Abstinence Should Not Teach Students Safe Sex Practices

When people of today’s world turn on the television, it is easy to see why modesty is out the window. A good portion of the television shows aired have sexualized content, from sexual innuendos in jokes to portraying characters in the act. With this being a known fact, there is no doubt that sex education is important. However, schools are teaching more on the abstinence spectrum. Preaching abstinence does not teach students safe-sex practices or a clear understanding of contraception. Abstinence-only programs have the best intentions, however they are flawed due to a biased perspective. In the year of 1996, the United States government passed a bill that funded states who offered abstinence-only programming in public schools. Ever since†¦show more content†¦Schools receiving money from the government, in sponsorship of the program, must teach the students to â€Å"just say no† to sex until legally married. The schools are also not permissible to teach students safe sex and â€Å"may not mention contraception except to point out failure rates of various methods† (Brody). There are a few states that have stood up to the government and refused funds, so the state has the option to determine their own ways to teach sex education. However, 43 states still take part of the program and promote it. Millions of dollars are pulled from the government each year for the program and many schools support the abstinence-only movement. The programs have encouraging titles, such as â€Å"Teens in Control† and â€Å"ReCapturing the Vision† (Impacts). Students are greatly encouraged take virginity vows until marriage, carry an ATM card (abstinence till marriage), and conceitedly wear â€Å"purity† rings (Kelly). Programs, such as these, are used to develop a strong self-worth and to teach about the negative consequences that could occur from sexual activity, but there is a major flaw: abstinence-only programs are inefficient. S tudies have shown abstinence-only programming does not reduce the sexual activity of young people. In 2007, the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a study about the abstinence programs. The government-funded study