Premium Essay

Sex Education in School

In:

Submitted By ruslijason
Words 1214
Pages 5
Jason Rusli
Esl 26
26 July 2012
Essay 1 Final Draft
Sex Education for a Better Future
Pregnancy among school-age youth may reduce completed levels of education, employment opportunities and marital stability, and increase welfare dependency (Illinois Department of Public Health). This staggering sentence has pointed out the important needs of sex education in schools to ameliorate the nation’s economics. Two approaches to sex education currently prevail: abstinence-only approach – inculcating teenagers with the notion that premarital intercourse is astray – and comprehensive approach, which focuses on the dissemination of information on safe sex practices, while simultaneously promoting abstinence as the ultimate solution in diminishing the issues of unwanted pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). In spite of seemingly endless debates as to which approach is more effective, it would be reckless to simply laud one approach and criticize another, for the two approaches are not mutually exclusive. Moreover, neither approach is effective on its own. Only by incorporating the merits of both approaches, coupled with family support / parental involvement, can the issue at hand be effectively handled. In an essay titled “Sex Education in Schools,” the author, Amber Dahlke, staunchly believes that sex education should be taught in comprehensive style. However, I remain ambivalent towards the comprehensive approach. Although I recognize the value in imparting essential knowledge to teenagers, I strongly believe that this approach may be insufficient in tackling the appropriate issues, and the abstinence-only approach still has a role to play. Contrary to its name, comprehensive approach is neither “comprehensive” nor sufficient.
Between those two curriculums, nowadays, the abstinence approach appears to be more favored by several renowned US

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Sex Education in Schools

...to agree with “comprehensive sex education”, makes a very great statement in her essay. She provides the information to show her views, she has pointed out in great detail, why “comprehensive sex education” is a better idea than going with “abstinence sex education”. She also lists a lot of detailed sources that help her claim and make her points agreeable and understandable, she also provides what could happen if students in public schools were not taught proper sex education, they could end up with tragic sexual transmitted diseases because of their actions. As I read and looked over her essay, I found a lot of very interesting points that she has made and I found them rather fascinating and genuine. As I continued reading, I noticed some funny points that I had a hard time believing and thinking about. It was at this point, that I thought that the author of the essay has made confusing and in my opinion, has ignored some important views on her own argument, I will respond to Dahlke, and point out her mistakes and give out my own opinions on what she has made mistakes on that I believe could have been better said. Dahlke shows on her essay a source that says “comprehesive sex education encourages students to half less sexual partners, warns them about diseases and other methods to prevent pregnancy”(Landry et al). Now that this statement may be true, but it has some flaws to it. A lot of young people in the US do engage in comprehensive sex but fail to actually follow up...

Words: 1173 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Sex Education in School

...Sex Education in Schools Anquavese Jones ENG/102 06/26/2011 Becky Wilfahrt Abstract Teenage sex education is a topic of much debate in America’s schools because sex and its health related issues are prevalent in the lives of so many adolescents. Teenagers’ engagement in sexual activities has led to an increase in sexually transmitted diseases, emotional and psychological injuries, and out-of-wedlock childbearing (Rector, 2002, para. 1). Therefore, schools across the nation have been charged with implementing programs that will educate the young about the risks of engaging in sexual activities before marriage. America’s schools use one of the two commonly known approaches in hopes to deter premarital sex. These approaches are abstinence education and comprehensive sex education. Abstinence education is a type of sex education that places strict emphasis on abstaining from sex until marriage. Comprehensive sex education examines abstinence along with sexual reproductive health education and contraceptives. This paper will examine both approaches and show that comprehensive sex education is the most effective method. Introduction Sex is a hot topic that reaches many children through the different mediums to include school, internet, radio, and television. An effective way to arm our children with important data concerning sex education is by providing abstinence education in our schools. According to Powezek, in the United States, maturation classes are usually implemented...

Words: 2288 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Sex Education in Public Schools

...Sex Education in Public Schools "Sex oozes from every pore of the culture and there's not a kid in the world who can avoid it" Charles Krauthammer stated. (Bender) Why should a teen have to avoid the topic of sex? Many teens are taught to believe that sex is wrong until after they are married, but not taught the truth about sex. Sex is a natural biological urge that no piece of paper makes a difference about. What should be different, is how teens are taught about sex. In 1996, the United States government passed a law giving funding to states that offered abstinence-only sex education programs in public schools. Since this time, over half of a billion dollars has been given to states to promote abstinence-only programs. (Brody) After a study of four of the schools with abstinence only programs showed, that teens who had participated in the class were no more likely to hold off on having sex, engaging in oral sex, lower the amount of sexual partners or avoiding sex completely than, a teen that did not attend the class at all. (Trenholm) Comprehensive sexual education programs have helped the rate of sexual transmitted diseases, (STD Surveillance) number of unwanted pregnancies and or abortions decline. Sex education also has been shown to reduce the possibility of sexual violence. (Gorden) Comprehensive sexual education programs promote knowledge about prevention, knowing the symptoms of STDs and where to get tested. In 2009, two years after the...

Words: 1013 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

School Based Sex Education

...Challenges of School Based Sex Education Statistics in the past indicate that sexual behavior amongst teens has become a national public health concern. This is because of increased unnecessary pregnancies and rise in cases of Sexually Transmitted Diseases. School based sex education represents a formalized effort to curb the negative sexual outcomes by providing necessary information. A comprehensive goal for schools is to give its students the best education to be more knowledgeable, responsible in society, socially skilled and active citizen. This mission is currently receiving support from various school based programs, but it is not fully operational. This is due to insufficient coordination with other operatives that provide human services. Implementation of a comprehensive school based sex education requires research-based and well-thought programs that improve the social and academic outcomes of students. Sex education is often seen to reduce adolescent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections only. This should not be the trend, as students need to receive more information on their sexuality, examine their values and develop further skills on how to resist early sex and become responsible adults in future. There has been widespread fear among teachers concerning the content that is offered to students on sexuality. They argue that other stakeholders such as parents and school administrators do not support them in the provision of sexual education. There is also...

Words: 662 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Taught in School

...Should Sex Education Be Taught In School? Kierra Cobb Dr. Gwendoline Ayuninjam EDU1301-02 November 24, 2014 Abstract Sex education is a big controversial issue today in society. The debate over sex education in the United States centers on the question of who should teach students about issues relating to sex such as intercourse, pregnancy, contraception, gender identity, sexual orientation, sexually transmitted diseases, and relationships. Should sex education be left up to parents, or do schools have a responsibility to inform students about these issues? There are many people who support the idea of sex education being taught in school, and there are others who do not agree. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) survey, more than 47 percent of all high school students say they have had sex; and 15 percent of high school students have had sex with four or more partners during their lifetime. It also states that among students’ who had sex in the three months prior to the survey, sixty-percent reported condom use and twenty-three percent reported birth control pills usage during their last sexual encounter (NCSL,2013). Sex Education provides positive feedback about sexuality and sexual expressions, including benefits of abstinence, the sexual reproductive system, and also relationships. There are several pros and cons towards teaching sex education in all school systems. Sex education is not predominantly about sex. Other issues originate...

Words: 2390 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Taught In Schools

...controversial issues that remain very contentious in the public’s opinion and it can be said that sex education has been a topic that has continued to be debated on. Should sex education be taught in schools? There are many people who would argue that educating the young about sex should be left to the parents, but what if parents do not educate their kids correctly about the birds and the bees? Who’s job is it then to properly inform kids about sex? The National Guidelines Task Force would claim that, “The primary goal of sexuality education is the promotion of sexual health”(Planned Parenthood 1). Sex education in schools is a huge benefit to the youth who are beginning to wonder...

Words: 563 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Sex Education Being Taught in Schools

...1101 April 25, 2013 Sex Education in Schools Sex education is a broad term used to describe education about human sexual activity, sexual reproduction, sexual intercourse, and other aspects of human sexual behavior. Although some form of sex education is part of the curriculum at many schools, it remains a controversial issue in several states. Ignorance regarding sexual matters has resulted in 65 percent of all teens having sex before their senior year and 9.1 million of the 19 million Americans who get an STD in a year are teenagers or between the ages of 15 and 24 (“Teen Sex Statistics”). There is no better place than in a biology class or a special sex education class to inform children of the importance of having planned families; consequently, these classes can reduce teenage pregnancies and much physical suffering caused by AIDS or other serious sexually transmitted diseases. It should never be left to parents because, in many cases, they cannot properly inform their children on the subject of sex education. Sex education must be taught in schools because it will help to prevent STDs from being transmitted, especially among teens, it will help prevent teenage pregnancy, and will help prevent pre-mature sex, which can damage the body from an early stage in life. Sex education does not only talk about sex. It also teaches about reproduction and sexual health. A lot of parents do not support the fact that sex education should be taught in schools, but yet they don’t take...

Words: 1521 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Taught In Schools

...A controversial topic in society is whether sex education should be allowed to be taught in our public-school system. What is sex education you ask? Well sex education is education about sexuality, contraceptive methods, how to prevent sexually transmitted diseases, the values of protection and attitudes and principles about sex. Almost every day you hear about how the numbers of teens and preteens are having sex and the rates of teenage pregnancy is high. Can this somehow be prevented by placing sex education in our the school curriculum? There are two kinds of sex education, one being abstinence-only programs and the second one being comprehensive education. Both of these programs teach about the process of sex education which can lead to children understanding about how to make the right choices for...

Words: 1007 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Increased in School

...Should sex education be increased in school The times are totally different to the previous times. People in the global are living in information explosion world. The abundant information is easily available. Of course, the sources of sex knowledge are also at the fingertips. Any forms of resources relating to sex are displayed online, and people can access to those without difficulty. Hence, some people argue that why school should increase any class for sex education. However, in different senses, sex education should be increased in school. Some people claim that if school exposes teenagers to excessive sex knowledge, it would get them involved in sexual relationship quickly. Indeed, it may be the case, but something is worth mentioning that adolescent sex rate has been skyrocketing. It is unpredictable that how teenagers are sexually open. It is indispensable to take action for teenagers to learn more prior knowledge for sex. Otherwise, some issues are likely to impact not only individual but also the society more severely. For example, the high rate of abortion, premarital pregnancy, and single family are severely serious in society that the government is trying to address. Most parents usually claim that it is unnecessary to load more sexual classes for teenagers because they need to mainly focus on academic grade in school. However, at puberty, teenagers get more interested in the difference of sex and sexual organs. Even though we keep them obscure in sex education...

Words: 671 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Enforced in Schools?

...Bin Laden did strongly believe in waging "economic terrorism" and was very successful at it. His high threat status cost the United States a lot of money. The day of 9/11 was very tragic that it startled the United States and lead to the decline of the economy. Due to the attack, policies were created along with a whole new department of Homeland Security that cost us trillions of dollars yet, it did end there. People began saying it was the U.S. fault that they brought it upon themselves by overreacting to Bin Laden as such a high threat. Critics say Bin Laden was not the entire reason for all that money spent, but the way we reacted towards it. The Iraq war was a major cause of America's economic decline. Waging the war cost nearly 3 trillion dollars; this was all money the United States did not have, which is why the deficits highly increased. In part this is true because Bin Laden was not looking to kill people, but kill our economy. This is can be proven from the many reports found that say Bin Laden never had any weapons of mass destruction. The only thing Bin Laden was going after was our economy. According to him, this was a better plan than simple attacks. Once again, this idea is reinforced in his ways of comparing Russia to the United States economically. In conclusion, Bin Laden was quite successful in ruining our economy. He knew that United States being the superpower it is, would have reacted the way it did, causing such a huge...

Words: 270 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Making Sex Education Mandatory in High Schools

...Harris Making Sex Education Mandatory in High Schools 1 Harris It is imperative to support the provision of high quality sexual education in schools. Sexual education in high school continues to be a controversial subject in today’s society. It is wishful thinking to assume that young adults do not engage in sexual activity. Many students become sexually active during high school (McKay and Bissel 48). Canadian guidelines describe sexual health education “the process of equipping individuals, couples, families and communities with the information, motivation, and behavioral skills needed to enhance sexual health and avoid negative outcomes” (McKay and Bissel 53). Parents and teachers are the key source of guidance and support for teenagers in regards to sexuality and sexual behavior (McKay and Bissel 50). Comprehensive sexual health education should be mandatory in high school as it can provide students with accurate information from trained professionals regarding pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STI’s) and HIV. Both abstinence-focused and comprehensive sexual education programs agree on the fact that abstinence is the safest method for preventing unwanted pregnancy and STI’s. Those in favor of abstinence-focused programs argue that comprehensive sexual health education programs encourage youth to engage in sexual behavior. Abstinencefocused programs stand behind the notion that one should refrain from sexual activity before marriage (Silva 471). Various...

Words: 1775 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Should Sex Education Be Taught in Middle School

...Sex education in public schools has been a controversial issue in the United States for over a decade. Sex education needs to keep up with the sexuality of today’s young adolescents. Young adolescents are becoming more sexually active at a younger age; by the time they reach high school most have already acquired some knowledge about sex but little about sexual responsibility. With the number of young adolescents with sexually transmitted diseases and teenage pregnancies rising— sex awareness is definitely needed. The question remains whether sex education should come from their parent or from a qualified professional at school. In order to educate young adolescents about the consequences and responsibilities of engaging in sexual activities it is my belief that sex education classes should be taught in public middle school. Most goals of sex education classes are the promotion of adult sexual health. Four main goals, according to National Guidelines Task Force, are to provide accurate information about human sexuality, to provide an opportunity for young adolescents to develop and understand their values, attitudes, and beliefs about sexuality, to help young people develop interpersonal skills and to help young adolescents apply responsibility of sexual relationships. Such responsibilities include how to defend a teenager against the pressures of prematurely becoming involved in sexual intercourse, encouraging the use of contraceptives, and other sexual health measures. The...

Words: 688 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Co-Education vs Single-Sex School

...different levels of the school. Therefore, a question being raised by the public is that between co-education and single-sex education, which will benefit our children more? As a teacher and parent, I strongly believe that the latter is a good choice. Gender-based classes can improve our children’s academic achievement through proper approaches suitable for their learning styles, foster better behaviors through promotion of role models and encourage them to explore who they truly are. [ok] As everyone acknowledges that each person has his own learning style, the learning style between boys and girls is not an exception, they are every different due to their physical and metal development. The development of boys’ reading ability is slower than girls’. Boys tend to be more active than girls. When boys know the answer they can’t wait to shout it out, in stead of girls would rather just understand and know the reason. The uneven development attributes to their different learning styles. For the better achievement, separating girls and boys to adapt approaches that fit their learning styles is the best way we can do. For example, in my grade one classroom, it seems like a disaster for boys to sit down to read, even the story they loved to listen. To girls, reading is such a relax thing to do. Both sides can’t have what they need the most, because I have to stay in the middle to look after each side obtain some but not too much. On the other hand, single-sex class using proper methods...

Words: 596 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Sex Education Should Be Taught in Public School Systems.

...Sex Education in public school systems has always been an extremely delicate issue. The topic as to whom should teach children about sex has always been a debatable issue between parental responsibility or school system curriculum. Most parents feel that it is their responsibility to educate their own children about sex education in the comfort of their own home, providing their children with the information they (the parents) are able to demonstrate to their children. Schools are children constant source of learning. In having school systems incorporate Sex Education into the curriculum, it would make it mandatory for children to learn about the details, and the consequences of reproduction in a more elaborate setting. This would allowing students to be taught the same knowledge with the most up to date information provided by a licensed school professional in subjects: contraceptives, teen pregnancies, and STD’s. Individuals could argue that distributing condoms in schools would promote unjustified premarital sexual activity amongst school-aged teenagers. Those same individuals believe that parents should take apart of their own child’s development in sexual knowledge. Properly equipping them (their child) with prescribed contraceptives from doctors, or condoms disbursed directly from them (the parent). It is not uncommon for parents to give their children condoms; however, it can provide moments of awkwardness between the parent and the teenager. Having the educational...

Words: 1079 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Sex Education to Subjects

...and it’s Setting Background of the study Sex education has become a major issue here in the Philippines because the church people and government officials cannot decide on whether to incorporate sex education in students learning curriculum in this study the researchers will show the importance of incorporating sex education to the subjects of the students. According to statistics compiled by the Guttmacher Institute schools (2008) is exploring the best sex education programs to benefit students. The US has “one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the developed world—almost twice as high as those of England, Wales and Canada, and eight times as high as those of the Netherlands and Japan.” Because of the rising pregnancy rates among teens, in addition to the rising rates of sexual activity among teens, parents. The United States has unacceptably high rates of teen pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and HIV/AIDS infections. To address this challenge, NARAL Pro-Choice America supports honest, age-appropriate, and medically accurate sex education that promotes abstinence and provides young people with the information they need to protect themselves. On the same hand, Peter J. Smith (2006) any DepEd directors and church people have argued that if they should incorporate sex education to the learning of the students. Furthermore they have argued about it since 2006 but today some public schools are incorporating sex education to a child’s learning in addition the government...

Words: 5871 - Pages: 24