Public education was designed to meet the needs of all students.  Although some students choose to wait until marriage to engage in sexual activity, studies show that the majority of students have sex before they graduate High School. Therefore, abstinence-only education programs disregard the real life facts that teens who are choosing to engage in sexual intercourse need education about birth control, STDs, and the consequences of unprotected sex.

According to the 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance, 46.9 percent of high school students had ever had sexual intercourse. Data also showed that every year there are approximately 831,000 pregnancies among women aged 15 to 19 years, about 9.1 million cases of STIs among persons aged 15 to 24 years, and an estimated 4,842 cases of HIV/AIDS among persons aged 15 to 24 years. These numbers demonstrate that limiting students’ sexuality education to abstinence-only programs fails to arm adolescents with accurate and sufficient knowledge to make informed decisions and keep themselves safe.  In many cases, when teens are going to engage in sex no matter what message they receive, it is crucial that they know how to have protected sex.   An analysis published in the American Journal of Public Health in 2007 found that 86 percent of the decline in teen pregnancy between 1995 and 2002 was the result of improved contraceptive use and only 14 percent was the result of fewer teens engaging in sexual intercourse. If teens are armed with education, they will make wiser and healthier choices when it comes to sex.

Regardless of which side you fall on in the abstinence-only versus comprehensive sex education debate, we all can agree on the desired outcome. We want to help adolescents develop a positive and accurate understanding of sexuality, keep them safe from sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and do all that we can to prevent unintended pregnancies. From a public health perspective that is rooted in research, the most effective way to achieve this goal is through comprehensive sex education.

Since 1991, when federal abstinence funding began, births to 15- to 17-year-olds have dropped 43 percent despite a 25 percent increase in that age group. In 1991, 54 percent of teens said they had had sex, compared to 47 percent in 2003 (The Centers for Disease Control). The Centers for Disease control has also concluded that both abstinence and contraception contributed to the decline in teen pregnancy rates between 1991 and 2001. Written evidence has shown that abstinence-only is affective when taught to teens. On a different note, some may argue that teens are going to have sex no matter what they are taught, so we should just educate them about safe sex and contraceptives.  However, this view carries several negatives.  If we are telling kids that they should have “safe sex” are we telling them they are allowed to have sex and it is accepted?  Unless educators stand firm and teach strictly abstinence-only, teens will receive a mixed message that may become confusing.  Significantly, there are no negative risk factors associated with virginity pledges, but the same cannot be said for teaching teens about using condoms and other forms of birth control. Even setting aside the physical risks, can a condom protect your heart?

Widespread premarital sex has created severe economic and social costs, not to mention the personal pain it places upon teenagers and their families. In pure economic terms, researchers estimate that adolescent childbearing itself costs the taxpayers $6.9 billion each year (LifeWay Christian Ministries). Obviously, abstinence is the easiest answer to protecting teens not only physically, but emotionally and physiologically as well.  Abstinence-0nly is a clear, stern message with no ifs ands or buts.  Abstinence means abstaining from all sexual activities, and all teens will understand and hopefully accept this message.

Cited Sources:

http://www.cdc.gov/

http://www.opposingviews.com/arguments/abstinence-saves-taxpayers-money

While many teens may wear True Love Waits rings and pledge themselves to purity, they may fall off the straight and narrow in the heat of the moment.  In a nationally representative study of adolescents aged 12-17 years, 88 percent of adolescents who took virginity pledges within AOUM programs reported engaging in sexual intercourse before marriage. Additionally, the study reported that adolescents who took virginity pledges were less likely to use condoms when they became sexually active, more likely to engage in oral-genital and anogenital sexual behaviors, and less likely to seek and obtain care for STIs than non-pledgers (APHA).  The moral message of Abstinence will always remain the same, but it is a personal choice.   Sexual education must be there to catch teens when they fall.  Kids need to know the facts and the consequences of pre-marital sex.  If they are going to have sex, they must have safe sex to protect their health.

In a perfect world, educators would teach abstinence-only, and all teens would abide to the rules.  The reality is, that the majority of teens are going to have sex before they graduate from high school.  This is why it is imperative to promote programs that cover all the grounds regarding teens and sex.  These programs must touch on abstinence as the ideal, but they must also give students the tools to protect themselves when they are not choosing abstinence.

References:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,494205,00.html

http://apha.org/

The National Campaign’s own survey data (With One Voice 2007) shows that nine in ten adults and teens believe that teens should be given a strong message from society that they should not have sex until they are at least out of high school. However, this overwhelming support for encouraging young people to delay sex should not be misinterpreted as overwhelming support for providing young people only with messages about abstinence. The same survey shows that 76% of adults and 64% of teens wish that young people were getting more information about abstinence and contraception, rather than either/or.

 Warrant:

According to a nationally representative study of teens, 88 percent of adolescents who took virginity pledges within “abstinence-only until marriage” programs reported engaging in sexual intercourse before marriage. Furthermore, young adults who are taught an abstinence-only curriculum are less likely to have the knowledge and skills needed to keep themselves safe when they do initiate sexual activity.

Backing:

While it is easy for teens to make a pledge of abstinence, it is hard to stick to their promise in the heat of the moment. Since teens are likely to give in to sexual temptation, they should be armed with knowledge of safe sex and how to use contraceptives.

Rebuttal:

Some teens may be confused that educators are sending them a mixed message. They seem to be hearing, “Don’t have sex. Here’s a condom.”

Qualifiers:

Some would argue that to truly hold to the puritan values, you must advocate abstinence only. However, one may uphold these values, while encouraging responsibility in wise choices regarding sexual intercourse.

One odd thing that I noticed about this feed was that the articles are not updated as often as the other RSS feeds that I added to my page.  This doesn’t bother me, but for women who are seeking daily answers to try to solve health problems, this could be a burden. I don’t really find this feed as useful or as interesting as I had initially expected.

I admire this feed for the in depth research and large amount of music information, but I wished that I could have cut the daily published articles in half, so I could actually remember some of the information given to me! I did however; discover many new artists and events through this feed.  Overall, the good out weighs the bad with this feed, and it is worth the keeping.

During the week, I usually don’t have time to watch much telivison, so I sometimes feel like I’m not “up to date” on a few of my favorite shows.  With the entertainment news from Time, I am able to get my fill of what happened in all my favorite shows in just half the time!

I began my blog exploration at Grant McChesney’s Deep Blue.  As I started scrolling down the page, I could picture Grant mouthing every word of each post.  Most of Grant’s posts are very scholastic based and political, which aren’t the most exciting reads, but are extremely educational.  While reading each post, I also discovered that Grant usually writes informative blogs rather than argumentative or persuasive blogs.  Like Grant himself, his page is clean cut, and neat. As a writer, Grant cuts right to the chase, and states the facts about the subject he is writing about.  One negative aspect of Grant’s blog is that the majority of each writing is stated as a statistic as opposed to his personal opinion on issues.  On a positive note, I was really impressed by Grant’s use of rhetorical devices throughout his writing.  In Rash Refunds, Grant wrote, “The stimulus package is like a strong cup of coffee that would jolt the economy but then fade leaving it worse than before.”  As an avid coffee fan, I first took offense but then was in awe of the use of a similie and personification all in one enticing sentence!  Grant’s blogs are the kind of writing that triggers my thoughts on current events, but doesn’t allow my imagination to expand or inspire me to dream.

As I dug deeper into the blog world, I made a pit stop at Jon Micheal Poff’s blog.  Just pulling his page up made a great first impression on me,  I was totally in awe of his creative theme and layout.  I am impressed at how much time and dedication he put into his page as well. I like how Jon Micheal is not shy to express his strong opinions on the very controversial issue of abortion.  While I admire how straight foward his writing is, I am curious what drove him to blog about such a controversial issue. Jon Micheal was wise to blog on such an issue that would draw in so many comments because of all the different views on abortion. I saw how he gets lots of feedback from a variety of bloggers.  His page is well organized and makes the reading more fun with all the graphics he chose to add to his layout. Jon Micheal writes the perfect mix of educational pieces with relatable teen issues.  His blogs are easy on my mind because we share a lot of the same views, and I admire his strong morals and convictions about how people should represent themselves.  I especially enjoyed his blog, Get Out of My ‘Face’.  This blog is something I often think about while scrolling down my friends list on Facebook.  I am sometimes shocked at the pictures that students have the guts to put out on the World Wide Web.  Just like a scandalous outfit, these photos are a representation of the student and who they are.  I applaud Jon Micheal for writing on hot topics that truly affect teens today.

Finally, I am coming to the end of my journey at Kaitlin’s blog, get lost in my thoughts.  I love Kaitlin’s blog because of how her writing flows, and I am suprised at how I forget that I am reading her english assignment because while I read, I feel as if I am flipping through the pages of her diary. All of her posts are genuine and innocent, just like she is as a person.  Kaitlin blogs at the perfect lengths as well.  I never got tired or trailed off. From the first sentence on, she kept me drawn in to each post. She writes about very relateable issues and instead of spitting out facts like a robot, she incorporates them into an easy read story.  I stumbled across her post entitled, Do You Know What You Are Singing?, and something inside of me jolted.  She gave several great examples of all the terrible lyrics that flow from the speakers of stereos constantly, and most teens mouth right along without a second thought.  Overall, after reading Kaitlin’s blog, I learned more about her as a person than I even did about any of the subjects she chose to write about. 

Blogging gives me a great sense of community among my peers and I enjoy diving into the thoughts of others.  I became a sponge as I read each of these very different yet similar blogs, soaking up different techniques and thoughts.  I am anxious to incorporate what I observed into my newborn blog that will soon grow and release my own stories and dreams.

Many adults believe that despite preaching abstinence messages, some teenagers are going to have sex, and no program is capable of changing this.  Sadly, most adults view teenage sex as a “right of passage” and neglect encouraging adolescents with a clear, abstinence-only message.  According to Detroit Free Press (2007), the U.S. has “wasted” $176 million dollars a year on abstinence-only sex education.  On another disappointing note, government funded programs seem to be more supportive of shelling out funds to supply teens with contraceptives as opposed to spending time educating them with safe choices.  Adults are practically deeming teenagers as animals by implying that no matter how strong the message to wait until after marriage to become sexually active, they cannot resist their conscious sexual urges.

Negative aspects are evident in both sides of the two messages being thrown at teens. According to Dr. McCaffree (n.d.), “Parents worry that if they talk about both abstinence and contraception; children will become confused, or will not hear the abstinence message.  Others suggest that there is always a mixed message that results when abstinence and contraceptive information are taught.”  Neither of the opposing messages taught by programs takes any into any account the reported 10,000 young people who contract sexually transmitted diseases daily. (Detroit Free Press 2007) 

In addition to programs failing to emphasize health risks, they also toss aside informing teens about the emotional risks associated with sexual activity.  Studies by the American Academy of Pediatrics (2005) showed that sexually active adolescents, both boys and girls, are far likelier to be depressed and attempt suicide than those still virgins.

This argument of abstinence vs. contraceptives can only be solved by individuals themselves.  Choosing abstinence is a very personal but healthy and emotionally beneficial decision.  Just as these programs are speaking out to teens, teens must respond to the programs and let them know that they are in need of a clear, real, and relatable message.  Programs need to choose one message, and focus on promoting that one message without the confusion of an opposing message.  If government funded sex education programs take action and inform teens about all the benefits of abstinence, they will surely see positive results.  Some of these results could be a drop in teen pregnancy rates or even decreased numbers of teens who are infected with sexually transmitted diseases.  Perhaps after these results are noticed by adults and teens, both groups will be motivated to do what is best to help spread a positive word.  Teens should lead by a positive example, and programs should lead with helpful, informative education.  However, the only way teens can think critically to make right decisions is if the message of abstinence is not clouded by the easy way out: contraceptives. Stop sending mixed signals, stop seeing negative results.