“So let us work together to reduce the number of women seeking abortions. Let’s reduce unwanted pregnancies…” stated President Obama at the Notre Dame University commencement on Saturday, May 16. Since I wholeheartedly agree with the espoused goal, I felt compelled to write on the importance of a high-quality sex education program in our schools as a means to assist us in reaching the objective. It is my hope that we can all find common ground on this issue.
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin said she does not believe in explicit sex education in schools. Her daughter, Bristol, became pregnant as a 17 year old. So let’s get real and examine some of the facts.
According to recent studies, teenage pregnancies are once again on the rise, ticking higher in 2005-2007 after a several-decade decline. According to the Guttmacher Institute (which works to advance sexual and reproductive health worldwide through research, policy analysis and public education):
• In the United States of the approximately 750,000 teen pregnancies that occur each year, 82 percent are unintended. More than one-quarter end in abortion.
• The United States continues to have one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the developed world—almost twice as high as those of England and Canada, and eight times as high as those of the Netherlands and Japan.
• Though teens in the United States have levels of sexual activity similar to levels among their Canadian, English, French, and Swedish peers, they are more likely to have shorter and more sporadic sexual relationships and are less likely to use contraceptives.
California has approximately 10 percent of the nation’s school-age children, therefore California has approximately 75,000 teenagers who get pregnant every year. According to many studies one-half of all teenagers who become pregnant drop out of school. Dropping out of school has a huge cost to the individual and to society. The children of teenage moms are more likely to drop out of school, too. Quality sex education programs in our schools can break the cycle and reduce the drop out rate for 35,000 females a year.
With a quality sex education program that does not preach about abstinence (did not work for Bristol Palin) and provides accurate age-appropriate information about contraception and the enormous responsibility of parenting, our society would benefit and abortions would be significantly reduced. In the sex education classes we must also teach that infants do not provide unconditional love (as many teen moms believe prior to giving birth), require constant vigilance, and require a monthly income to provide sustenance.
In middle and high school we must provide opportunities for students to have honest discussions about sex, pregnancy, parenting, and relationships. The in-class discussions must be presented by in a sensitive and caring manner with the most respected teachers taking on the role of the chief information provider and facilitator of the dialogue.
If we agree with President Obama about reducing abortions and unwanted pregnancies then we must, if we are in positions of leadership, advocate for a sustained focus on the objective. Children, those currently in our midst and those yet to be conceived, deserve leaders who take risks to improve the status quo. Count me in, Mr. President.
Professor, do we give out grades for this??
I am sure you might disagree.
Hehehehe
If you are arguing that schools should offer sex ed, you can save your breath. I don’t think any school district in the county is even considering an abstinence only program.
If you are suggesting that we should improve sex ed, then what deficiencies exist, what improvements do you suggest, and how can we pay for them?
I believe that California Spends more per student than any other state or very close. Having said that, Calif. I think ranks 48th
in student achievement. I would like to think that the state goals would be to improve student skills in math, science english and other important subjects, not sex education. Sex education is a matter for the family to teach their children and not the schools responsibilty. Where would this stop? Frequency ? How to select a life
spouse?
Schools should try to do better in the traditional education area and no more.
Health Alert!!
The Bush Derangement Syndrome virus has adapted and mutated into a new form known as Palin Derangement Syndrome.
Symptoms include loss of logical thought processes, impaired judgement, and an irresponsible, self-indulgent approach to one’s duties.
Yeah, and given the divorce rate and unwanted pregnancy rate, the kids are getting a great education at home. Makes sense to keep doing what doesn’t work. It’s what makes America great—freedom from education.
Joseph,
I fear you are fighting a losing battle here. The media, designers, music videos, TV programs like the Hills, and other MTV shows, movies in the theaters showing teenagers having sex, while waiting for Jason to lob their heads off, encourage sexual promiscuity. If you throw in the influx of immigrants coming into this country who have deferring views on procreating, and religions that don’t allow birth control, well you might as well go fishing instead of taking this one on.
Napper is spot on. “Sex education is a matter for the family to teach their children and not the schools responsibility.” I had to take sex education in high school, in the old days before dragons. It didn’t stop young girls from getting pregnant, or from having sex. We had to take Sex Ed in college as well. That didn’t stop anyone from having sex. It may have frightened some of us into using protection, but it didn’t stop us from having sex.
Unless, and until our society finds a way to discourage women/men from having sex without practicing birth control, this problem will never be resolved.
#3
I believe that California Spends more per student than any other state or very close.
Wow!!! What state do you live in? The state of Denial?
California ranks 47 out of 50 per student spending. Is there a correlation between student spending and educational results? I do not know, but I suspect there is.
http://www.acsa.org/MainMenuCategories/Advocacy/SchoolFunding/SpendingChart.aspx
http://www.acsa.org/FunctionalMenuCategories/Media/NewsReleases/CaliforniagetsF.aspx
“Police this morning are continuing to investigate the death of a newborn girl whose body was discovered late Monday inside an apartment complex Dumpster with her umbilical cord still attached.”
http://www.mercurynews.com/topstories/ci_12402112?nclick_check=1
Sadly, this is only one of many to come.
Though I agree that young people need to be educated about human sexuality, I remain skeptical about the ability of our public schools to change the behavior of young people away from the campus. After all, our schools have long educated students about the the horrific consequences of criminal behavior, drug use, reckless driving, and joining youth gangs, yet our prisons are overflowing, drug use remains a huge problem, teenage drivers continue to kill themselves in idiotic stunts, and youth gang membership has been on the rise for three decades.
Before we agree to invest in so politically contentious a matter as a sex education program, shouldn’t we first determine whether such a program has any chance at all of succeeding? There are compelling reasons for doubt, none more so than the fact that public education’s most glaring failure today is its inability to convince huge numbers of its students of the value of education.
Oh, and Mr. DiSalvo, that institutional failure is far more significant to this issue than was the personal failure of that underage Alaskan girl whom you so indelicately named.
Our professional educator’s approach to sex education is rich with hypocrisy. They decry “teen pregnancy,” desire to “teach” against it, and hope to prevent it, all the while using their power (instructional and administrative) to suppress the stigmatizing of pregnant teens, and investing extra tax dollars to soothe the feelings and repair the self-esteem of student mothers. It seems that after discovering how to create sin without sinners our professional educators are now asking taxpayers to believe that they can, without utilizing values and judgment, impact the discretionary behavior of immature people—something that has never been done (imagine trying to control unsportsmanlike conduct in a game—something very natural to young people, without a system of penalties).
Please note that Japan, one of the countries cited by the author as a good example, has a culture that utilizes rigid values and harsh shame to control sexual behavior, not the school system.
I remain amused that liberals see no irony in their campaign to “reduce the number of women seeking abortions.” How is it possible to see abortion as a “right” while at the same time investing time and money to control that right? I thought liberals were supposed to be against controlling rights? If a woman wants to express that particular right at will, what business is it of the governments? What authority does the government have to convince, pressure, or shame that woman from enjoying her rights? If one truly believes that aborting a fetus is a right granted by the Constitution, then wouldn’t any attempt by the government (which includes both Obama and our school system) to control or suppress that right violate the 14th Amendment (“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens…”)?
Could it be that Mr Obama doesn’t really see abortion as a right, or is it more the case that he lacks respect (or familiarity) with the Constitution?
NAPPER,
Putting attention on math, science, and English would quickly expose Mr. Di Salvo’s weakness in those areas. His continual emphasis on everything nonacademic is a self-protection strategy.
Better to play it safe and make education be about condoms, diversity, art, and interhuman spirituality.
Joe does not believe in grades or student achievement. However, based on my famous performance, well over 10,000 conquests, I am sure Mr. DiSalvo would have hired me as a lecturer.
bluefox #7:
The Association of California School Administrators is not the best possible source for information on school funding.
They have a strong incentive to claim that CA spends less than other states, and therefore that CA school funding should increase.
2004 census bureau numbers put us at 22nd out of 51. Slightly above the median, but slightly below the mean.
http://www.idra.org/IDRA_Newsletter/August_2004_Self_Renewing_Schools_Access/Texas_Continues_to_Slip_in_Education_Funding_Ranking/
If kids don’t listen to those of us who preach abstinance then why would they listen to sex educators who tell them they should be using a condom or birth control to prevent unwanted pregnancies and the transfer of STD’s.
I don’t think spending millions of dollars on sex education is going to work. Kids are going to do what they are going to do regardless of what we tell them.
Did we listen to our parents? This has been an issue for decades. The school system won’t solve it, parents won’t solve it. Kids will be kids…it’s how they become adults.
And we don’t need more nanny state opportunities.
Sounds like we don’t even need schools at all, based on some of the comments here. Might as well let kids just roam the streets until they figure out how to make some money or steal it. Kids will be kids. This blog gets more extreme every day. Is there no common sense left in SJ?
#14 and #15
So what you are saying is “Ignorance is bliss.” Smart.
#14: You are right that kids will do what kids will do. But do you really want to send them out into the world NOT knowing about STD’s, pregnancy, etc.?
Opponents of sex education like to point to pregnancy and STD rates as evidence the courses don’t work. But how high would those numbers run if the information was NOT made available? We can only speculate, but the smart money is on doing what we can to prevent teen pregnancies and STDs.
I’m against sex education in our schools.
If we talk about sex with kids then they will go out and do it. But if we don’t, they won’t ever figure it out on their own.
I am also an idiot.
frustrated finfan,
There are times when I disagree with you, but your opinions ALWAYS engender honor and respect.
Well said. As always.
I just got this from Supervisor Cortese:
If you haven’t signed up yet, I invite you to join us for our upcoming bus trip to Sacramento on June 1st. (Click here for details.) This year I have joined with the Silicon Valley Education Foundation in sponsoring the 7th Annual Sacramento Bus Trip to lobby our state leaders for school funding. There is no cost to you and the trip even includes a free lunch! We have already confirmed meetings with a number of our State officials.
We have over 130 attendees, including those from the following participating organizations:
West Coast Aquatics,
Milpitas Unified School District,
District 8 Community Roundtable,
La Raza Roundtable,
My Project Youth Connect,
San Jose Councilmember Kansen Chu, and
San Jose Chief of Police Rob Davis.
We will be joined by the following school officials:
County Superintendent Charles Weiss,
County School Board Member Joseph Di Salvo,
County School Board Member Jane Howard,
Berryessa Union School District Superintendent Marc Liebman,
Alum Rock Union Elementary School District Board Member Gustavo Gonzalez,
Milpitas Unified Elementary School District Board Member Gwan Alisantosa,
Evergreen School District Board Member Sylvia Alvarez, and
Evergreen School District Board Member Merrilee Claverie.
I urge you and your fellow community members who are concerned about the current state of affairs in our public schools, particularly with regard to funding of important programs, to join the teachers, parents, and community leaders on the bus to Sacramento on Monday, June 1st. Again, for more information, please see my website at http://www.supervisorcortese.org. For any questions or to RSVP, please call Lara McCabe at (408) 299-5030 or click here to e-mail her.
Hope to see you on the bus!
Sincerely,
Dave
Ray Alitee,
Was it at school that you learned not to cheat, steal, or be sexually reckless? Where is the lack of common sense in expecting young people to learn morality at home or (gasp!) in church? Read Mr DiSalvo’s words carefully… what he intends for his sex education program is to teach concepts that are not universally accepted by American citizens and build his program around the values of people like himself, public educators. When did we anoint public educators as the arbiters of morality? Where in the Constitution does it give the government (or any agency of it) veto power over beliefs?
How can a public school promote contraception, classify any pregnancy as unwanted, or impart a belief in the futility of abstinence, without stepping all over the parental rights of devout Catholics and others? Unlike the teaching of Evolution—a scientific truth necessary for an academic understanding of biology and human history, contraception is, like abstinence, an optional behavior, one steeped in the moral holdings of the individual, and one that, at least thus far, remains outside the authority of the government.
That said, the study of sexual reproduction is an integral part of biology, and human beings are members of the biological sphere, so human reproduction, and its risks and consequences, should rightly be part of the course. But the course must be, as are all other parts of biology, free of value judgments. No preaching; no indoctrination; no talk of rights. And for those parents that want detailed information about sex for their children, and consider public educators qualified to provide it, then by all means there should be a booklet, video course, or classroom study made available. But not at government cost. Let the believers, whatever their belief, pay for the sermon.
Finally, you ask, “Is there no common sense left in San Jose?” The answer is, yes, of course; but it has been all but consumed in the war against those who’ve worked so hard to destroy our culture and replace it with a Big Brother-type government that will tell us what to think, feel, say, and do.
Now there’s something about which every student should be warned: Big Brother and his Traveling Salvation Show.
#17 No, I’m not saying ignorance is bliss. I’m just speaking from experience. I got pregnant at 17 and I went through sex education in high school. I’m saying throwing more money at sex education doesn’t seem like the answer.
My grandmother came to the USA about 100 years ago, speaking no English. She was married at 16, had 10 kids over the next 20 years, then went to work in a mill until she retired. The kids all went to public school, learned, and became successful. She was not atypical.
How, with all the advances that have come about since then, have we come to our current state of dependency on government?