Pros And Cons Of Comprehensive Sex Education

Superior Essays
In this day, abstinence only sex-ed programs are the only thing available to most kids. I am here to advocate for comprehensive sexuality education programs rather than abstinence (no sex until marriage) only programs.
To correctly argue my point, one has to have a basic understanding of what is happening in schools today. Currently, at least in Texas, there is no well-taught comprehensive sexuality education, and sometimes there is no sex-ed at all. This is a problem because if students don’t get comprehensive sex-ed, they won’t know how to protect themselves against diseases which can lead to harmful diseases and unwanted pregnancies. They also do not inform students about options when pregnancy does occur. Just like with any topic, it is
…show more content…
What I do know is that many schools in our country don’t have good sex-ed programs. Even if there are sex-ed programs, it is most often an abstinence only class so teens will not know how to use proper protection. Abstinence is a great choice, arguably the best choice, but youth also need to know all the facts. A comprehensive sex-ed class that is abstinence based is fine, as long as it teaches everything needed. Not teaching comprehensive sex-ed can lead to teen pregnancies and/or diseases. With sex-ed programs in school today they are only teaching teens not to have sex. Some argue that if people learn about sex they will become curious. According to this belief, the curiosity will lead to more teens having sex. I believe it to be the opposite. If you teach teens comprehensive sexuality education (including protection), even if abstinence is stressed, then they will know more and be less curious. Also even if after this class they do engage in sexual activity then they will at least know how to properly protect themselves. I also know that in some states, such as Colorado, where they teach comprehensive based sex-ed, there has been a decrease in teen

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    As defined by the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), comprehensive sex education programs start in kindergarten and continue through 12th grade. While abstinence-only supporters believe that sex education programs expose the children to sex too early, which in turn leads to more sexually active youths, this is not true. These programs provide the youth with “complete, accurate, age-appropriate sex education that helps them reduce their risk of HIV/AIDs, other sexually transmitted diseases, and unintended pregnancy.” Though it is true that abstinence is the safest sex measure, people will have to face reality and remember that sex is a natural part of life. There are too many people living in “denial” about their children being sexually active; and even if their children are abstaining from sex, eventually there will be a point in life where they will be. Teaching comprehensive sex education in the school system is essential to youth’s development as the information learned on the subject could help them avoid potential problems in the future.…

    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sex is going to happen among public school students no matter what. According to “Teen Sexuality and Pregnancy,” 62 percent of high school seniors in the United States have had sex. The argument over whether to teach Abstinence-only or Comprehensive Sex education is ongoing and yet unnecessary. There is absolutely no possible way to insure that every single public school student refrains from having sex until marriage. Asking students to commit to remaining abstinent-only until marriage is unrealistic. It also adds additional pressure in an already stressful environment. Comprehensive Sex Education allows students to make educated decisions. Comprehensive Sex Education covers more information than its outdated rival; Abstinence-only Sex Education. Should public schools teach Abstinent-only? Comprehensive Sex Education should be the only sex education program taught in the public school system because; Comprehensive Sex Education is more informative, removing Abstinence-only programs from public schools will save money in government funding, and teaching Abstinence-only goes against the First Amendment.…

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In turn, abstinence based sexual education does not teach about things such as contraception or safer practices. Not to mention that abstinence-only education has stopped being funded federally since 2009 after evidence that abstinence based sexual education is ineffective was accumulated (Stranger-Hall & Hall, 2011). For example, teens that reside in states that prescribe abstinence education are more likely to become pregnant. Abstinence education in the U. S does not actually cause abstinence abiding behavior (Stanger-Hall & Hall, 2011). Thus, showing that abstinence based sexual education is not only, not effective, but it could also be…

    • 2166 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    One of the major problems with the abstinence-only program is that it hardly impacts teen sexual behavior. Advocates of the program argue that the adolescents educated using this method will sustain from sex for a longer period of time than adolescents educated using other methods of sexual education; although studies show differently. In writing about the possible change in sexual education teaching methods in the near future, Heather Boonstra says, “A systematic look at the federal abstinence-only effort concluded in 2007 that none of the programs it evaluated were effective in stopping or even delaying sex” (Boonstra). The study Boonstra references clearly points out that the adolescents in the abstinence-only…

    • 1215 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The federal funding of abstinence-only sex education programs has been a controversial topic for years. For over a decade the United States has been funding abstinence-only programs, but the question still remains whether or not these programs are effective and should be continued. This is a controversial topic because the United States has the highest rates for teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases amongst the developed nations. Although we do need to reduce the rates for teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, I believe that federal funding of abstinence-only sex education programs should be revoked.…

    • 658 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Abstinence-Only Education

    • 1496 Words
    • 6 Pages

    For many reasons, including both moral and financial, “Abstinence-Only-Until-Marriage” sexual education programs are taught all across America. These are programs that emphasize abstaining from sex until marriage, and generally tell students that this is the most effective way to avoid pregnancy and diseases. These programs often do not teach about other forms of contraception, with the belief that abstinence should be enough. Unfortunately, these programs are still taught despite the mounting evidence showing that not only are they ineffective, but actively harmful to the student’s health. This evidence includes high rates of teen pregnancy and STDs across America, cases of misinformation…

    • 1496 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Abstinence-Only Education

    • 1512 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Former sex education programs in American led to misinformation about the fundamentals of sex. For example, a sex-education video from the 80s insinuated that a young girl performed better in bowling due to the starting of her menstrual period (Oliver), It is important that the basics of sexual education are accurately and efficiently delivered to the students of America. If a student is provided with a book but is never taught how to read, what use does the book serve? Who will teach the student that it is not okay to throw his or her book at another student, unless the student asks to read the book? This same analogy can be applied to abstinence-only education. This gap in sexual education knowledge can be attributed to the fact that many school districts either circumvent the topic of sex or avoid it all together with an abstinence-only based curriculum. Every child deserves the same comprehensive education about his or her sexuality, and failure to equally educate all students about their sexuality leads to great disadvantages (Oliver). These disadvantages derived from an abstinence-only education include unfamiliarity with contraceptive methods, consent, and the effects of sexual intercourse on both the body and the mind. Although abstinence-only programs tend to leave students uninformed about their sexuality, it has been proven that abstinence as a rule leads to more satisfactory and healthier relationships for students (McCarthy). According to a University of Austin Texas study conducted in 2007, non-romantic sexual relationships are more likely to lead to cohabitation rather than marriage (McCarthy). Despite this fact, it is still important to teach abstinence as an option instead of a rule, for teaching abstinence as the only option may lead to both misinformation…

    • 1512 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    Sex education has been a notorious failure in the education system. Such programs fail because they teach teenagers to be judges of their own sexual behavior—not society, not their authoritarian parents, and certainly not the church. Sex education programs approach sex from a “neutral” viewpoint by teaching students to postpone sex until they are more mature, but encourages them to use proper protection if they are unable or unwilling to wait. From this “neutral” viewpoint, there is no good explanation for why students should not have sex when the technology to prevent or terminate diseases and pregnancies is readily available. Sex appears to be just another sport activity where only the proper gear is needed to stay safe.…

    • 1510 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Comprehensive sexual education courses can be pushed by parents, voters, and even older students who themselves struggled when they were not taught what they needed to know about sexuality. If more people become active in advocating the positives of comprehensive sexual education to the public, then teenagers would become able to think for themselves about what they can do to make sure that they protect themselves from disease and early parenthood. The benefits of a well-informed young adult are definitely worth any worries that someone might have. After all, the better informed anyone is about a topic, the better off they are in the future, and that includes teenagers with the topic of…

    • 2113 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Abstinence In Schools

    • 1183 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Sexual acts between unmarried couples have drastically increased in our modern society, leaving us vulnerable to all kinds of diseases, among other things. The only way to stop this, is by teaching abstinence in schools. Sex education in schools should only teach abstinence to students, because doing so would prevent unwanted pregnancy, reduce sexually transmitted diseases, and teach student to have strong convictions and moral values.…

    • 1183 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Abstinence-Only Model

    • 465 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Abstinence-only sex education has been a social problem that has existed for a long time now. In 1996 there was a Welfare Reform law policy put in place. The main goal of this policy was and still is to reduce to teen pregnancy. This approach was considered to be “the healthies strategy to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease” (Solomon-Fears). Even though statists show that the birth rate among teens in the United States has dropped in 22 of the last 24 years, it still remains high in the United States (Solomon-Fears 2010). Recently there has been a new approach to sex education that “provides youth in today’s world with information and decision making skills needed to make realist decisions whether to engaged in sexual…

    • 465 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Abstinence-Only Education

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Sexual Education in the United States primarily revolves around abstinence-only education. Abstinence-only education promotes the values of the middle class of our society. Various studies have shown that abstinence-only education is not the best course for providing teens with the necessary information to make choices about sex. While one might optimistically hope that teens would choose abstinence, a survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), found that “47% of high school students have engaged in sexual activity at some point in their lives” (CDC, 2014).…

    • 867 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Sexual Education has been encouraged to be a part of public school education since the late 1800’s. It is a program that is supposed to help young adolescents understand their body, promote abstinence, types of contraception, the risks of engaging in sexual activities, and how to prevent diseases or pregnancy. However, many parents fight this program because of their beliefs that teens should stay abstinent till marriage, and learning about sex will increase their urge to have sex. Depending on what the state requires to be taught and what a school district wants, a student will either receive one of the two styles of sexual education. The two styles are comprehensive and abstinence only. While they both stress the importance of abstinences,…

    • 1798 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Abstinence-only classes are not as effective as comprehensive sex education classes because most students only hear the fact that condoms are not 100% effective. Therefore, they use condoms less often, which in turn can lead to diseases and pregnancy. Comprehensive sex education throughout public school can show students how to prevent HIV, other STDs, and pregnancy. Sexual activity among teens cannot be eliminated, but a difference can be made by implementing sex education as a required curriculum in public schools as early as elementary school. The sex education classes can take the place of parents who do not know how to communicate with their children or are not around enough to keep them on the right path. With these preventative steps intact, students are more than likely to refrain from sex, and when they encounter sex, they will know how to protect…

    • 1800 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “Effective Sex Education” states that 80% of curriculum information provided for sex education by U.S. Department of Human and Health Services contained distorted,misleading, or false information about health (McKeon, 2006) As uneducated students speak out they want to have clear goals for preventing HIV, other STI/STDs, and teen pregnancy (McKeon, 2006). Providing this to children would further their knowledge in this field making it easier for them to make adequate choices. Many people have been teaching their adolescents religious beliefs as fact. Which is understandable, if they’re also taught the scientific side of this information they need also. According to The Science of Psychology, “Two research reviews found that abstinence-only programs do not delay the initiation of sexual intercourse and do not reduce HIV risk behaviors.” (King, 2014, p.…

    • 1124 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays