For many years now, individuals in all states have been attempting to teach teenagers about safe sex. Administrators have designed special classes and foundations worldwide in order to help out with this subject. As said by K4Health, “The term ‘condom’ first appeared in print in 1717, in an English publication on syphilis, although its origin still remains uncertain” (Stryker). The reason why schools should be giving teenagers condoms is because most teenagers do not tell their parents that they are sexually active. Most teenagers are more comfortable telling one of their teachers that they are really close to, or another administrator. If the parents are not aware that their child is sexually active, they will not have the educational talk with them thus resulting in the adolescent not knowing about the appropriate protection they need. In today’s society, teens, especially those in their high school years feel higher pressure from their peers to participate in sexual activity. Some individuals will have sex with only one person, while others will have sex with multiple partners which can become extremely harmful to the physical and emotional health of the teenager. These individuals believe that having sex in high school is a “popular” thing and everyone has to lose their virginity before they graduate, but it is not. With schools giving out the appropriate contraceptives, such as condoms, the teenagers will not be embarrassed walking into a store and buying what they need. They will simply receive them in their school hours free of charge and it could possibly save someone’s life. Some people think condom distribution in high schools should not be required because it will be perceived as giving the child permission to partic... ... middle of paper ... ... the young girl having a baby, there is a lot of responsibility to be had. The teenager has to pay for food, medicine, spend time with the baby, work to support the baby, take care of the baby, etc., but with the adolescent also wanting to get an education it seems pretty impossible. They soon drop out of school and as a result are not getting the education they need to further their life. High school is supposed to be the best four years of your life, and with the teenager dropping out of school because they have a baby, they are not getting the experience every teenager should have. If the school gives out the condoms to the teenagers, they hopefully will be smart enough to use the condom so they will not become the next teen parents. They will see how hard it is to be a teenager mother and raising a child, and they will use the condom in their sexual activities.
The second reason for contraceptives being given to teenagers, will help them avoid many dangerous Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) associated with unsafe sexual practices. Studies have shown an increase in unprotected sexuality among teenagers can result in a wide-range of social problems, such as STDs. The topic of birth control in public schools has attracted much support from the American public, according to statistics surveyed. For example, a 2006 Associated Press-Ipsos survey discovered that 67% of Americans support the provision of contraceptives to students. This study also determined that, “About as many - 62 percent - said they believe providing birth control reduces the number of teenage pregnancies” (Associated Press).
Freely accessible birth control for teenagers has always been a topic of debate, but it prevents pregnancy, abortion, and it also has many health benefits. There are cons to the argument that suggests a rise in promiscuity in the adolescent demographic, but in spite of these cons the rise of birth control continues, because access to birth control helps adolescents make an informed and safe decision on whether or not to participate in sexual activities. It doesn’t make the decision for them.
In the article “Condom: New Diploma”, Rush Limbaugh leads this article to one of the issues with public education lately. Condoms being distributed in the school, promoting sexual activity in teens, without proper knowledge. The mindset that since kids are going to do it, why not provide them the protection. Justifying the reasoning behind handing out condoms. This thinking open doors to why not create everything safe from drugs to safe sex. Boys now having access to condoms are urging girls to have sex, even if the girls are not ready. Chaperones purpose was to monitor and keep girls safe from the pursuit of eager young men. This is not the case anymore within the campuses. Adults recognize the consequences to having sex, knowing this they
We already know that some minors are stupid enough, naive enough, or defiant enough to have sexual intercourse with another person. That is all you need to know to figure out if minors should or should not be able to use birth control, if they’re going do it anyways, they should be able to protect themselves for the future. Approximately 1 million adolescent teens become pregnant each year and 86% of STI’s (Sexually transmitted infection) happen between ages 15-29 years old, showing just how big of a social issue this is for Americans. A valid argue against is, if you don 't let them protect themselves, they won’t have sex at all, fearing the consequences. This essay will cover why it is imperative that it is legal for minors to use birth
The two most important topics for a junior high sex education curriculum I think would be abstinence and abortion. Teens these days are struggling in a world that tells us sex is necessary for people who are dating. As a result, many teens give in to their desires and the pressures and engage in sexual relationships. This occurs from early to late adolescence and beyond. Supporting teens' choices, schools teach "safe sex." In my school a group was brought in to demonstrate for the entire school how to put on a condom, using a microphone. This turned into a joke, no one taking it seriously. Even so, it is a horrible example. We have to teach the kids abstinence is the only way to prevent the large problems of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. I can recall that abstinence was mentioned as a side-note as the only 100% guarantee against these two problems. It is a mixed message delivered when teens are given condoms in school that are only about 60% effective, but told that abstinence is the only prevention. Abstinence is the only total prevention, so America's schools must stop promoting ways that try to block pregnancy and STDs. Abortion is my second important topic. Adolescents are growing more and more careless in their sexual behavior and that has led to growing pregnancy rates. Many of them have decided to terminate the pregnancy and the child's life. The physical and emotional harm that abortions cause would have to be addressed, because not many are well informed in that area. A recent talk show that had a man refusing to believe that he was the father of his girlfriend's daughter because he "only conceives males." It is...
Analyses of the Urban Institute’s National Survey of Adolescent Males (NSAM) show that although most sexually experienced teenage males have used condoms at least once, many do not use them consistently. Only 35 percent reported using a condom every time they had sex in the past year. But teenage males use condoms more than older men, and between 1979 and 1988 reported condom use among male teenagers doubled. These patterns indicate that teenagers are a promising target population for condom promotion efforts since they appear more ready than older men to change their behaviors.
Reminiscing about my high school days I can remember the pressure there was to have sex. Within the male high school community, having sex was a “right of passage”. As we all know this attitude was very wrong. There are many issues that affect young people these days. One of these one in three sexually active people will have contracted an STD. The numbers about other birth control methods don’t lie either. Eight to nine percent of adolescents used a condom always for STD prevention and seventeen percent used a condom to prevent contraception. Condoms do offer more protection against those STD’s spread by fluids such as Chlamydia, Gonorrhea and HIV. Condoms do however offer less protection for those STD’s spread by skin-to-skin contact such as Herpes and Syphilis. The use of condoms in preventing contraception and STD’s is not as safe as choosing to abstain from sex altogether.
Many schools have provided teens with sex education classes to provide students with information about safe sex. Furthermore, Moskowitz explains that the “New York City board of Education programs are allowed to distribute condoms to high school students without parental consent.” Although many parents were against the school policy the court decided to allow students to receive condoms without parental consent. By having classes that discusses HIV, AIDS, and teen pregnancy teens may feel that having condoms distributed in schools is great to coincide with the classes being taught at the school. Condoms are the first method of birth control for teens and are a great start for teens that are having sex if they are not sure their parents should be involved in their decision on having sex.
The government likes to pretend that if high school students get taught the “abstinence-only” method they would never think of taking part in sexual activities. Statistically this is incorrect. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, “56 percent of high school students are virgins”(Martin). For the 56 percent abstinence only is doing them well, but there are still 44 percent of high school students engaging in sex without knowing the precau...
Three million teenagers will contract a sexually transmitted disease and one in three women will become pregnant before they are twenty years old. Teens are contracting sexually transmitted diseases and getting pregnant at an alarming rate causing the government, schools, and parents to scratch their heads. America is the country with the highest teen pregnancy rate in the world. Many are wondering what can be done to stop this. A debate has been going on about whether abstinence only education is doing any good for high school students in America. Abstinence only education teaches teenagers to abstain from all sexual acts until they are married. It does not teach about pregnancy or the different types of contraceptives that are available to prevent pregnancy. On the other hand, there is safe sex education. Safe sex education teaches teenagers facts about intercourse they need to know, acknowledges the potential consequences or risks of sexual behavior, and helps them make better decisions to protect themselves and their bodies.
Why should comprehensive sex education be allowed in schools? Should teens be exposed to comprehensive sex education? Sex education should be taught in school because it give children stable and accurate information , it informs them of the danger and diseases associated with sex, and it teaches them about safe sex options.
In 2013 they done a survey among U.S high school stating that 46.8% had sexual intercourse, 40.9% didn’t use condom and an estimation of 8,300 young people aged 13-24 in 40 states reported of having HIV in the year 2009. By providing condoms in high school it would give protection against pregnancy and STDs that put teens at risk. Now I am not saying that condom will entirely stop pregnancy and STDs among teens, but it will drastically drop the rate of many things due to teen pregnancy and STDs. According to the Huffington Post on December 26th 2012 they discussed that, “one-third of Philadelphia high school is now offering free condoms to students in condom dispensers.” One of the reason that they opt to put condom machines in the school is because Philadelphia has the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases (Huffington Post).
The condoms display in the Hidden Heroes: the Genius of Everyday Things exhibit is a showcase that would cause an individual to wonder about adolescents’ overall knowledge of human sexuality. In today’s society, children are susceptible to learning about such a delicate topic not only from their families and peers, but through the media as well. These sources often provide misrepresentations of the information due to ignorance and biased views. Therefore, in order to inform individuals more accurately, sex education programs have been created with the intention to be implemented into schools across the country. This has led up to being one of the most controversial issues hovering over educational institutions, where the inclusion of such programs has been hotly debated. However, recently, the dispute is not so much about whether sex education should be taught in schools, but rather what content should be taught and what approach should be taken.
The topic of condom distribution in public schools has caused many heated debates throughout our country in the last decade. Proponents of distribution state that free condom distribution will ensure that teenagers will practice safe sex and that the rate of sexually transmitted diseases and pregnancy will decline. Opponents of distribution state that free condom distribution will encourage sexual activity and foster the idea that premarital sex is acceptable. Judges in federal court have even considered whether or not condom distribution and sex education without prior parental notification violates parents' First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. The only viewpoint absent in a discussion of this very controversial topic is the one that holds the most value: the viewpoint of America's teenagers. Teenagers are the only ones who can fully explain why condom distribution fails to respond to the needs that foster sexual activity among young people.
“Forty-one percent of teens ages 18-19 said they know nothing about condoms, and seventy-five percent said they know nothing about the contraceptive pill” (Facts on American Teens). Even if schools taught just abstinence it still would not be enough. “In 2007, a study showed that abstinence only programs have no beneficial impact on the sexual behavior of young people” (Facts on American Teens). Sex education is not taken as seriously as it should be in schools, it is treated like it is not a big deal. Schools should require a sex education class that specifically teaches students about sex and goes into depth of all the possible consequences because of the high pregnancy, abortion, and virus rates.