Sex Education and the American Family Essay

Human sexuality can be fascinating, complex, contradictory, and sometimes frustrating. Sexuality is interwoven into every aspect of being human; therefore, having knowledge about sex is as essential as having education about human anatomy. However, it is highly recommended to pay close attention when sex education is delivered to youths. (Donatelle 171)

The role of educating students about the importance of healthy sexual relationships has fallen hard and fast on public schools. School aged boys and girls are not receiving information from their parents on what decisions they should make in regards to sex. Parents are finding this topic of conversation too taboo to breach and as a result, students are getting what little information they are receiving from school. Less then half of school aged adolescents talk to their parents about sex and abstinence (Smith, 2005).

“The ideal of what historian Anne Higonnet calls the Romantic Child, our modern image of a naturally asexual, pure child, is at the heart of century-long conflicts over sex education. By definition, the romantic child’s innocence depends on protection from sexuality” (Talk About Sex 13). Parents, in general, do not feel at ease thinking about their children having sex, nor do they want to encourage them to do so. The fact that most parents are not comfortable talking about the subject with their children only increases the importance of doing so in our schools.

Social reformer and American abolitionist, Frederick Douglass wisely stated, “It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.” This correlates with our discussion this week. Parental communication about sex can be vital in promoting healthy sexuality in children. Morawska, et al., (2015) found that the majority of the parents wished their own parents had talked to them about sexuality more than they did, and there were some topics they felt uncomfortable discussing with their children. Parental communication can affect a couple’s ability to communicate with their children about sex.

Parents, especially from minority groups who did not have the opportunity to pursue and education, often times do not have the proper resources or time to give advise to their children about sexual health. A research study in the form of a survey in six Boston high schools was conducted about what high school students think about teen pregnancy prevention. The sample of students consisted of half female and half male. The study concluded that 32% of students wanted more parental communication about sexual health to prevent unwanted pregnancies. This shows that if parents were more involved in their children’s lives, they would be influences positively to make the right choices when choosing to have sex at a young age (Hacker, 1999). It may seem impossible for some parents to talk to their teens about sex due to their schedules, education, or simply embarrassment, but having a thirty-minute conversation about sex is a lot better than having their children give birth to children.

Sex Education in schools remains one of the most avoided questions in modern-day society, yet, as more years pass, the Sex Education debate only grows in strength and importance. Stuart C. Reid, the author of “Sex Education is a Parental Responsibility,” believes that Sex Education is the last topic schools, especially schools occupied by pre-teens and young teenagers, should be considering. Within Reid’s article, he addresses the direct disadvantage of Sex Education through a number of smaller instances: the immoralizing of children without parental consent. Reid directs his article towards parents, namely parents voting for a new bill against the incorporation of Sex Education in Utah schools. In interest of reaching his audience, Reid uses

There are bouncy bosoms on television, Mary Boo Peep’s seductive behavior towards Woody in Toy Story, and lyrics that promote promiscuity blaring on pop radio. The fact that sex sells is something we cannot avoid, it’s fed to us from all media outlets. Parents and caregivers have the option to shelter or to educate children on what they will face. “Many parents are rather shocked at how early I suggest they should start talking to their kids about sex,” states Hickling, “But what I also hear from parents is ‘I want to be first.’ If you want to be first, you have to make sure you’re first; otherwise, kids will get their information and attitudes from other children and the media” (Buni). While conservative abstinence-only supporters have stated “Why on Earth would you talk to your kids about sex? Kids aren’t sexual. The information is useless to them at best. At worst, it robs them of their innocence and makes them curious about sex when they shouldn’t be. Sex is a topic for adults, not teens, and certainly not little kids” (Buni). Still, over eighty percent of high schools teach abstinence as the most effective method of safe sex (HRF) and according to the National Abstinence Education Association, there is a growing body of research that confirms that abstinence-centered education decreases sexual initiation. According to conservatives, these social conventions of refraining from sexual talk would provide young people with

Sexual education seems to have always been a controversial topic in America. A large part of that is due to most of America holding dear to it’s heart strongly conservative views while also seemingly contradicting that by blatantly adding gratuitous sex scenes to the most basic of TV shows and by slapping obscene titles on the front covers of magazines that sit at checkout at the grocery store. So if sex is everywhere, why isn’t anyone talking about it? In particular why is nobody educating teens on it? Although the latter question may seem like a bit of a stretch it still rings true in many ways. Many college students in America are often confused about their own body’s anatomy or even how sex is supposed to work with another partner. This is largely in part because a majority of American teenagers are taught abstinence only sexual education, or do not receive any sex ed at all. This is unacceptable in a country as advanced as America; at the very least we should leave students feeling confident about themselves and their sexual decisions as well as teaching students proper ways to protect themselves during sexual activity through the use of a comprehensive sexual education program.

According to Pastor, when parents describe “sex” to their adolescent children, it is in terms of how babies are made (132). As seen here, even sexual health conversations with parents primarily discuss puberty in terms of reproduction. For TR, puberty was described as the “coming of age.” Rather than explaining all of the hormonal and behavioral changes (e.g. sexual attraction) associated with puberty, her parents primarily emphasized what it meant to have your period and how she could potentially get pregnant. This illustrates how even parents stress the importance of reproduction when engaging in sexual activity. In reality, hormonal fluctuations during puberty and adolescence may actually contribute to one’s desire for engaging in sexual behavior solely for pleasure, which parents fail to

Because of this, many teenagers become pregnant before they graduate highschool. Anna also receives pressure from her father’s side due to the extreme conservativeness. Their christian beliefs strongly influence the way they teach their children about sex and contraceptives. Anna never learned about sex or contraceptives from her parents, and her father was reprimanded by his own mother when Anna’s sister became pregnant at a young age and before marriage. Instead of asking why he didn’t educate her properly on safe sex, she told him he should have kept a closer eye on her. Anna ended up learning about sex and contraceptive use through friends and the internet and now practices safe sex with

Parents want their children to practice abstinence for their health and for a healthy marriage, but would prefer schools encourage and teach abstinence. Many parents do not feel comfortable talking about sex and remaining abstinent . “Some researchers have found that when parents talk to their adolescents about sexuality, adolescents are more likely to delay intercourse and if they have intercourse, to use contraception and have fewer partners.” (Hutchinson Mk, Jemmott JB 3rd, Jemmott LS, Braverman P, Fong GT, 2003) ; “when parents talk about these topics , they tend to lecture possibly inhibiting open communication. “( Jaccard J, Dittus PJ Gordon VV, 2000 ) Parents who feel more confident in their communication with their children have an open, healthy and receptive conversation.

Teenage sexual activity has sparked an outcry within the nation. With such activity comes a high price. Studies have shown that there has been a significant rise in the number of children with sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), emotional and psychological problems, and out-of-wedlock childbearing. Sex has always been discussed publically by the media, television shows, music and occasionally by parents and teachers in educational context. Teens hear them, and as the saying goes, “monkey see, monkey do”, they are tempted to experiment with it. Therefore, it is important for every teenager to be aware of the outcome associated with premature-sex. If students are educated about the impact of

The reason parents are fearful of the sex talk is because they cannot or do not want to picture their child having sex, even though it is a possibility, and the child will feel embarrassed to have their parents talk to them about sex. Because of these feelings, the talk repeatedly becomes delayed, and it either does not happen at all or it happens too late after their child has already had sex. “In the latest study on parent-child talks about sex and sexuality, researchers found that more than forty percent of adolescents had had intercourse before talking to their parents about safe sex, birth control or sexually transmitted diseases” (Park).

Over many years, the views of premarital sex have been becoming increasingly more tolerant. The whole reasoning behind why sex was created is lost in the minds of society and used for pleasure and own physical satisfaction. There are negative consequences for these actions leading to guilt, depression, and numbness to intimate relationships. Having strong parental influence can also strongly affect the outcomes of adolescence and causal sex. Additionally, marriage can be

First of all, the main reason children have sex prematurely is because they are curious. Students lack knowledge about sex because they haven’t been taught about it, however, when children know the consequences behind their actions and the risks they are taking they less likely to want to have sex. If we take the time to show kids what it is like to take care of a child as a teenager