by Carrie Mylott

Created on: March 05, 2007   Last Updated: May 02, 2007

I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that the title of this article did not come out the way the writer intended.

Should schools encourage teens to have sex? What a ridiculous question. Of course not, and I highly doubt that any school that exists in the United States is currently doing so, or would consider doing so.

I think the original writer intended to insinuate that by providing sex education, or by teaching scientific birth control methods, public schools are inadvertently glamorizing sex.

I have to totally disagree. Our nation has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates, along with some of the highest STD rates in the developed world. Is this because children are receiving adequate education in regards to sex, pregnancy, and STD transmission? Exactly the opposite is true. Most public schools have a horrifyingly inadequate sex education syllabus. I remember when I was in fifth grade, and the girls were separated from the boys so we could learn about menstruation. The teacher was nervous, and embarrassed, and did not provide any information that was useful. I came away from that discussion confused and frightened. And high school sex ed wasn't any better. Sure, I learned where my uterus was, and I learned the types of STDs that were being spread, but there was never a connection made between people I may potentially sleep with and those diseases.

There are several things that should happen.

First, we need professional, comfortable teachers who can address sexual issues and provide an honest, open forum for discussion for high school students. Sex education is not, I repeat, NOT what is encouraging young girls to have sex. Media images of scantily clad, submissive, sexually active, beautiful women are encouraging young girls to have sex.

Second, we need to explain that unprotected sex causes the spread of STDs and causes pregnancy. I can feel the fundamentalists tensing up at that one, but knowledge really is power. We cannot expect ignorant teens to behave in an intelligent manner. We CAN expect well educated teens to behave in a responsible manner. See the difference?

Next, parents truly do need to be involved in their children's lives. While it is impossible to shield your child's eyes from every "negative" image, it is possible to talk openly with them about sex and peer pressure. I'm not advocating censorship, but advertisers should be more aware of their target audience, and the nonverbal messages that are sent.

I also think that organizations such as Planned Parenthood and NARAL should be recognized and applauded for their efforts to educate the public on pregnancy and disease prevention. Too often these organizations are viewed in a negative light.

Finally, turning your head away from a problem does not make it go away. Get involved. Talk to your children. Lobby for accurate, intelligent sex education programs in your local schools. Ignorance begets ignorance.

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