Dayton Daily News education reporter Scott Elliott writes about schools, kids, teaching and learning.
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Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Are we teaching kids an abstinence fantasy?
I’ve written before about how federal money for sex education is largely restricted “abstinence only” programs and how critics say this is damaging to kids because they don’t learn practical information they will really need.
Critics also argue that abstinence is fantasy — that almost none of the adults who preach this approached practiced it themselves.
A story in today’s paper provides more evidence that abstinence is exceedingly rare.
A study now shows 95 percent of Americans have had pre-marital sex, including both men and women going as far back as the 1940s.
So early sex is both universally common and a long tradition. Advocates of science-based sex education argue that a practical curriculum can give kids information they will need because they will face early sexual situations in almost all cases. They believe this sort of program can make a measurable difference in limiting unwanted pregnancy and other sex-related problems.
What do you think of this study and its implications for school use?
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