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Author
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Topic: Sexual Risk Behaviors
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bigcitygal
Volunteer Moderator
Babbler # 8938
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posted 28 March 2008 07:49 AM
I've read most of the linked thread and the link about STDs and teens. They really should update their terminology to STIs. I have a number of concerns.From the link: quote:
Adolescents are more likely to engage in high-risk behaviors, such as unprotected sex, when they are under the influence of drugs or alcohol
Remove "Adolescents are" and replace with "Everyone is".  I have a general cranky response to the focus on adolescents and what they do sexually, especially when presented as morality tales, such as the way those stats read. For example:
quote:
In 2000, 13% of all pregnancies, or 831,000, occurred among adolescents aged 15-19.
This is meaningless unless we know a bunch of other things, such as what percentage of the population are adolescents? More than 13%? Less? Is this rate of 13% higher or lower than the last time these stats were taken? Is the rate per state different from states that have good sex ed programs compared with states that have no sex ed/abstinence only "education"?Teens, and everyone really, need knowledge about, and access to many forms of good and reliable birth control, and specifically condoms, since not all of us require birth control for every sexual act (and with every sexual partner) we have/do. Teens should be educated about birth control. Abstinence education is not helpful at all. Not only do teens not get the info they need, but abstinence teaches a certain shame about the body and sex, not helpful for teens to learn, especially young women. This, of course, results in the more "at risk" behaviour the scolds are always fretting about. Nice vicious circle.
From: It's difficult to work in a group when you're omnipotent - Q | Registered: Apr 2005
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remind
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 6289
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posted 28 March 2008 08:44 AM
quote:
Originally posted by bigcitygal:
...This is meaningless unless we know a bunch of other things, such as what percentage of the population are adolescents?
Why would knowing that make it more meaningful? It would just make the knowing have an additional perspective. It would just make another statistic of what % of "adolescents" are getting pregnant, out the adolescent population, as opposed to how many were in the general population. quote:
More than 13%? Less? Is this rate of 13% higher or lower than the last time these stats were taken? Is the rate per state different from states that have good sex ed programs compared with states that have no sex ed/abstinence only "education"?
I am sure the cited references at the bottom of the page would have that info, as links are given to the PDF's used. quote:
Teens should be educated about birth control.
I believe it needs to start earlier than the teens. I just a couple of weeks back, had a long talk with my granddaughter about STI's and birth control, and she is 11. It is also not the first discussion with her, but it was the most indepth one, as she is now of an age to understand implications and factors. Over Easter week end, her and I also had a long talk about feminism, patriarchy and personal life-style choices.Her other grandparents are not feminists, and now that she understand some of the nuances of life, she is having great difficulty accepting/understanding their "life" viewpoints and how they conduct themselves by way of patriarchial perceptions and conditional regard. That her father, their son, is dead, makes it much more complicated for her, in her perceptions, as she is scared to alienate them by telling them she cannot accept how they view the world, and how she should be in it. quote:
Abstinence education is not helpful at all. Not only do teens not get the info they need, but abstinence teaches a certain shame about the body and sex, not helpful for teens to learn, especially young women. This, of course, results in the more "at risk" behaviour the scolds are always fretting about. Nice vicious circle.
No teaching abstinence is not helpful and yes, it can be a vicious circle.
From: "watching the tide roll away" | Registered: Jun 2004
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Summer
rabble-rouser
Babbler # 12491
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posted 28 March 2008 09:37 AM
quote:
Originally posted by remind:
No teaching abstinence is not helpful and yes, it can be a vicious circle.
Do you mean teaching abstinence and nothing else? As in, there's no need to explain birth control or condoms because you shouldn’t be having sex anyway. If so, I completely agree. But I think it needs to be made clear to students that abstinence is an option - not necessarily perpetually until marriage, but until each person feels comfortable having sex – and for some people, this can mean abstinence throughout highschool. When people have sex, it should be because they want to, not because they feel they should be, and talking about abstinence as an option can reinforce this.
A student who isn’t having sex can feel like there is something wrong with her, that’s she frigid or a prude, if it seems that everyone else is doing it. (this is from a female perspective, obviously).
From: Ottawa | Registered: Apr 2006
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Michelle
Moderator
Babbler # 560
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posted 28 March 2008 09:59 AM
There's no such thing as sex education that doesn't include abstinence. That's a bogeyman of the religious right, that proponents of sex education don't teach about abstinence.Every progressive sex educator not only teaches about safe sex and contraception/protection, but also about coercion, rape, good touch/bad touch, and the right to refuse sex. There is no such thing as sex educators who go into schools and teach kids that everyone has sex and that it's normal for all teenagers to have sex. Summer, I know you're not saying otherwise. But you seem to be making a distinction between one type of sex education (abstinence only) and another type that doesn't exist (sex only, no abstinence). It doesn't happen. Sex education includes the right to refuse to have sex. When sex educators discuss various methods of contraception and their effectiveness, they also include the option of not having sex, or masturbation, which carries no risk at all.
From: I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell. | Registered: May 2001
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