Two approaches to sexual education that are evident include: “comprehensive sex education and education on abstinence only”. In comprehensive sex education, human sexuality is described as a physical development. The approach focuses mostly on informing the youth that early pregnancies and sexually transmitted can result due to irresponsible sexual behaviors. It aims at lessening the frequency at which the young people have sex that is not safe through supporting the use of contraceptives. In the abstinence approach, however, education is based on teaching the youth that sexual intercourse is only appropriate when someone is married.
Utilization of contraceptives such as, contraceptive pills and condoms is dejected (Collins et al. , 2002). 4. 1 Abstinence Only Sex Education A great number of movements in the United States such as, Women for America, the Medical Institute for Sexual Health (MISH), STOP Planned Parenthood International, the Family Research Council, the Eagle forum, National Coalition for Education and Focus on the Family, support this approach. According to them, premarital sex is improper whilst abstinence is the only alternative towards the control of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and teenage pregnancies.
They are also against the use of condoms as they are not effective in deterrence of pregnancies and STIs. Besides, they claim that if one insists on having sex before marriage, he or she may suffer severe consequences. They are also against the education on sexuality because it makes youth engage in sex at an early age and that the only solution is to teach about abstinence only (Collins et al. , 2002). According to the Women for America Group, sexuality is a concern in the public health sector.
They reason that occurrences such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, and unwanted pregnancies come about as a result of irresponsible sex that is not coupled to love and therefore, people need to be taught significance of sex, because they already have the information about sex. The Focus on the Family, on the other hand, complain about inconsistency in the health program, because in cases where people use tobacco, drugs and alcohol, they are advised to stop using the items; however in sex, “condoms are used to reduce the risk of unwanted pregnancies and STDs”.
Furthermore, these groups accept as true the traditional ways and religious perspectives because they go in hand with the teachings of abstinence and that they have considerable good effects. Women for America cite that religious morals have been indicated to decrease the rate of engaging in sexual activity at an early age (Collins et al. , 2002). Moreover, the youth have acknowledged the importance of the religious values in making a decision of engaging in sex or not.
Therefore, the abstinence-only advocates believe that the abstinence only approach to education has lowered down the rate of early sex among the young people and the occurrence of sexually transmitted infections; citing the rare occurrence of pregnancy amongst the teenagers and abortion during the 1990s. Reports indicate that there is a change in trend in the utilization of the contraceptives: during the 1990s there was a higher rate oral contraceptives use but later users preferred condoms over the former.
Because of this, in 1995, young people who were active sexually could easily get pregnant compared to those in 1988. Similarly, the rate of teenage pregnancies went high in 1995 than in 1988 regardless of the high rate of condom use. Hence the conclusion that the low rate of pregnancy among the teens is as a result of acknowledging the importance of the abstinence-only information. MISH perceives itself to be a chief advocate for the abstinence only education and it has even gone to the extent of disapproving the “abstinence-plus perspective” (Collins et al.
, 2002). It has suggested an education curricula for use up to high school from kindergarten, in the same way the Sexuality and Information Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), has done. MISH claims that its way of sexual education focuses on “moral capabilities”, for instance the ability to distinguish between incorrect and correct which SIECUS doesn’t, since it concentrates on telling the youth that there is pleasure in having sex and that homosexuality can be likened to heterosexuality.
MISH insists that education institutions should focus on ethical aspects such as self-respect and conscientiousness as well as control, and sidelines the SIECUS structure which says that it is appropriate to go for moral standards whose outcomes are well assessed. MISH on safe sex argues that this value is contrary to the abstinence-only teaching; therefore they prefer focusing on how the contraceptives are not effective. According to MISH, parents should guide children on sexual matters because when the teachers do it in schools, it contradicts what the parents teach (Collins et al. , 2002).