Sex Education
Judy Carman
Frank Dunn
John Hjelle
Sean Joyce Whipp
Prelection:
What Are We Talking About?
1. What’s the issue? (Sean)
The issues are many and personal, cultural, political,
educational, familial, moral and religious.
2. Specifically, how does this affect
schools? (Frank and John)
Things to consider: STDs, pregnancy, gender, gender
identity, sexual orientation.
3. Sex ed in school: pro and con (Judy)
4. Our thoughts (collective braintrust)
What’s the issue? (personal and familial)
Reality #1 (of four):
– What’s in the bag?
Nothing but shame and embarrassment
– If we feel this way, how do you suppose a 13
year old feels?
Additional burdens:
– Gender identity issues (W. Meredith Bacon)
– Sexual orientation issues (Bill Glenn)
What’s the issue? (Cultural)
Reality #2:
– What’s on the board? What does it mean?
– magazine covers (SI and Cosmo)
What does our society say about what it
means to be a man or a woman?
– Merchants of Cool (mook and midriff)
What happens when teens perceive that
others (friends/siblings) are having sex?
What’s the issue? (Society and Culture)
Reality #3:
– You wanna “hook up”
What are our students’ patterns of
sexual behavior?
– Half empty or half full?
– Teachable moment or a time for despair?
What do these behaviors say about
power and (in)equality and gender?
Many teenagers experience
pregnancy and STDs
More than 800,000 women younger than 20 become
pregnant each year
80% of these pregnancies are unintended
Nine million teenagers and young adults acquire an
STD each year
Two young people every hour become infected with
HIV
Guttmacher Institute
U.S. teenagers have higher rates of
pregnancy, birth and abortion than teenagers
in most other developed countries
Pregnancy rate
Russian Federation
United States
Bulgaria
England and Wales
Canada
Sweden
France
Japan
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
Birth Abortion
In Nebraska?
2004 Sexually Transmitted Diseases
Statistics
What’s the issue? (Political and Educational)
Reality #4:
– What’s the bottom line? ($$$)
Since 1996, ~$1Billion in federal funding
– What’s the catch? (but some say it isn’t a ”catch”)
– Only funds abstinence-only programs
• Some studies shows that AO programs may (not)
postpone teen sex, but also result in more risky
behaviors.
• Some states are now rejecting federal funds
althogether
Most school district policies promote
abstinence
14%
Abstinence as only
option
35%
Abstinence as
preferred option/
contraceptives
effective
Abstinence as one
option in broader
sex education
51%
Districts with a sex education policy
There is a large gap between what teachers
believe should be covered in sex education
and what they actually teach
% of sex education teachers
100
80
60
40
20
0
HIV STDs Abstinence Birth Facts on Condom Sexual
control abortion use orientation
Opinion Instruction
What’s the issue? (Moral and Religious)
Realities #5 -
– We won’t be covering them due to time
constraints, but they might include:
• Catholic doctrine and the requirement to teach in
conformity with the Church
• Morality of comprehensive sex education
• How much do you include in “comprehensive?”
• Racial, economic, and gender disparities
• Inclusion of sex ed, or a separate sex ed class?
Now to some specifics
John and Frank will discuss:
HIV, STDs, Pregnancy, Gender Issues,
and Homosexuality as they relate to
schools and children
Physical Health Issues
Hygiene
Hygiene
Deodorant
Showering
Hand Washing
Brushing Teeth
Physical Health Issues
Hygiene
STD’s
Sex Stats
Over 50 percent of students will have
sex before graduating.
16 percent will have 4 or more partners
in High School.
STD’s
HIV Disease
Amebiasis Lymphogranuloma Venereum
Bacterial Vaginosis Molluscum
Campylobacter Fetus
Pediculosis Pubis
Candidiasis
Chancroid Pubic Lice (Crabs)
Chlamydia Salmonella
Condyloma Acuminata Scabies
Cytomegalovirus
Shingellosis
Enteric Infections
Genital Mycloplasmas Syphlis
Genital Warts (HPV) Trichomoniasis
Giardiasis Yeast Infection Vaginitas
Gonorrhea
Granuloma TO SLIDES
Hepatitis Herpes
Some Statistics
U.S. Center for Disease Control (2003)
40,000 New cases of HIV a year
20,000 Infections occur in those under 25
10,000 Infections occur in those under 22
12 Million cases of STD’s are reported each year
3 Million occur among Teenagers
Physical Health Issues
Hygiene
STD’s
Teen Pregnancy
Teen Pregnancy
Ages 15-17
281,900 Pregnancies
84,770 Abortions
157,209 Births
39,920 Miscarriages
Ages 14 and Under
19,640 Pregnancies
8,560 Abortions
8,519 Births
2,560 Miscarriages
National Center for Health Statistics of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services
Physical Health Issues
Hygiene
STD’s
Teen Pregnancy
Abstinence or Sex?
Now Judy will discuss the pros and
cons of different school curricula
Sex Ed: Should We or Shouldn’t We?
Pro Con
Abstinence is the only
100% effective
Sexual outcomes, approach to individual
knowledge, and safety.
attitudes are most
influenced by family, Parents should be the
schools, and peers. only providers of Sex
Education.
Sex Ed in the schools
More education is
promotes positive,
healthy, and skillful related to more sexual
attitudes toward behavior and
sexuality. promiscuity.
Young people deserve There is no form of
open and honest sexual funding for this type of
health information education
In conclusion
Some closing thoughts
Questions?
Bibliography
ABC News. (2005, November 26). Transgender
professor becomes a woman: wife stays with spouse
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Denizet-Lewis, Benoit. (2004, May 30). Friends,
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Friedman, J. (2005, September 16). Teen sex. CQ
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Bibliography, con’t
Glazer, Sarah. (1993, May 14). Preventing Teen Pregnancy.
CQ Researcher, 3, 525-550.
Glenn, William D. (2001, May 21). As God intended. America,
184, 26-30.
The Allan Guttmacher Institute. (2005, July). Sex Education:
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Council of the US. N.Y., New York.
Nebraska Health and Human Services. (2005). 2004 Sexually
Transmitted Diseases Statistics - Nebraska Females and Males.
Retrieved June 6, 2006, from
http://www.hhs.state.ne.us/std/std04at.htm.
Bibliography, con’t
PBS Home Video. (2002). Merchants of Cool. See
also:http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/
cool.
Rajani, Nicole & Starkman, Naomi. (2002). The case
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