...information provided to teenagers from their high school sexual education programs. Abstinence-only sexual education has caused nationwide debate over the lack of information provided to teenagers about pregnancy, STDs and other harmful consequences that can result after having unprotected sex. The debate can be solved by reducing government funding for abstinence-only education, allowing parents to determine whether or not their children should be taught about safe sex, and introducing a comprehensive education system. Description of Problem The ineffectiveness of abstinence-only education...
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...Should the early sex education be taught in schools or not? Discuss In recent years, the number of pregnancies and the sexual transmitted infections which are experienced by the teens has unpredictably increased. The sex education can be identified as the process of acquiring information and forming attitudes and beliefs about sex, sexual identity, relationships and intimacy, and the teens refers to those whose age is between 12 and 20. In whether or not the early sex education should be taught in schools a number of arguments, both for and against, need to be examined. These arguments include that sex education decreases the teenage pregnancy and sexual transmitted diseases. Comprehensive sex education promotes healthy behavior. Sex education materials contain offensive content and induce youth to attempt initiated sex. Firstly, the sex education reduces the incidence of underage pregnancy and the spread of transmitted diseases. With regard to the outcomes of the sexual behaviors, it is clearly discovered that the teenage pregnancy and the sexual transmitted diseases are the most serious effects of teen sex. According to Klein, each year, in United State, teens experience as many as 850,000 pregnancies, and youth under age 25 experience about 9.1 million sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Meanwhile, Klein states that by age 18, 70 percent of American females and 62 percent of American males have initiated sex. Thus, comprehensive sex education advocates believe that...
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...Haley, Brian 924246012 ENGL 1101 Should Sex education be increased in schools in an attempt to curb problems? Sex education should be increased into schools nation wide. This will help stop most of the problems that occur from being uneducated about sexual activities. To complete this goal we need to look at what is going on now in the nation. To many people are getting pregnant, getting infected with curable and incurable STDs. This is because people are not educated about sexual activities. Knowledge will be the power for educating people about Sex. In order to do this we need to find out what is happening now from the current education at hand. Pregnancy is at an all time high with students and young adults. Last the STD (Sexually Transmitted Diseases) rate is also rising among students and young adults. As of right now most of the schools in the nation have only a basic sex education class. It only presents the most basic of knowledge for our younger generations that are learning about sex education. Most of the material is just what is sex, how babies made or come where babies come from, and sexually transmitted diseases. Students need to be educated more about risk as well as how they can protect their selves from those associated risk. At the end of the day kids are going to have sex no matter what we tell them. Most of all of us have had sex at a young age and being better educated about it will help students make correct choices from events that can even...
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...anything black and white. The debates about sexual education in U.S. public schools are no different. While the ideas of abstinence and holistic learning of sex contradict each other at first, they can coexist if one looks at the bigger picture along with its consequences. Thus, while the discourse concerning sexual education in public schools may depict abstinence-only and fully comprehensive sexual education as conflicting ideologies, they are actually quite similar. This is significant because a comprehensive education actually adds to the abstinence message while supporting (instead of shaming) youth and their right to information that could lead to safer and more responsible sexual choices. While the vast majority of...
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...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...
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...The Sex Talk: What Parents are Saying to their Children about Sex by Jessica Hausauer The attitudes an individual holds toward a particular topic are meaningful in that those attitudes are used to construct one’s social reality. Attitudes about sex are often centered around one’s political and personal belief systems, and when it comes to teaching young people about sex, parents ideally hold the prominent position of influence in adolescent’s lives. Debate rages over whether sex education should be an all encompassing component of U.S. public education and if discussed, which topics are appropriate for the classroom. While most parents support Comprehensive Sex Education, there are many who believe sexual matters are to be discussed at the sole discretion of the parent. With the focus of debate centering on whether or not sex education is best left to the parents, it is important to examine what exactly parents are teaching their children. Upon a review of the literature I found that the research regarding parents and children’s conversations about sex was lacking. Many of the studies were outdated or used questionable research methods. The purpose of this research project is to examine the experience of parent to child communication about sex. Literature Review The idea that knowledge has a direct impact on behavior faces a serious challenge when presented in the context of sex education. Much debate has centered on the efficacy of sex education programs in the...
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...Comprehensive Sex Education Which is the Right Choice? Allysa Lekas English 401 Professor Kramer December 11, 2012 Abstinence-Only vs. Comprehensive Sex Education The appropriate type of sex education that should be taught in United States public schools continues to be a major topic of debate, which is motivated by high teen pregnancy and birth rates in the United States compared to other countries. This debate is centered on whether abstinence-only or comprehensive sex education should be taught in public schools. Some argue that sex education, that covers safe sexual practices, such as condom use, sends a mixed message to students, and actually promotes sexual activity. The United States government used to promote abstinence-only initiatives through the Adolescents Family Life Act. It cost 176 million dollars annually to fund abstinence-only programs. The central message of these programs was to delay sexual activity until marriage, and cannot include information about contraception and condoms (Stranger-Hall & Hall, 2011). It has been proven that abstinence-only education does not have an effect on the birth rates in the United States, but comprehensive sex education has. Teaching students to not only about abstinence, but about contraceptive use and information about sexually transmitted diseases, has decreased the birth rates in the United States as well as the contraction rate of sexually transmitted diseases. Comprehensive sex education in school has been proven...
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...Introduction What is sex education? Sex education ('sex ed'), which is sometimes called sexuality education or sex and relationships education, is the process of acquiring information and forming attitudes and beliefs about sex, sexual identity, relationships and intimacy. Sex education is also about developing young people's skills so that they make informed choices about their behaviour, and feel confident and competent about acting on these choices. It is widely accepted that young people have a right to sex education. This is because it is a means by which they are helped to protect themselves against abuse, exploitation, unintended pregnancies, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV and AIDS. It is also argued that providing sex education helps to meet young people’s rights to information about matters that affect them, their right to have their needs met and to help them enjoy their sexuality and the relationships that they form. Body What are the aims of sex education? Sex education aims to reduce the risks of potentially negative outcomes from sexual behaviour, such as unwanted or unplanned pregnancies and infection with sexually transmitted diseases including HIV. It also aims to contribute to young people’s positive experience of their sexuality by enhancing the quality of their relationships and their ability to make informed decisions over their lifetime. Sex education that works, by which we mean that it is effective, is sex education that contributes...
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...about whether sex education should be taught in schools. The questions of who, why and is it appropriate are still unanswered. The statistics every year shows the rate of teenage pregnancy and the number of teens having sex is escalating in the Caribbean. The percentage of births that take place during adolescence is about 18% in Latin America and the Caribbean (WHO, 2016). Conservatives normally believe that abstinence should be the only policy taught in schools, while liberals feel that statistics shows an increase in risky behaviour amongst teens indicates a need for sex education in the school system. The former Minister of Education Dr. Gopeesingh said, “More than 2, 500 teenage pregnancies...
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...Abstinence only versus Sex education in preventing teen pregnancy Anamika Laddha Chamberlain University Abstinence only versus Sex education in preventing teen pregnancy Introduction United States has the highest level of teenage pregnancy amongst the industrialized nations – nine times as high as Netherlands or Japan, twice as high as England and Wales or Canada. Over eight hundred thousand teenage girls get pregnant each year, most unintentionally (The Alan Guttmacher Institue, 2000). Four out of ten young women become pregnant at least once before age 20. Moe than 80% of these pregnancies are to unmarried teens (National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy, 2004). Teenage pregnancy usually refers to girls who have not reached legal adulthood. World Health Organization defines Teenage Pregnancy as “any pregnancy from a girl who is 10-19 years of age,” the age being defined as her age at the time the baby is born. It is not limited to any social, economic, racial or ethnic groups. It is a serious issue that has effect on all of us and should be a concern from obstetric and socio-economical point of views. Factors Contributing to Teen Pregnancy The reasons behind teen pregnancy are complex, varied, and typically interconnected. As Sisson (2012) points out that teen pregnancy should not be looked as isolated issue and it must be understood within context of social complexities and inequities all of which needs to be effectively addressed in order to be one step closer...
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...In Support of Single Sex Education ‘The ancient Greek philosopher, Plato, said that Co-education creates a feeling of comradeship. He advocated teaching of both the male and female sexes in the same institution without showing any discrimination in imparting education.’ (1) This statement appears in many of the independent co educational school websites. Having an ancient Greek philosopher’s authority behind your school has to be a good marketing ploy for prospective parents. However, schools neglect to add that Plato then went on to say that while women and girls should follow the same curriculum as men, he advised that this should happen separately from the boys and men. (2) This essay will present evidence in support of single sex education based on academic achievement, learning styles, gender equality, cultural preference and promotion of self esteem and show how it is unlikely to damage later relationships between the opposite sexes. Which is best? Co-education or single sex education? Because so many factors influence the outcome of these options: teaching quality, parental input, socio-economic to name a few, argument rages around the findings of many of the studies to resolve the issue. Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania studied a policy in Seoul, South Korea started in 1974, whereby children are compulsorily randomly assigned places at either a single sex school or a co- educational school. The policy was to prevent clustering of children...
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...teenagers tell their fathers- to- be that they are pregnant, normally the men walk away. If the pregnant teenager is unable to afford an abortion, then the teenager must give up school and chances of getting a good job since supporting a child is a full time job on its own. One of the major causes of teenage pregnancy is lack of education. One of the strongest forms of education is through schools. It has been proven that health education classes that discuss about safe sexual behaviors impact on pregnancies. Because of lack of sex education, the number of teen pregnancy has drastically increased throughout the years. Poor education can increase the chances of teens having sexual activities and pushes teens into the risk group of being young parents. Education should focuses on preventatives such as condoms and birth controls. With a good educational system, teens have a better understanding of their sex lives and will not rush into it without properly realizing the consequences associated with sex and pregnancy. In other words, schools need to provide the best sex education classes in order to prevent pregnancy at an early age. In order to lower the abundance of teen pregnancies, one method that teens are being encouraged with is not to have sex before marriage. However, by telling teens they should not do something brings up ignorance and causes young teens to rebel against the promoters of abstinence. As a teenager, their bodies are changing drastically. Females begin...
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...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...
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...glooming with happiness our parents are entering an alarming state of unease, because we are not immune to the hidden danger of rape, and other sexual crimes that happen in our new found “comfort zone.” Every new day is an example of a college potentially mishandling the sexual assault of one of its students. While sex crimes are on the rise in America’s higher-education system, so does the institutions negligence. The purpose of this paper is to try and unravel the injustices and misconceptions of what...
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...exception between the two different decades is the magnitude of such adverse side effects that not only impacts the teenage mother, but others as well. In a majority of instances some sort of family member, or social worker, need to intervene and care for the child (since the mother can still be called one herself). As for my situation, I was very grateful to have both sets of my grandparent’s take over the responsibilities and duties that an adult mother and father typically account for. Granted, there was sufficient assistance to aid my teenage parents, but their irresponsibility, immaturity, and lack of knowledge for the future, divided both families forever. Which brings me to this; should the teenagers be blamed for the high pregnancy rates, or should the blame be laid at the feet of sex education programs and society around them, or rather a culmination of both? I believe we can’t just blame the individuals themselves. I feel it is the utmost responsibility and collective effort from the government, programs, parents, and role models around them to lay down the knowledge they need in order to make appropriate decisions so they can make the most out of their lives as possible. I make this claim because I have involuntarily contributed to the statistical history of such epidemic pregnancy rates and have also witnessed firsthand why my opinion remains...
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