Running Head: SEX EDUCATION

Abstinence-Only Sex Education and its effect on American Youth

Mackenzie Smith
Rowan-Cabarrus Community College

SEX EDUCATION

Abstinence-Only Sex Education and its Effect on American Youth

As a college sophomore I can clearly recall taking Sex Education in high-school. My

class silenced their giggles and laughs as our teacher went over unintended pregnancy, STIs,
and condoms. If you went to a North Carolina public school, like I did, you probably had a
similar class. A class where abstinence, above all else, is stressed. While many states cover
abstinence along with healthier alternatives, there are many still that stress abstinence as being
the only safe (physically and mentally) method of approaching sexuality. 50% of the United
States notes the importance of abstinence over the importance of simply practicing responsible
and safe behaviors (Guttmancher, 2014 ). Why should we educate our youth with a non-realistic,
religiously-based, and outdated lesson in sexuality? I believe we should give young adults the
tools they need to make safe decisions regarding sex, including abolishing abstinence-only and
sex negative education.
While there are many organizations pushing for Abstinence-Only education (Abstinence
Works, National Abstinence Education Association, Choosing the Best, etc.) there are just as
many working against this movement (SIECUS, Advocates for Youth, American Civil Liberties
Union ect.). I would assume the main goal of abstinence programs would be to delay teenage
sexual activity; the front page of abstinenceworks.org claims that Unlike other approaches that
focus on contraceptive use, abstinence-centered education promotes primary prevention and
teaches vital life skills that empower teens to avoid all risk by choosing abstinence. (Abstinence
Works, 2014). In a study done by Professor Rebecca Maynard it was revealed that, when

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compared to schools that taught comprehensive sex education, Abstinence-only programs didnt
affect the point at which teenagers decided to become sexually active. Nor did it influence the
decisions to use condoms at the first sexual encounter (GSE News, 2014). While there was a
difference in the attitudes towards delaying sexual activity, in the long-run, there was no
difference between the abstinence-education groups and the control group (group exposed to
comprehensive education) especially as the participants grew older. However, when it comes to
teenage pregnancy, abstinence-only education has actually been found harmful. Between the
years 2012 to 2013 there was a 10% decrease in teen pregnancies. In 1995 there were 56 births
per 1,000 females between the ages of 15-19: in 2013 that number dropped to 26.6 births per
1,000 females (Office of Adolescent Health, 2014). Can that decline be attributed to abstinence
education? Not Necessarily. About 86% of this decrease is due to large scale improvements in
contraception use and decline in nonuse (Advocates for Youth, 2014). So who is hurt by
Abstinence-only/Abstinence-centered education hurt? The states that adhere to it most often and
their teenage women. States like Alabama, Mississippi (where sex-ed isnt required to be
medically accurate), Texas, and Arkansas are all in the top ten list of teen pregnancy rates in the
United States (The National Campaign, 2014). All of these areas have in common an abstinencecentered, sex only within marriage, sex ed. Program (Guttmacher, 2014).
It is estimated that there are nearly 9 million LGBT adults in the United States (Hoffman,
2014). Despite what some might argue, homosexuality has been prevalent for centuries and
occurred in places such as Ancient Greece and Africa (Jigour, 2014). These differing sexualities
exist (whether you agree with them or not) so why is it that the majority of states dont include
sexual orientation in their programs? Heteronormativity is the cultural bias in favor of oppositesex relationships of a sexual nature, and against same-sex relationships of a sexual nature.

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Because the former are viewed as normal and the latter are not, lesbian and gay relationships are
subject to a heteronormative bias. (Head, 2014). Often programs that stress abstinence-only will
not even cover sexual orientation in their lessons; and, in the case of Texas and Alabama, the
lessons should only look upon different sexual orientations as negative (Guttmacher, 2014).
These heteronormative programs simply dont coincide with todays population; they assume
that every child that enters the classroom will be heterosexual and wish to participate in
heterosexual relationships. What about transgender teens? Or asexual and aromantic? I wonder
how many young adults would have been spared the confusion of their own self-discovery if an
educator had just said These groups of people exist and this is what they need to watch out for
when it comes to sex.
I see the biggest argument against comprehensive education stemming from religionspecifically Christianity. Fornication, as defined in biblical terms, is the act of having a sexual
relationship before marriage. Adultery is the act of having sexual relations with someone other
than your spouse. In Galatians 5:19-5:21 in the King James Version of the bible fornication and
adultery is compared to alcoholism, physical fighting, and murder (Biblehub, 2014). One of the
wonderful things about my country is that we all have rights to certain freedoms: Freedom of
Speech, Freedom of the Press, and Freedom of Religion. Freedom of Religion means none of us
can be prosecuted for our own personal faith or lack thereof. I believe this also means that public
places should be void of any one specific religion as our population is so diverse. This also
applies to public schools. Abstinence until marriage seems to be rooted directly in Christianity,
and it is very unlikely that all of the children taught in a classroom will identify with the exact
same faith. Should we hold an atheist young adult to Christian morals? Absolutely not. We

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should teach each student scientific and social facts, devoid of religion, to ensure that each
individual receives the most informational and unbiased education possible.
Weve all heard the beauty pageant saying, Children are the future! As clich as it may
be, this is undeniably the truth. Just as we provide them with information on Literature, Algebra,
and American History, shouldnt we education them as extensively as possible about their own
sexuality? Sex has always been stigmatized in the US and this has helped fuel misconceptions
and misinformation that can cause unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. I
believe if we give teenagers the tools to make responsible sexual decisions and stop shaming
sexual activity we will have happier and healthier young adults.

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References
State Policies in Brief as of November 1st, 2014- Sex and HIV education. (2014,
November 1). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/spibs/spib_SE.pdf
Abstinence Works. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://www.abstinenceworks.org/
GSE News. (2014, January 1). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://www.gse.upenn.edu/node/477
Hoffman, J. (2014, July 21). How Many Americans Are Lesbian, Gay or Bisexual?
Retrieved November 17, 2014, from http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/press/how-manyamericans-are-lesbian-gay-or-bisexual/
Jigour, J. (n.d.). LGBT Through the Ages. Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://eds.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.rccc.edu/ehost/detail/detail?vid=2&sid=a541ff46-8efb-4b92bb6dfa85f21e9bee@sessionmgr4001&hid=4108&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==#db=tth&
AN=96230071
Head, T. (n.d.). What Is Heteronormativity and How Is It Damaging? Retrieved
November 17, 2014, from
http://civilliberty.about.com/od/gendersexuality/g/heteronormative.htm
The Truth About Abstinence-Only Programs. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/publications/publications-a-z/409-the-truth-about-abstinenceonly-programs#references

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Teen Birth Rate | The National Campaign. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://thenationalcampaign.org/data/compare/1701
The Office of Adolescent Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2014,
November 13). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from http://www.hhs.gov/ash/oah/adolescenthealth-topics/reproductive-health/teen-pregnancy/trends.html
Galatians 5 KJV. (n.d.). Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://biblehub.com/kjv/galatians/5.htm

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