Sex education in Schools
Sex Education in Schools
In school, students acquire many subjects, not just the basics but also the topics parents lack in teaching such as sex education. Assuming that every child has a parent willing to educate them on this issue is impractical; therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the school to educate children on harder topics that they will encounter in their daily lives. It is important for adolescence to be educated about sex before they make imprudent decisions that could impact the rest of their lives; however, the debate amongst parents, politicians, and educators used to be whether or not sex education should be taught in schools at all, but now the debate has shifted to how it should be taught. Many schools implement an abstinence only education program which emphasizes that the only way to avoid pregnancy or disease is to not engage in sexual activity. However, due to recent findings schools are starting to shift towards a comprehensive program which teaches various ways of preventing pregnancy and disease while still informing students of both abstinence and contraception use (Advocates for Youth, 2001). Research has shown that a comprehensive sex education program should be used in schools because is more effective than abstinence only education at delaying the commencement of sexual activity, reducing the frequency of sexual activity, reducing the number of partners, and increasing the use of contraception which leads to improvements in students overall health and well-being.
The type of sex education program in school has been a topic for public policy debate over the last several decades. Trends in national policy were to encourage abstinence only programs. Federal funding for sex education programs began with the Reagan Administration which gave financial aid to schools who implemented an abstinence only program (SIECUS, 2010). This funding became the standard until the Obama Administration altered the budget to fund schools with
In school, students acquire many subjects, not just the basics but also the topics parents lack in teaching such as sex education. Assuming that every child has a parent willing to educate them on this issue is impractical; therefore, it becomes the responsibility of the school to educate children on harder topics that they will encounter in their daily lives. It is important for adolescence to be educated about sex before they make imprudent decisions that could impact the rest of their lives; however, the debate amongst parents, politicians, and educators used to be whether or not sex education should be taught in schools at all, but now the debate has shifted to how it should be taught. Many schools implement an abstinence only education program which emphasizes that the only way to avoid pregnancy or disease is to not engage in sexual activity. However, due to recent findings schools are starting to shift towards a comprehensive program which teaches various ways of preventing pregnancy and disease while still informing students of both abstinence and contraception use (Advocates for Youth, 2001). Research has shown that a comprehensive sex education program should be used in schools because is more effective than abstinence only education at delaying the commencement of sexual activity, reducing the frequency of sexual activity, reducing the number of partners, and increasing the use of contraception which leads to improvements in students overall health and well-being.
The type of sex education program in school has been a topic for public policy debate over the last several decades. Trends in national policy were to encourage abstinence only programs. Federal funding for sex education programs began with the Reagan Administration which gave financial aid to schools who implemented an abstinence only program (SIECUS, 2010). This funding became the standard until the Obama Administration altered the budget to fund schools with