Condom Distribution with Sex Education in High Schools The Right Choice
... These alarming figures unfortunately illustrate that sexuality among teen-agers occurs at a young age, especially during high school years. This fact raises the idea as to whether contraception is being used for safe sex among so-called “immature” adolescents, and addresses the controversial question: Does condom distribution and sexual education in high school really promote safe sex or just give students an excuse to engage in sexual activity? The debate on condom distribution was brought to the public limelight in the early 1990’s, “Partly because of the nation’s concern about adolescent unprotected intercourse and its consequences…” (Kirby 280). ... With so many teens becoming nothing more than statistics, programs are necessary to educate and promote safe sex. ... Education on sexuality within the school system provides one possible means of prevention that health care professionals and scientists have recommended and studied (Jacobs, Wolf 91). ... For instance, “Some schools provide condoms through school-based clinics; others train teachers and counselors to provide them, and some provide them through dispensing machines” (Kirby 284). Most schools that use these methods to attempt prevention, advocate that students need to receive information and counseling before receiving condoms. Coupled with education about condoms, the contraceptives’ availability in school programs is proven to increase the amount of condom usage by students. The two basic reasons for this rise is that most students who are well informed will realize “that using condoms is the proper thing to do if having sex”…and because it “will reduce the discomfort many youth experience when they have to buy condoms at a drug store” (284). To further demonstrate the effectiveness of condom distribution in schools with programs/clinics, Douglas Kirby conducted a study at a high school in Muskegon, Michigan. This school, which was one of four researched, “implemented a strong sex education program, provided counseling on sexual issues, gave pregnancy prevention a high priority in the school-based clinic, and issued vouchers for free contraceptives at a nearby family planning clinic” (285). As expected, teen-agers in this school were found to use protection (both condoms and oral contraceptives) more often than students in schools that didn’t have a program. Results also showed that even though there was an increase of education and contraceptives in the school, the rate of sex among these teens did not grow. If students, who are exposed to school-based programs, are not having more sex, there should be no reason why all schools don’t implement programs. However, the controversy still exists in that there are those who feel that distributing condoms is not necessary in high school or even the right place to be doing so.