Students attending sexual education programs have had different life experiences, and are each coming from a different place both mentally and emotionally. Despite differences in sexual orientation, gender, or socioeconomic status, high school sexual education programs tend to generalize the program to all students, without addressing their individual needs. As a result, high-risk students fall through the cracks, without gaining necessary information that could not only improve, but save, their lives. In order for a high school sexual education program to be successful in preventing teenage pregnancy and STDs, they need to be tailored to address the needs of a diverse population that includes gay, lesbian, and bisexual students as well as
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Beyond rendering their hours spent in sexual education classes useless, students are explicitly or implicitly told during their time in non-inclusive programs that their sexual identities and desires are immoral, unnatural, socially unacceptable, and unhealthy (McNeill, 2013, p. 840). In schools where sexual education programs are not inclusive of gay, lesbian, and bisexual students, these students are more likely to experience homophobia, face harassment, and be treated as minorities (Schalet, 2014, p. 1600). According to Santelli et al (2006), homophobia contributes to a host of health problems for people who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual, such as substance abuse, violence, feelings of isolation, and suicide (p. 78). Homophobia and stigma also make it difficult for HIV-positive LGBT individuals to seek care and treatment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). However, studies have found that schools with inclusive sexual education programs have lower rates of homophobia-related bullying, and that gay, lesbian, and bisexual students report feeling safer than they do at schools that do not have inclusive sexual education programs (McNeill, 2013, p. …show more content…
STDs disproportionately affect gay and bisexual men. Men who have sex with men account for three-quarters of all primary and secondary syphilis cases in the United States. This number continues to rise. Half of those men are also infected with HIV (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). STDs can also be easily transmitted from women to other women, which not many young lesbian and bisexual women realize. Bacterial vaginosis, chlamydia, genital herpes, and HPV are common amongst lesbian and bisexual women (Office of Women’s Health, 2009, p. 5). Despite this, standard sexual education programs discuss the transmission of STDs primarily in terms of penile-vaginal sexual activity (Schalet, 2014, p. 1600). When sexual education programs are not discriminatory by ignoring the existence of same-sex sexual activity and the health of LGBTQ individuals, the information provided is frequently inaccurate and misleading (Fields, 2004, p. 20). By not accurately addressing the STD transmission through other sexual activity, sexual education classes do not meet the needs of gay, lesbian, and bisexual students (Santelli, 2006, p. 78). This has consequences for gay, lesbian, and bisexual students, who may not understand how certain diseases are transmitted or how to best protect themselves. HPV can be used as an example of this. According to the National Cancer Institute (2015), HPV is spread through contact of skin and
Beyond rendering their hours spent in sexual education classes useless, students are explicitly or implicitly told during their time in non-inclusive programs that their sexual identities and desires are immoral, unnatural, socially unacceptable, and unhealthy (McNeill, 2013, p. 840). In schools where sexual education programs are not inclusive of gay, lesbian, and bisexual students, these students are more likely to experience homophobia, face harassment, and be treated as minorities (Schalet, 2014, p. 1600). According to Santelli et al (2006), homophobia contributes to a host of health problems for people who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual, such as substance abuse, violence, feelings of isolation, and suicide (p. 78). Homophobia and stigma also make it difficult for HIV-positive LGBT individuals to seek care and treatment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). However, studies have found that schools with inclusive sexual education programs have lower rates of homophobia-related bullying, and that gay, lesbian, and bisexual students report feeling safer than they do at schools that do not have inclusive sexual education programs (McNeill, 2013, p. …show more content…
STDs disproportionately affect gay and bisexual men. Men who have sex with men account for three-quarters of all primary and secondary syphilis cases in the United States. This number continues to rise. Half of those men are also infected with HIV (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). STDs can also be easily transmitted from women to other women, which not many young lesbian and bisexual women realize. Bacterial vaginosis, chlamydia, genital herpes, and HPV are common amongst lesbian and bisexual women (Office of Women’s Health, 2009, p. 5). Despite this, standard sexual education programs discuss the transmission of STDs primarily in terms of penile-vaginal sexual activity (Schalet, 2014, p. 1600). When sexual education programs are not discriminatory by ignoring the existence of same-sex sexual activity and the health of LGBTQ individuals, the information provided is frequently inaccurate and misleading (Fields, 2004, p. 20). By not accurately addressing the STD transmission through other sexual activity, sexual education classes do not meet the needs of gay, lesbian, and bisexual students (Santelli, 2006, p. 78). This has consequences for gay, lesbian, and bisexual students, who may not understand how certain diseases are transmitted or how to best protect themselves. HPV can be used as an example of this. According to the National Cancer Institute (2015), HPV is spread through contact of skin and