Jacobson 1

Alex Jacobson
Period 4
November 2, 2015
Keep Your Hands and Your Hormones to Yourself
I heard one lady got pregnant from sitting on a toilet seat! No, no, thats not true.
Everyone knows you get pregnant from kissing boys. Especially if you use tongue! The room
erupted into gasps and furtive giggles as we listened intently to the girls sitting in front of us.
They had stolen tawdry magazines from their mothers, or snuck a peek at some racy movie, or
overheard their older brothers profanity-fueled rants at the TV screen, and took great joy in
relating all the juicy details to the rest of us fifth graders. We got the inside scoop on everything
from what color eye shadow was in vogue that week, to what type of undergarments boys liked
best, to the most whispered about, hushed topic of all: sex. Most of the information we passed
around was wildly incorrect, but we didnt know better than to listen to the girls who thought
they knew everything. After all, my elementary school only had one paltry day of sexual
education at the end of our fifth grade year, which covered a few of the changes we'd experience
during puberty and neglected to mention anything related to sexual intercourse. However, we
were better off than many schools in the country. In fact, only 22 states require that sex ed be
taught at all, and only 19 of those states require that the information be medically accurate
(NCSL). Obviously, this represents a severe disservice to American students: if schools do not
provide factual, thorough sexual education, then they are not truly preparing students for the real
world. Schools must provide comprehensive sex ed programsones that discuss all the aspects
of sexual healthbecause they have been proven to increase the amount of legitimate

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information students receive, to increase students safety, and to lower the overall rate of teen
pregnancy.
Though I was smart enough to eventually realize that kissing with tongue wasnt the
surefire path to conception my friends swore it was, I had to find the truth all by myself, instead
of learning it in a safe environment. Sure, I could have asked my parents about the birds and the
bees, but I, like so many adolescents, was simply too mortified to ask Mom and Dad where
babies came from. According to a study published by the Victorian State Government, I wasnt
alone in feeling that way. Although it was reported that 61 percent of schoolchildren hear about
sex primarily from their family members, students reported low levels of confidence to discuss
sexuality or contraception with parents (VSG). I, and so many other students, could have
benefited from medically accuratedefined by the National Council of State Legislatures in a
number of different ways, from reviewed by the health board to based on information from
published authorities upon which medical professionals relysexual information. In our
hormone-crazed, emotion-fueled states, it was simply too uncomfortable to talk to our parents,
but with no school programs to learn from, we had to resort to misguided playground whispers.
Ironically, however, it seems that learning about sex at school could actually have improved our
dialogues with our family. Once we had been given the basic facts and been made more
comfortable with the material at school, we could have approached our parents more openly. In
fact, open family discussion on reproductive health (RH) issues often leads to increased
awareness on RH matters and reduces risky behaviors among adolescents, reports a study
published by the National Institute of Health, parents often have the power to guide children's
development in sexual health matters, encouraging them to practice reasonable sexual behavior
and develop good personal decision making skills. Research indicates that increased parent-child

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communication leads to a raised awareness and reduction in risk taking behaviors (Yadeta). So
although parents may object to schools teaching such a delicate subject, they should rest assured
that school-based, accurate sexual information will actually increase the receptivity and openness
with which they can talk to their children. After all, once we make students learn about sex from
their ancient science teacher or dull football coach, talking to Mom and Dad will be nearly
painless.
Besides assuaging parental concerns, comprehensive sexual education programs will also
ease those of students. There is overwhelming evidence that exposure to age-appropriate, factual
sexual information increases the rate of contraceptive use and lowers the age of first sexual
encounter. In an extensive study of multiple sex ed programs, the United Nations Population
Fund has found that some programs delayed initiation of sexual intercourse by 37%, reduced the
frequency of sex by 31%, reduced the number of sexual partners by 44% and increased the use of
condoms and contraception by 40% (Serenko). These statistics represent a welcome solution to
the scary world of adolescent sex: the Center for Disease Control estimates that half of all HIV
infections in the U.S. occur among young people under the age of 25, and notes that HIV
infection is the sixth leading cause of death among 15- to 24-year-olds in the U.S. In addition,
48% (of new STD cases) are among persons aged 15-24, with only three STD types
accounting for 88% of all new cases of STDs (Beiber, Horowitz, and Sanfilippo). If
adolescents learn about proper contraceptive use before they engage in sexual intercourse, they
will be significantly less vulnerable than students who have sex without any safety information.
As a matter of fact, teens who used condoms at first intercourse were 20 times more likely to
use condoms in subsequent acts (CDC), and are more likely to avoid STDs and all the other
consequences of their hormone-fueled, sex-crazed, underdeveloped brains. Although teens may

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think they know everything, they need the guidance that school-sanctioned sexual education can
provide them. If we make adolescents experience that legendary condom-on-a-banana exercise a
few of times, theyll certainly think twice before engaging in unprotected sex.
Even though most adolescents have sex for non-procreation related reasons, they are not
always successful. Teenage pregnancy is an epidemic in the United States, which has a higher
rate than most other developed countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada (OAH). To
add to the situation, the CDC has found that teen pregnancy and childbirth account for at least
9.4 billion dollars in costs to U.S. taxpayers, and that children of teenage mothers are more
likely to have lower school achievement and drop out of high school, have more health
problems, be incarcerated at some time during adolescence, give birth as a teenager, and face
unemployment as a young adult. Unprotected sexual contact and its consequences represent a
veritable end of a school career for teen parents as well, since only 50% of teen mothers receive
a high school diploma (CDC). Without a high school diploma, of course, the mothers are at a
significant disadvantage, and their children stand to suffer from the circumstances of their birth.
Fortunately, however, exposure to sexual education has been proven to lower the rate of teenage
pregnancy dramatically. According to the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the
United States, comprehensive sex education (is) associated with a 50% lower risk of teen
pregnancy, because it allows students to learn about and discuss all their birth control options
before engaging in sexual intercourse, thereby preventing unwanted pregnancies. If we can curb
the flow of teenage motherhood by teaching our children about safe sex at an early age, then we
will be able to break the cycle of uneducated mothers bringing up uneducated children and
repeating the process ad nauseam.

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Although the benefits of comprehensive sexual education have been extensively
researched and heavily praised, there are those who believe that exposing innocent children to
such mature subjects will only encourage them to experiment on their own. Instead of teaching
kids how to engage in safe, consenting, satisfying sex, some people think that we should instead
teach them to remain abstinent until marriage, and, if students arent supposed to be having sex,
then they dont need to learn about anything sexual. After all, if we tell adolescents to keep their
hands and hormones to themselves, theyll remain chaste and pure, right? Wrong. Of course,
perfect abstinence from vaginal, anal and oral sex is the most effective way to avoid pregnancy
and STIs (Brown), but a study published by the National Institute of Health stated that the
median age of sexual initiation in the United States is 17, and the average age of marriage is 26
for women and 27 for men, proving that almost all Americans have sex before marrying
(Finer), regardless of any abstinence instructions they received. Consequently, adolescents who
engage in sexual intercourse without receiving the proper instruction first suffer every
consequence that comprehensive education seeks to eradicate. Although in some cases sexual
activity outside the context of marriage (can) have harmful psychological and physical effects
(Collins), unprepared sexual encounters and their ramifications are significantly more damaging.
Moreover, the NIH finds that increasing emphasis on abstinence education is positively
correlated with teenage pregnancy and birth rates (Stanger-Hall), as well as STD and HIV rates,
because adolescents are still having sex, but are not educated about their choices. Another oftentouted reason against sexual education is that the American government supports these
abstinence-only programs, so they must be correct. While this is truethe US has spent more
than $1.5 billion in support of the programs (Kay)there is little evidence that they should give
the programs any credit at all. In fact, a 2004 government-sponsored review of abstinence-only

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education found that over 80% of common curricula contained false, misleading, or distorted
information about reproductive health (Waxman). Because abstinence programs dont provide
all the information that they should, students will be misinformed and unable to make safe
decisions about their own reproductive health. We have no hope of stopping hormonal teenagers
from having sex, but we can arm them with the information they need to protect themselves. By
exposing adolescents to comprehensive sex ed, we are effectively providing them with a
handbook for navigating the stormy waters of puberty and sexual maturity.
Despite the fact that it is easier and less embarrassing to let kids believe that babies come
from kissing, we as Americans need to educate and prepare our adolescents for the frightening
world theyve entered. The decision to engage in sexual intercourse is not to be taken lightly, but
since we can't stop adolescents from having sex, we must give them all the information they need
to make that choice. Comprehensive sexual education programs should be implemented in
schools because they accomplish just that: they provide students with the tools to make informed
decisions, to protect their sexual health, and to break the cycle of teenage parenthood. Instead of
hiding our heads in the sand and using abstinence-only programs to pretend that teenagers arent
the hormonal creatures they are, we owe them the ability to keep themselves safe. The more we
teach students about sexual health in safe, accurate learning environments, the less
misinformation theyll have. Although the schoolyard may not be the same without hushed
crowds standing around a pilfered gossip rag or sleazy novella, well be raising a generation of
sexually informed, prepared students. Somehow, I think thats a trade our country will be able to
make.

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Works Cited
"About Teen Pregnancy." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 19 May 2015. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
"Abstinence." Brown University Health Promotion. Brown University, n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
Bieber, Eric J., Ira R. Horowitz, and J. S. Sanfilippo. Clinical Gynecology. Philadelphia:
Churchill Livingstone, 2006. Print.
Collins, Chris, M.P.P. "Abstinence Only Vs. Comprehensive Sex Education." AIDS Research
Institute (2002): n. pag. Ari.ucsf.edu. University of California, San Francisco, Mar. 2002.
Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
Finer, Lawrence B., PhD. "Trends in Premarital Sex in the United States, 19542003." Public
Health Reports. Association of Schools of Public Health, n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
Kay, Julie F. "Sex, Lies & Stereotypes." Legal Momentum (2008): 2. Human Rights Program.
Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
"National Data Shows Comprehensive Sex Education Better at Reducing Teen Pregnancy than
Abstinence-Only Programs." SIECUS. N.p., Mar. 2008. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
"Patterns of Condom Use Among Adolescents:." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
"Reproductive Health and TPP." Office of Adolescent Health. Human Health Services, 3 July
2015. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
Serenko, Anna. "Sex Ed: Barriers and Benefits." Global Citizen. N.p., 30 Mar. 2014. Web. 25
Sept. 2015.
Special Investigations Division, U. S. House of Representatives, Committee on Government
Reform The Content of Federally Funded Abstinence-Only Education Programs.

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Washington, DC: Author, 2004.
Stanger-Hall, Kathrin F. "Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy Rates: Why We Need
Comprehensive Sex Education in the U.S." National Institute of Health. Public Library of
Science, n.d. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.
"State Policies on Sex Education in Schools." NCSL. N.p., 13 Feb. 2015. Web. 18 Oct. 2015.
"Why We Need Sexuality Education." Victoria State Government. N.p., 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 16
Oct. 2015.
Yadeta, Tesfaye Assebe. "Factors Affecting Parent-Adolescent Discussion on Reproductive
Health Issues in Harar, Eastern Ethiopia." National Institute of Health. Hindawi
Publishing Corporation, 29 May 2014. Web. 23 Oct. 2015.