, in middle school, which
was also public, I did learn the basics about sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and how they
can be prevented. While this did not particularly affect me, a few of my friends had made some
risky decisions while engaging in sexual activity throughout high school. Two of them had
pregnancy scares, and one ended up pregnant her senior year of school. They too were in public
school and had sex education of some sort in middle school, but none after that. Some, but not
all, adolescents are adequately informed of the risks of sexually transmitted infections as well as
teen pregnancies that result from unsafe sexual practices. They receive this information from a
multitude of places, whether its from school, fellow peers, the media, or parents. Are schools
and communities doing enough to educate the teenage population about sexual education and
safety?
High rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections have been an ongoing
issue in the United States. Researchers from the University of Georgia Kathrin Stanger-Hall and
David Hall claim that the United States has the highest rate of teen pregnancy and sexually
transmitted diseases among developed nations worldwide (Stanger-Hall and Hall 1). The drastic
increase in teen pregnancies and STI rates has been alarming, causing controversy over the

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extent at which schools should teach sex education. According to Kirby Douglas, an accredited
researcher of sexual education, the United States government has funded abstinence-only
programs in order to reduce teen pregnancy and birth rates. This has caused controversy over
whether or not abstinence-only based programs in schools have efficiently educated students on
sexual safety due to the negative correlation between abstinence-only education and teenage
birth rates. (Education Programs for Teens 151) As of right now, each state in the U.S. has
some form of sexual education provided in schools. However, the government has left it up to
state legislators to decide what they believe is necessary for their students. These guidelines are
so vague that statistics vary from district to district. Some schools only teach students about
sexually transmitted infections, some teach abstinence-only, and others teach a little bit of
everything. (Emerging Answers 350-351).
Most of the research on teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections is classified
according to demographics and region. According to Kathrin Stanger-Hall, a researcher from the
University of Georgia, Statistics show that socioeconomic factors are strong representations of
the issue. In poor communities, the number of teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted
infections (STIs) is drastically higher than those in wealthier, predominantly white communities.
It has become evident that those who live in poor communities lack medical care and sexual
health education opportunities versus those in wealthy communities who have health insurance
and more sexual education. Some statistics regarding the rates of STDs among different racial
groups displays how low-income minorities are more likely to be affected by sexual interactions
(Stanger-Hall and Hall 4).Rates of STDs are typically much higher for African-American and
Native American teens than White teens...For example, in 2004, the rates of both gonorrhea and
syphilis among African-American 15- to 19-year-olds was about 17 times higher than the rate

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among White teens (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2005). In part, these higher
rates reflect greater poverty, less access to health services, larger numbers of sexual partners and
concurrent sexual partners, and possible differences in reporting by clinics serving low-income
minority youth (Emerging Answers 145).
It seems to be evident that the more educated students are about sexual safety, the lower
the risk of unwanted teenage pregnancy and transmission of STIs becomes. If parents are
against sexual education taking place in a school setting, there are alternatives to educate and
protect today's youth in regards to sexual health. Some schools in the US teach an abstinenceonly curriculum in place of comprehensive sex education. In response to increasing numbers of
teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, communities are beginning to provide more
support through educational programs outside of school. According to Kirby, These initiatives
typically combine such interventions as media campaigns, increased access to family planning
and contraception services, sex education classes for teens, and training in parent-child
communication (Emerging Answers 352). It is essential that teens have access outside of
school due to the mass differences in sex education throughout different regions in the nation.
Some of these programs offered outside of school are nationwide such as Planned
Parenthood, while others are more local such as church communities. Planned Parenthood is
known to support teens in preventing pregnancy, and is the nation's top resource for information
about sex education. Planned Parenthood is an important resource to teens because you do not
need your parent in order to make an appointment (Planned Parenthood). This could be essential
to prevention of pregnancies because some teens may not feel comfortable going to their parents
about these things. It has been evident that these programs outside of school have has some level
of positive influence on young teens in reducing birth rates and STI transmission rates.

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In addition to Planned Parenthood, church is a resource available to teenagers. In an
article regarding African American youth and communication about sex within the church, Erin
Moore, a researcher with her PHD in psychology states, For both African American youth and
their parents, church is often a central part of their lives, providing them with moral guidance and
a social support system (Moore 1811). Because church is such a huge part of their lives and
beliefs, religion could positively impact the youths hasty decisions when it comes to sex. Due to
church being associated with religion, abstinence-only education tended to be the main focus of
sex education in churches. In some interviews with church based African American youth,
Moore highlighted ways in which the youth suggested sex education could be improved in the
church. They suggested church-based sex education programs could be more impactful by
showing movies, passing out pamphlets, playing educational games, and holding youth group
discussions. The majority of participants overall message was that the sex education should be
delivered in an interactive, fun manner and that churches should avoid lecturing (1820). If these
things were incorporated with the church, there may have be an even more positive influence on
the youth than what already was projected.
Ultimately, it seems evident that comprehensive sexual education taught in schools has
proven to be most efficient in reducing unintended teenage pregnancies and the transmission of
sexually transmitted diseases. While abstinence-only programs can be beneficial, there is no
solid evidence to prove that this form of education is sufficient enough to prevent teenagers from
being sexually active. However, studies have shown that in addition to abstinence-only
programs, community support has helped reduced the rates.

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Works Cited
Kirby, Douglas. "Abstinence, Sex, and STD/HIV Education Programs For Teens: Their Impact
on Sexual Behavior, Pregnancy, and Sexually Transmitted Disease." Annual Review of
Sex Research 18.1 (2007): 143-177. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 July 2016.
Kirby, Douglas. Emerging Answers: Research Findings on Programs to Reduce Teen Pregnancy
(Summary). American Journal of Health Education. 32.6 (2001): 348-355.
Moore, Erin, et al. "Beliefs About Sex And Parent-Child-Church Sex Communication Among
Church-Based African American Youth." Journal Of Religion & Health 54.5 (2015):
1810-1825. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 July 2016.
"Planned Parenthood at a Glance." Planned Parenthood at a Glance. Web. 02 Aug. 2016.
Stanger-Hall, Kathrin F., and David W. Hall. "Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy
Rates: Why We Need Comprehensive Sex Education in The U.S." Plos ONE 6.10
(2011): 1-11. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 July 2016.