I feel that only in high schools they should be given out. They should only be given out after a sex ed class/seminar and they should be limited to 3 per student for a once a year class/seminar.

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"If you know from whence you came there is no limit to where you can go." 'Frederick Douglas'

i think they should give them out to high school students. you can't judge everyone's mentality level on age alone (because I know some 30yrolds. who act worse then my goddaughter). also, it would be nice to know that the older folks do care whether or not safe sex is being practiced in the home as opposed to them sneaking and doing it and not having the proper gear (if you know what I mean).

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Yes, condoms & birth control pills should be given out in schools. Forget the moral aspect for a second. STDs and pregnancy are health issuesas well and if the mechanics of reproduction are taught then ALL ASPECTS STD prevention & protection and pregnancy prevention should be taught.

High school students are not the only ones who get pregnant. A girl an start her cycle as young as NINE, that's FOURTH GRADE y'all. I know we don't want to think about a 9-, 10- or 11-year-old having sex & getting pregnant but it happens. These things need to be taught if not by the PARENTS then by the school.

I'm glad to know I'm in the company of responsibile parents who teach these issues at home. It's a darn shame that school employees have to pick up the slack for some parents. If given a choice, I'd much rather have my tax dollars pay for a comprehensive STD & pregnancy prevention program than for a day care center in a middle or high school.

[This message has been edited by 12dn94dst (edited May 15, 2001).]

I understand where you and everyone else is coming from completely. I've worked in the school system before and knowing that there are educators that are posting as well, we've seen many cases where parents are just not taking the responsibility that they should for their children. As a former educator in an elementary school, I've had to take up the slack for a parent that doesn't take responsibility (until the child gets into serious trouble that is -- then they want to scream at the teacher). I've pulled our babies to side, combed heads, given that extra tutoring, bought clothes,...

I know that children are growing up fast. I mentored a 4th grader (10 yrs old)that was as tall as I am with the whole package, and trust me, I am not a short woman. However, if I worked in a middle school or high school, then I would view my responsibility as to educate children about safe sex, but not giving out BCs. If I noticed that there was a child that seemed verrrry curious, I'd have to have a "safe" talk with them, to let them know that I care about them, and I am there for them, and to talk to them about making sure that they use condoms, etc. if this is what they plan on doing.

Ideally, I wish that they would wait until they are married, or that their parents would take a more proactive role, however, I realize that this is not an ideal world. But I still don't think that the school is the place to pass out BCs.

This is a very valid point and I agree somewhat. I agree that sex education should be taught in schools other than Highschool such as Junior high or middle school (4th or 5th grade.) However, I would not issue condomns to anyone unless you were in highschool (a teenager.)



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"If you know from whence you came there is no limit to where you can go." 'Frederick Douglas'

what's your rationale for waiting until high school? i'm not saying send the 4th graders home with a bag full of condoms, jelly, foam, etc., just have them available in the nurse's (do schools still have nurses? they've cut funding for everything else) or principal's office.

When you asked the question of rationale, my first thought went to my 12 year old niece. Last week she told her mother that she was going to the mall with her (girl)friend. When my brother went to go pick her up she was caught at the mall with a sixteen year old boy that was her friends older brother. I know she is starting to have thoughts and ideas about the whole sex things but if you issue a condomn/pill, etc. to a child you are simply stating that now you have a choice of having sex the safe way or not.

But if you break down my last sentence it is saying to me that the nurse/school official is thinking that they are having sex anyway, why not give them the choice of having it the safe way (condom/pill) or not the safe way (no condomn/pill.)

I really hope that my 12 year old niece is thinking about getting her groove on by kissing this boy and things like that but not "going all the way" (remember that http://www.greekchat.com/forums/ubb/smile.gif ). It should probably be in the office but if someone asks for it they would have to go to some kind of class/seminar first before it is issued by a school official.

I also would like to relate that I see no problem with giving a class/seminar about sex ed in schools other than Highschools but I just don't agree with giving out the condomns.



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"If you know from whence you came there is no limit to where you can go." 'Frederick Douglas'

Good topic:

I agree that moral issues such as abstinence and sexual responsibility should be taught by parents.

I also agree that concoms should be made available at junior high and high schools to adolescents that want them. I also think that when they come to get them, they should also be given information about STIs, etc.

I do not agree that discussing sex "makes" kids have sex.

I was previously an HIV Pre/Posttest counselor and also conducted workshops in middle and high schools.

I went to a middle school where we mainly discussed "postponing" sex. There was a 6th grade class so I was doing my thing. One of the girls who was 12 was looking at me CRAZY, like not listening. I addressed her and she was basically like I shoulda caught her in like 4th grade or some shyt. She had a two year old baby at home and was pregnant with her second. I was like "Dang."

I wish there wasn't a need for them to.

Philosophically, I'd say no...but in reality...I'd say yes...I hate to see a young 12 or 13 girl pushing a stroller or saying, "my goal in life is to be a baby momma." But, I also feel that it all goes back to the home...if the right things aren't being taught there...then young girls and boys are gonna be "active" at young ages. Just thinking about it makes me want to shake my head...

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The Epitome of Beauty, Style, and Grace, Always Exemplifying Good Taste, A Zeta Woman, A Finer Woman, That's Me!

[This message has been edited by PrettyKitty (edited May 25, 2001).]

i think birth control should be available, but not necessarily given out. yeah, abstinence is the best way, but in this day and age it's not realistic. teens need to know the truth about sex and the resources they need to have a healthy and responsible sex life. Sex ed needs to be taught and then students need to know that they can confidentially go to the school nurse or counselor and get the birth control that they need.
My high school had a wellness center where we could go and get birth control and condoms, in addition to std testing and counseling. They also provided counseling on self-esteem issues, nutrition, and family problems. There needs to be more places like this where teens can find the resources that they need so that they can live healthy lives

Sounds like a great program.

YES! I am an ardent supporter of having safer sex supplies available in high school (maybe not condom dispensers in the bathrooms, but with a counselor or in the nurse's office). Not every girl lives in an urban area, where she can go to PP/free clinics to get birth control without her parents' knowledge and/or consent, and her high school might be the one place she feels comfortable getting this sort of information.

If we (as a people or society) can do anything in our power to prevent the astronomical teen pregnancy rates, we should.

Another thing we must realize is that pregnancy is only one of the consequences of sexual activity. STDs are rampant, from diseases which are curable (but may cause infertility) to incurable diseases like herpes and HPV (which is often targeted as a cause of cervical cancer later on in life).

This week marks the 20th anniversary of the CDC's reporting of GRID, which later became HIV/AIDS. 22 million people have died, most because they did not practice safer sex. We cannot sit idly by and watch young people get sick and die, because we were too vain or self-righteous to make protection available.

It's nice to promote abstinence programs, but they really don't work. Most are (and I'm not saying anything is wrong with this) faith-based, and WILL NOT mention safer sex or alternatives to sexual intercourse. A survey of people who had signed abstinence pledges such as True Love Waits discovered that the pledgees (?) had not participated in sexual intercourse, but were doing "everything but" (including anal activity) without protection! I have a HUGE BEEF with these programs. In a previous thread, I discussed my issues with them...I think it's in the AKA forum.

yes...but not haphazardly...and it should accompany some sort of BENEFICIAL sex education program not one that leaves you with the just say no as the only option...not everyone will choose not to have sex and it is ignorant of anyone to not at least make available (as opposed to handing out) condoms, pills, etc...it has been proven that regardless of how many speeches, guilt trips, and religious indoctrinations a youth goes through...ultimately they will decide for themselves and i would rather my daughter or son have protected themselves than be trying to explain to me three months later why they were afraid to ask me for money to purchase condoms or pay for pills... http://www.plauder-smilies.de/smhair.gif http://www.plauder-smilies.de/sad/bigcry.gif http://www.plauder-smilies.de/sad/ponder.gif





[This message has been edited by SableCherub (edited June 06, 2001).]