Sexual Education Is the Way to Go

Sexual Education is the Way to Go

Being taught sexual education has a lot of benefits. People believe that students are being taught this subject at too young of an age. Yet, they do not realize the benefits it can have on their children in their teenage years. Sexual education can effect a teenager's decision throughout their life. Adolescents should be taught sexual education in school because it is a safety benefit for adolescents, influences a teenager's decision, and teaches teenagers accurate information.

Sexual activity in a child's teenage life is a parent's greatest fear. When parents get a letter sent home that their child is going to be taught sexual education, a question that often runs through their mind is; does my child really need to learn this? Parents assume that sexual education is unnecessary and a waste of time. Most parents do not seem to realize the benefits sexual education can bring. An aid of being taught sexual education is that the amount of teenagers having sex has decreased. The amounts of teenagers under the age of 15 are less likely to have sex after being taught sexual education. To break down this statistic to the amount of male and female teenagers, "71% of males were less likely to be involved in sexual intercourse and 59% of females were less likely to be involved in sexual intercourse after having some knowledge of sexual education" (It's Official). With the amount of teenagers involved in sexual contact decreasing, it proves that it lowers the chances of teen pregnancy and sexual transmitted infections. Parents that do not wish for their children to be involved in sexual education argue that abstinence is the one and only way to decrease sex rates, teen pregnancy, and STIs. For example, "in a Chicago middle school where several girls were pregnant each year, after three years of an abstinence program, the school graduated three classes in a row in which no girls were pregnant" (Roleff). It is true that abstinence is the only 100% effective way to prevent these three things however; it is the most failed method. Adolescents become interested in the facts of sex when they are enrolled in abstinence programs. Douglas Kirby did a research where thirty-six sex education programs were given and of the six abstinence programs, all of them had failed (Roleff). Sexual education can decrease the amount of teenage sex which then leads to teenage pregnancy and STIs. It is not only a benefit to teenagers but it also influences a teenager's decision.

Teenagers often listen to the information given in class and to people that are older and of higher authority. If a student were told by a teacher that the cafeteria was giving away free food, the majority of the students would go to the cafeteria. So, if that same teacher told the students not to have sex or be involved in sexual activities