Abstinence sex ed shows promising trends

[Jdarg]

the study on Abstinence Only is interesting. I don't like the implicatations this could have on the health of children and teens if they are taught only abstinence. but at first glance the study looks like the Abstinence Only group actually stayed abstinent significantly longer. so this is important to really look at. it can't be dismissed.

my money is on kids who are well educated on their body from early on in age-appropriate, science and sex ed curriculums.. such that by the time they are teens and are talking about sexual intercourse and everything that happens before, during and after... choices, consequences (burn in hell), it isn't such a big deal because they have always been exposed to science and sex ed.

kidding on the burn in hell consequence.

Should abstinence be part of the curriculum? of course! why wouldn't it be? we all want this for children, right? we all want them to be safe and be able to understand that sexual relationships are for later when our bodies and minds are mature enough to understand all the factors involved, and mature enough to make the right choices for themselves, protecting their health and avoiding unwanted pregancy. Kids/teens need to be armed with all the facts and info they can get - from early on. In this way, I believe abstinence can happen more and longer for mature teens and even young adults.

educated people (kids) make better choices for themselves.

what does the Abstinence Only study mean for schools? hopefully it means that this is one more tool that is effective and should be used in the curriculum. I'm all for it. Heck, we all are, aren't we? but we must also prepare for every other choice which will eventually be explored by our kids. comprehensive is key.

what is the standard out there in schools these days regarding sex ed for any / all grades?

And this is the part of abstinence -only education that is troubling. These kids will have sex eventually- and not all of them will have good info on BC and STD prevention. So yeah, some of them will wait a little longer to start having intercourse, but they are doing other things in the meantime, and since that "first time" probably won't be a planned event, it is possible that it could happen before the kids have information and protection. Ugh- what a step backwards.

 

[kathydwells]

I am an advocate of all form of birth control and abstinence being taught in school as early as 5th grade. I am also a parent of a son who will be 17 in a few short months. I started talking to him very early about birth control and STD's. I am not ashamed nor to shy to have deep conversations with him about sex and the consequences that he would face having unprotected sex. I think as parents it is our responsibility to talk, talk, talk to our kids about this. I don't think that it should only be taught in school, it should be taught in the home as well. Perhaps, it will sink in if they are getting the information in BOTH places.

We as parents can only hope that our kids will make the right decisions. I am not going to sit here and say that my son will not have sex before he gets married, I think that is wishful thinking. However, I hope that what I have said to him and what he has learned in school will somehow sneak into his brain if/when he is in the "heat" of the moment.

 

[scooterbug44]

I believe part of the reason for success in delaying activity in abstinence programs is the self-esteem message - always a good thing to promote.

Trying to remember our schedule - believe we started in 4th or 5th grade with a dedicated week of gym class where instead of physical activity we were segregated by gender and watched educational videos. (And I think repeated viewings of "the cast of Annie talks about becoming a woman" would be a more effective torture technique than waterboarding).

Then starting in 6th grade we had a quarter of health class - which covered a variety of topics - nutrition, anatomy, drugs, mental health, conflict resolution etc.

In high school they had local medical students come in and take over the class during sex/birth control days - the idea was that we would be much more honest/open to talking to them and asking questions than the old teacher we had to see in the hall every day and knew us - and had taught our parents, siblings etc.

As far as age appropriate times it really varies by the kid/family. You have some 10 year olds playing "7 minutes in heaven" and others who still think cooties exist.

Our school took a very common sense approach - it was part of our health curriculum and morality was not the main talking point - it was making good decisions, combating misinformation, and being healthy.

And kids whose parents objected would opt out and had to do a independent study project instead of learning to put a condom on a banana.

 

[Matt J]

While I think that BC, STD, and abstinence education is key, I think that kids should also have the opportunity to find out what the consequences can be. The electronic babies that simulate real world experiences such as crying, feeding, pooping, and just wondering what is going on with it are a great thing. Much better than the bag of flour or egg method that was so prevalent just a few years ago. Also, perhaps a trip over to hospice or the hospital to talk with someone who is in the final stages of AIDS. Trust me that was a real eye opener when I was 16. I'm not saying that fear is a teaching tool, but I think kids need to see real life consequences of their choices.

 

[Teresa]

I am an advocate of all form of birth control and abstinence being taught in school as early as 5th grade. I am also a parent of a son who will be 17 in a few short months. I started talking to him very early about birth control and STD's. I am not ashamed nor to shy to have deep conversations with him about sex and the consequences that he would face having unprotected sex. I think as parents it is our responsibility to talk, talk, talk to our kids about this. I don't think that it should only be taught in school, it should be taught in the home as well. Perhaps, it will sink in if they are getting the information in BOTH places.

We as parents can only hope that our kids will make the right decisions. I am not going to sit here and say that my son will not have sex before he gets married, I think that is wishful thinking. However, I hope that what I have said to him and what he has learned in school will somehow sneak into his brain if/when he is in the "heat" of the moment.

absolutely and amen kdw! if we haven't parented in this area then we have left our children without support as they enter into the most hormonally dramatic phase of their lives. leaving it to the school would be negligent. I think parents can talk to kids today about sex, life choices, drugs and many other relevant issues, better than our parents could. At least that seems to be my impression when talking to parents of teens.

I guess the ideal version to sex ed would include the schools doing the science and biology of our bodies, reproduction, and keeping healthy. with families taking the discussion further to include choices and beliefs, and commit to ongoing communication with children/teens as they grow and develop.

I hope any school informs the parents about sex ed material being covered at school so that it can be discussed at home as well.

I can't imagine not allowing my child participate in school sex ed programs. but I do know of some parents who do not believe in having a school teach their children anything relating to sex or other subjects such as religious cultures, evolution, etc. whatchagonnado?