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This is an old college position essay that I wrote for my english class. For the whole semester we researched our chosen issue so I've done a ton of research till I was sick of it. The day to turn it it finally came and I got the result I worked for. My result was a 196 out of 200 points. Yes my Position Essay was worth 200 points and I nailed it. And now I would like to share it with anyone who decides to read it. I have to warn you it is long. Like 5 pages long. Other then that it's one of my best essays. I hope you enjoy and leave a comment.
I’m sure most people know about teens as young as thirteen engaging in sexual activity. I’m so sure because we take in so much information a day from TV, radio, the news, and the internet. To many it’s very upsetting and disturbing to hear. It can be a parent’s and teen’s worst nightmares come true. People are fighting the sex education system because of the young age groups they teach it to. Sex education has been around since the sexual revolution in the late 1960s to help young people learn about sex. It’s an issue that has a history with anyone who’s becoming sexual active. Doing this kind of history research really helped obtained a solid position with the sex education school system. I can honestly say I know instead of I think. I can say I know sex education should be permitted in all high schools. I really think we need to break down this taboo on sex and get over these sexual barriers. When time comes parents have to be ready for the talk with their sons and daughters. I believe if we make sex education programs acceptable in all states then we could give teens without parents a chance to learn about the dangers of sex. There are a variety of problems besides teens catching STDs and or becoming pregnant.
I really think if we encourage sex education that there would be significant changes in teen’s sexual behavior. They are constantly being blamed for the rise in abortions and teen pregnancies. Kirby Anderson (2005) says, “Teaching teens about the mechanics of sex without informing them of the moral and psychological implications of engaging in sex merely encourages teens to experiment sexually”. He believes abstinence is the way to go because it is 100% effective against preventing STDs and pregnancies. These maybe true but not too many teens want to wait until they are married to have sex. When teens are going through puberty and peer pressure they end up making poor decisions. Chances are when a teen hits puberty he or she will feel those strange sexual urges and may not know what to do or how to handle it. This is why teens are in desperate need of sex education. They teach you what you should do in a sexual situation if you can’t wait. What they don’t know can hurt them and we see these effects on the news, TV, and in movies like Juno. Kirby had come across Barbara Dafoe Whitehead, a journalist who also believed sex education was wrong. Whitehead had chosen New Jersey out of the seventeen states that allowed sex education for analysis. Her analysis was that sex education had left out issues such as abstinence, marriage, self control, and virginity. Instead of using these flaws to bring down sex education they should be used to strengthen the weakness. I just think it’s just pointless trying to fight an education program that teaches teens important information about sex.
The fact is not all sex education programs are perfect. There was a lot of information on the success and failures of the sex education school systems. There are reports of both increases and decreases on sexual activity among teens in the U.S. So it’s hard to say if sex education is right for everyone. It has shown reductions in unprotected sex and increase in use of condoms and other forms of contraception (Finger 2005, p. 4). Even abstinence only programs are fighting to stay in school districts. Schools that have abstinence only programs are rare because people argue that they are inaccurate or incomplete. Some are even being removed from their schools. When compared studies have shown that both abstinence only and sex education are inconclusive (Roleff 2001, p. 1). If they are inconclusive then why are my other sources saying they show signs of success? I find myself asking the same question but I guess this is why it’s so arguable. I don’t think its right to deprive teens of an education that can save their lives. It’s not their fault that they don’t know anything about sex. We should leave the two programs alone and let them teach because they are trying to help.
It’s the difficult questions about sex. Most parents do not know what to say to their teens about sex (Bennet 2008, p. 1). Since basic sex questions are explicit it makes talking about sex uncomfortable for both the parent and teen. The problem is lack of knowledge and sex taboos. This taboo and lack of knowledge can be solved with a simple sex education course. Not to mention most teens don’t have parents now a days. Teens without parental teachers really miss out. I’d have to argue that we can’t leave everything up to the parents. It may sound wrong but if a teen doesn’t have parents or has parents that don’t get around to the talk then their chances of having a normal sex life decreases. They are forced to find out the hard way and it’s just something teens shouldn’t have to bear especially at their age.
It’s more then just lack of information that teens are having sex. It’s the easy accessibility to sexual information such as the internet, TV, advertisements, music, radio, and music that influence them. A more biological answer shows that hormones are involved as well. I think it’s way more likely that hormones plus TV and internet is more believable then a failing sex education system. All sex education does is give teens right information on safety and protection. Today’s teens and technology are inseparable. They know a heck of a lot more about the internet then most parents over thirty. Sex is being advertised by any way necessary and can be so easily accessed by anyone. A little more restriction on any sexual advertisement should be there because teens and even children can accidently be exposed to some explicit material inappropriate for their age. I believe any parent would feel better now that their sons and daughters are a little safer from any sexual material that is advertised.
The people who oppose sex education the most would be the people of the the Catholic and Christian faith. They have a little more to say on sex education’s failure. They believe that the traditional values of chastity and abstinence have been sacrificed for new attitudes of sexual permissiveness inherent in these sex education programs (Likoudis, 1999, p. 1). Likoudis claims that they are destructive sex education classes that should be removed from the schools with the replacement of chastity and abstinence instead. Even the Vatican opposes any form of sex education and calls on all parents to oppose and to remove destructive programs (Likoudis, 1999, p. 2). The Church believes it is the parents moral right to supervise and control the sexual education of their children. In 1995 a document was made by the Vatican called The Truth and Meaning of Human Sexuality. The new document excludes any class room sex instruction. I’m of Catholic faith and I completely disagree with what both Likoudis and the Vatican said. Not everyone believes in God or has good parents. This is only something believers want to hear. The Church should be more open towards people both believers and non-believers alike.
I honestly feel that if sex education doesn’t expand to every state in America, today’s teens and future teens will literally be screwed. It’s a serious issue because teens especially young teens are too immature and irresponsible to be trusted with infants. Instead of focusing all of their attention on school they now have an even bigger responsibility. They are just not qualified yet for the full time job of a parent. The chances of catching STDs or AIDS are even greater unless they were properly informed. Should teens attend a sex education program? I’d say yes because if teens are doing then I see no reason not to educate. In a world of sexual advertisements and ill informing parents seems like both the right and smart thing to do. Hitting puberty with the rush of hormones is inevitable. Instead of removing sex education and abstinence only programs I think we should combine them (Roleff, para 3). It would give them more options besides protection and educate them on all facts about sex.
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Posted by Jose007 on 2009-07-01 00:13:48 | Rating: | Views: 72
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