2008 Woodie Awards
Sexual un-education
Our View
Daily Vidette Editorial Board
Issue date: 11/8/07 Section: Viewpoint
Abstinence only sexual education programs have been around for longer than most of us realize. It has only been until recently, though, that they have been the focus of a lot of media attention. This is mainly because they receive more funding than any other type of sex education program.
An Associated Press article looked at one report that has been released stating that abstinence programs are not succeeding in what they have set out to do. The numbers are showing that pre-marital sex rates are remaining the same even after students take abstinence programs.
The report, researched and written by Douglas Kirby of ETR Associates, states that comprehensive sex education programs are having more "positive outcomes" than abstinence only ones.
These positive outcomes include "delaying the initiation of sex, reducing the frequency of sex, reducing the number of sexual partners and increasing condom or contraceptive use."
So why does our country feel the need to mess with something that is obviously working?
Why is $141 million going toward the funding of community-based abstinence only programs? Although the company Kirby works for develops and distributes the sex education curricula that he reviewed, the numbers don't lie. He has received praise for being "fair" and "thorough" in his research, so the conflict of interest can be overlooked.
It's really astounding that although comprehensive sex education programs have such positive outcomes, some of us still try to convince ourselves that teaching abstinence is the only way to stop pre-marital sex.
It has been found that these programs flat out lie to students about what will happen to them if they do choose to have sex before marriage, in some extreme cases students have been told they will die.
They rely on scare tactics more than actually providing students with information they can use.
Lets face it, if teens want to have sex they are going to whether we tell them to or not.
So why not provide them with useful information that will allow them to make educated and smart decisions about sex, instead of being completely ignorant to the subject?
It's scary to think that there are teens out there having sex that have no knowledge of contraceptives or safe sex practices.
By continuing to use these programs we are continuing to teach our children that our sexuality is something to be embarrassed by and ignore what our bodies are telling us.
In places like Europe sexuality is something that is celebrated and believed to be beautiful and natural. Maybe we need to learn a thing or two from them.
An Associated Press article looked at one report that has been released stating that abstinence programs are not succeeding in what they have set out to do. The numbers are showing that pre-marital sex rates are remaining the same even after students take abstinence programs.
The report, researched and written by Douglas Kirby of ETR Associates, states that comprehensive sex education programs are having more "positive outcomes" than abstinence only ones.
These positive outcomes include "delaying the initiation of sex, reducing the frequency of sex, reducing the number of sexual partners and increasing condom or contraceptive use."
So why does our country feel the need to mess with something that is obviously working?
Why is $141 million going toward the funding of community-based abstinence only programs? Although the company Kirby works for develops and distributes the sex education curricula that he reviewed, the numbers don't lie. He has received praise for being "fair" and "thorough" in his research, so the conflict of interest can be overlooked.
It's really astounding that although comprehensive sex education programs have such positive outcomes, some of us still try to convince ourselves that teaching abstinence is the only way to stop pre-marital sex.
It has been found that these programs flat out lie to students about what will happen to them if they do choose to have sex before marriage, in some extreme cases students have been told they will die.
They rely on scare tactics more than actually providing students with information they can use.
Lets face it, if teens want to have sex they are going to whether we tell them to or not.
So why not provide them with useful information that will allow them to make educated and smart decisions about sex, instead of being completely ignorant to the subject?
It's scary to think that there are teens out there having sex that have no knowledge of contraceptives or safe sex practices.
By continuing to use these programs we are continuing to teach our children that our sexuality is something to be embarrassed by and ignore what our bodies are telling us.
In places like Europe sexuality is something that is celebrated and believed to be beautiful and natural. Maybe we need to learn a thing or two from them.
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