Can sex education programs prevent teenage pregnancy controversies?

Answer 1

• Yes it does lower the pregnancy rate and also the rate of sexually transmitted diseases, but unfortunately not as much of a difference as it should be. It appears with this generation sex is the major sport of many people's lives (not all) and the fact young women getting pregnant without being married isn't frowned upon like it use too up until the late 50s.

• Sadly, the only federally funded course in the United States is abstinence. Which in my opinion, increases the risk of unwanted pregnancies because they only teach you that sex is bad and to not do it. Once persons decide they want to, they are usually not informed about Birth Control options ..If somebody had a good sex education, they can make wiser decisions when they decide they are ready - and most likely use a form of birth control.

• It is documented that in Scandinavia sex education has a direct effect on teen pregnancies as well as STDs. I myself had sex education (at school, in Scandinavia) when I was 11 years, which is why I knew exactly why use a condom when I did have sex for the first time. Sadly, the funds directed to sex education have somewhat dropped since, and it is starting to show in the statistics.

• The effect on pregnancy rates depends a great deal on what is included in the education and the atmosphere in which it is presented. For example: Presented in an atmosphere of "well - you are going to do it anyway, so here's how it works" it can increase pregnancies - not because people get educated on how to do it, but because it encourages an attitude of acceptance irresponsible behavior that leads to unplanned pregnancies and minimizes the gravity and responsibility of having children. This is especially true if it is not combined with information about contraception. On the other hand, if it is presented in an atmosphere of "Here are the facts - and here are the consequences of getting pregnant when you aren't ready to be a responsible parent, (and you are an idiot to do it before you are married)" it tends to decrease pregnancies especially when combined with contraception information. The strongest factor is not so much the information conveyed, but the attitudes conveyed with the information. Parents who take care of it on their own with their children can impart the information effectively and influence the attitudes of their children. Schools, are mostly forbidden to include any moral judgment when providing the instruction, so kids get a mixed message and the sex education winds up having little effect on pregnancy rates.

Answer 2

Yes. Areas that teach abstance only programs have higher teen pregnancy and STD rates than areas that teach in depth programs that encompass all areas of teen sexuality. These programs are not funded by the government and have to come out of school budget dollars resulting in most schools not offering them. However these programs teach the importance of condoms and how to properly use them, reliable birth control methods and where/how they can be obtained, emergency contraception, peer pressure and teen sexuality, STDS and AIDS/HIV - what they are and how to prevent them, pregnancy and child birth, teen pregnancy and it's physiological and social factors, adoption, abortion, and being a teen mother.

Answer 3

Yes it do help. Today's young generation might have skewed picture about sex owing to the profileration of pornography. Appropriate education will help them in having correct pespective of sex. In any sexual education, sex should be given right place and value and not overrated. This helps in maintaining balance.

Answer 4

Yes. That and contraceptives.