The Influence of Sex Education on the Younger Community

1734 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Effects of sex education

The “talk” about sex has never been a topic many like to discuss with tweens or teens, but it has to be addressed sometime during their lifetimes. Sex is a natural experience that is used for reproduction and the building of an emotional connection. However, many teens engage in pre-marital sex and have no knowledge about protecting themselves. Sex education teaches about human sexuality and how abstinence should be practiced to prevent sexual transmitted diseases (STDs) and unplanned pregnancies. Yet, sex education classes are mostly for those in college. Sex education is not meant to encourage sex, but hopefully steer students into having safe sex or no sex at all. Becoming aware about the consequences of having sex among the tween and teen community needs to be established and understood. If parents have a hard time giving the “talk” about sex, then the subject should be discussed with a trained individual instead of being avoided. Without knowledge teens will explore things without caution. Sources indicate that the argument to allow sex education within public schools, such as middle or high schools, is whether the benefits of learning about sex at an early age will outweigh the risks of experiencing sex without advanced knowledge. Teenagers who learn about sex in school are less likely to have sex at a young age than those who learn from family, friends and the media. Based on a questionnaire conducted by Victoria Bourton, a senior staff nurse, Paediatic Accident and Emergency at St Thomas’ Hospital, students, 16 and 17 years old, knew about the risks of having sex because 75% of the answers about sex were correct. Participants felt that the need for sex education at an earlier age is appropriate and will reduce the urge to ... ... middle of paper ... ...s, 2011. 24-28.Print. Sawyer, Kate. “Sex Education Is The Key To Curbing Teen Sex.” Teen Sex. Olivia Ferguson. Michigan: Greenhaven Press, 2011. 29-39. Print. National Abstinence Education Association. “Comprehensive Sex Education Is Inappropriate And Harmful.” Do Abstinence Programs Work?. Christina Fisanick. Michigan. Greenhaven Press, 2010. 33-42. Print. Bourton, Victoria. “Sex Education In School: Young People’s Views.” Paediatric Nursing. Academic Search Premier, 1 Oct. 2006. Web. 28 Jun. 2014. McAvoy, Paula. “The Aims Of Sex Education: Demoting Autonomy And Promoting Mutuality.” Educational Theory. Academic Search Premier, 1 Oct. 2013. Web. 24 Jun. 2014. Fentahun, Netsanet, et al. “Parents’ Perception, Students’ and Teachers’ Attitude Towards School Sex Education.” Ethiopian Journal of Health Sciences. Academic Search Premier, 1 Jul. 2012. Web. 28 Jun. 2014.

Show More
Related

  • Abstinence vs. Comprehensive Sex Education

    1345 Words  | 3 Pages

    It has been almost thirty three years since the first federal funding was put to use in “. . . sex education programs that promote abstinence-only-until-marriage to the exclusion of all other approaches . . .” according to the article “Sex education” (2010) published by “Opposing Viewpoints in Context;” a website that specializes in covering social issues. Since then a muddy controversy has arisen over whether that is the best approach. On one hand is the traditional approach of abstinence (not having sex before marriage), and on the other is the idea that what is being done is not enough, and that there needs to be a more comprehensive approach. This entails not only warning against sex, but also teaching teens about how to have “Safe Sex” (“Sex Education,” 2010).

    Read More

  • The Debate of Abstinece-Only or Comprehensive Sex Education

    785 Words  | 2 Pages

    Chen, Grace. “Schools, Parents, and Communities Should Contribute to Educating Teens About Sex.” Teenage Sexuality. Ed. Aarti D. Stephens. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2012. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. From “Public Schools and Sex Education.” Public School Review. 2008. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.

    Read More

  • Be Informed: Have the Sex Talk with Your Kids

    785 Words  | 2 Pages

    Students should be informed about more than just “don’t have sex” because eventually it is going to happen and they need to be educated on the proper way to handle the situations. Because students are mostly taught abstinence it has created the situation to where researchers find” Abstinence-only education, instead of reducing the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, has made teenagers and young adults more vulnerable to ST...

    Read More

  • Sex Education in Schools: Abstinence-Only Programs

    2001 Words  | 5 Pages

    Teenage sexual activity is a major problem confronting the nation and has led to a rising incidence of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and teenage pregnancy. The existence of HIV/AIDS has given a sense of urgency to the topic of sex education. The issue of sex education in schools especially in the formative years has been a subject of intense debate among parents, school officials, health scientists and religious authorities worldwide for a considerable period of time. The debate centers on comprehensive sex education versus abstinence-only sex education in school. Abstinence only sex education is a sex education model that focuses on the virtue of abstinence from sexual activities; therefore, encouraging sexual abstinence until marriage. This form of sexual education completely ignores all other elements of comprehensive sexual education like safe sex and reproductive health education issues like the use of contraceptives and birth control methods. Comprehensive sex teaching encourages promiscuous sexual activity as “a natural part of life.” Proponents of abstinence only education activists cite several reasons why this type of education is the best. It focuses on the upholding of moral virtues. They also claim that sex outside marriage hat is “encouraged” by the comprehensive sex education which as a result, has some emotional and physical downfall especially when done at a very young age. They blame the comprehensive sex education for failing to discourage premarital sex especially at this time when the HIV pandemic is busy devouring young people in various parts of the world (Deborah 2). In fairness, both programs were designed to decrease the incidence of STDs...

    Read More

  • Should Sex Education be Taken Out of Schools?

    972 Words  | 2 Pages

    Currently, sex education in schools is primarily centered on the distribution of information without elaborating about the moral implications dealing with sex. Teenagers are well versed on things such as how long sperm lives inside the body and can identify all of the workings of the female reproductive system. However, they are still getting pregnant and still contracting sexually transmitted diseases. Anna Quindlen examines this trend in her essay, “Sex Ed”. Quindlen points out that it is the moral implications of sex that have been left out of the curriculum and it is the responsibility of parents to make those moral connections with their children (277). Understanding the morality of sex, she argues, may help teenagers to make more informed decisions on taking the next step towards sexual activity. They must understand that “…when you sleep with someone you take off a lot more than your clothes” (Quindlen 277). Sex is not simply a...

    Read More

  • Sex! No Longer a Dirty Word

    1623 Words  | 4 Pages

    Sex in America’s high schools is a reality that must be faced head on. Many high school students today are struggling with the decision to have sex. As a society, are we letting today’s teens down by not having a full sexual education curriculum available in all high schools? In a study conducted in 2007, detailing the sexual activity of high school students, between grades ninth and twelfth showed that 48% of students had sexual intercourse (46% girls 50% boys) (ReCAPP). So why is it that our schools teach abstinence to the students? It is made clear by the study that half of the students are still having sexual contact with their partners. After personally experiencing sex at an early age, the discovery sex was foreign to me because of the lack of knowledge that was available in the 80’s. This is something that can be eliminated in this decade due to the knowledge of sex and the problems that can arise from a bad sexual experience.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Essay On Sex Education

    2174 Words  | 5 Pages

    In the past, sex was something that people tried to avoid talking about it, neither less teaching. Sex became a mystery, and a mystery would always trigger people’s nerves, especially teenager’s curious minds. That leads teenager at that time, who had no idea about sex, wanted to have sex to know about it. And when they had sex without any protection, they easily got STDs or HIV or even pregnancy. The case awakens society that sex education must be taught for students at the very first when they enter middle schools. But the way sex was taught those days was very much different from today. In the article “What the sex educators teach” posted on the Opposing View Point in Context website, Dana Mack has written about her experience when taking sex education class when she was a teen: “At the age of ten or eleven, girls and boys were herded into separate rooms - usually in the company of a parent. There, in industrial-gray pictures and solemn monotones, they were introduced to the world of gametes, ovaries, and menstruation. Not exactly titillating material, this reproductive information.” (Mack). Back in those days when sex was a newly revealed topic and sex education program had just been operated, people are still very shy to talk about sex and they often avoid having this kind of

    Read More

  • Too Many Teenage Parents

    2460 Words  | 5 Pages

    Sex education is a term used to describe education about sexual intercourse, sexual anatomy, sexual reproduction and other aspects of human sexual behavior. Schools that offer sex education class (sex ed) often try to educate students so that they will not go out in the world without knowledge of such activities. Teenagers often have an idea what it is but may not understand it or know of the health risks of the sexual action. Therefore thes...

    Read More

  • Sex Education For Public Schools

    1534 Words  | 4 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Sexual Education in Schools

    876 Words  | 2 Pages

    Sex among teenagers is one of the most controversial topics of our time. The teen pregnancy and STD rates in the United States alone have become a major problem over the years. Despite these skyrocketing sex cases, sexual education is not being taught in some schools, and the ones that do are extremely limited. Parents, the government, organizations, and school boards do not teach the proper curriculum necessary for students to thoroughly understand sexual behavior. This essay will explain the need for proper sexual education in our schools.

    Read More

  • Young People, sexuality and relationship

    864 Words  | 2 Pages

    So what should teens be taught about sex? In the article, “Young People, Sexuality and Relationships,” by Peter Aggleton, the author describes how sex isn’t used as something great in a relationship but gives the true reasons teens are having sex. The article was published in the year 2000 in the Journal of Sexual and Relationship Therapy. This article was published to explain to young people some of the consequences of having sex. More young people are having sex these days without looking at what really can happen. Aggleton shows an overview of the pregnancies, STD’s, and other emotional things that can stick with someone the rest of their lives.

    Read More

  • Comprehensive Sex Education In Schools

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    Martinez, Gladys, Joyce Abma, and Casey Copen. “Educating Teenagers About Sex In The United States”. CDC.GOV. Center of Disease Control and Prevention, 15 Sept. 2010. Web. 09 Feb.2014

    Read More

  • The Argument of Sex Education in School

    1223 Words  | 3 Pages

    The need for sex education is very questionable in today’s society. An article by Pamela DeCarlo, from the Centre for AIDS Prevention Studies, discusses why sex education is needed in schools. She asks why education on this subject is needed and if will help or hurt today’s children. Her view of the issue is that kids do need to have education to help to protect them but that it isn’t enough to prevent them from receiving STD’s and becoming pregnant. “Knowledge alone is not enough to change behaviors.” DeCarlo also says that, “Programs that rely mainly on conveying information about sex or moral precepts-how...

    Read More

  • Benefits of Sex Education in Schools

    866 Words  | 2 Pages

    First, sex education gives the children general knowledge about the sexual side of life, such as the differences between boys and girls and puberty. Teachers must clearly and intelligibly ...

    Read More

  • Sex Education : A Hot Topic Of Debate

    911 Words  | 2 Pages

    Rates of sexually transmitted disease and teen pregnancy are higher in the United States than in any other domesticated country. Not surprising since American culture has brought sex to the forefront over the last few decades. The need for comprehensive sex education in schools can teach children that the romanticized relationships and sexual interactions in the media aren’t showing the whole story. For children with ...

    Read More

More about The Influence of Sex Education on the Younger Community

Open Document