As of 2007, the birth rate of sexually active 15-19-year-olds in the U.S. was almost ten times that of the Netherlands. Also, contraceptive use among the same group was nearly six times higher in the Netherlands than in the U.S., which is falling far behind other modern nations in contraceptive use as seen in this graph.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyqqndsHPEM
In contrast, the Netherlands has a much more informative sexual education program which not only teaches teens how to use contraceptives, but also tells them how to deal with difficult sexual situations and feelings. It's amazing how far a little useful knowledge will go. This video on sexual education in Holland shows sexual education as a normal, informative, and shameless process where children are encouraged to ask questions and, as far as I can tell, are given all the necessary resources to make informed sexual decisions.
http://www.teachers.tv/videos/holland-sex-education-2
In Holland, as pointed out in the video, not only is sex a less taboo topic in school, but it also seems to be talked about more at home between children and their parents.
With such a stark contrast between the teen birth rates of the U.S. and the Netherlands, when will the U.S. finally reform its public sexual education system to teach children what they need to know to make healthy decisions? When will the U.S. take a more modern view on sex as a nation? Sex is a natural part of life, and trying to contain teen's raging hormones instead of equipping them to make safe decisions hasn't worked in the past.
-Ryan Cuscaden
I think the video of sex education in Holland was very interesting. The solution to the high birth rates in the U.S. seems obvious after watching the video. However, the U.S. still hasn't reformed it's sex education programs. I believe the U.S. has continually changed it's views on sex and sex education over the past decades. It may be a small, slow, gradual change, but I think there is some hope that the U.S. can reach a more comprehensive, less taboo form of sex education for young teens. Obama's new health care law includes $375 million for sex education. Maybe this will help lower the rate of teen pregnancy in the U.S.
ReplyDelete-Jessie Pietroburgo
I was completely disgusted when I heard some of the misinformation the kids today are receiving from schools in the first video. Trying to scare kids out of participating in sexual activity doesn’t work; teens see themselves as invincible. It’s like telling a toddler not to touch the hot stove. As soon as you turn around they are going to do it just to prove that they can. We all know what happens, they get burned. I don’t understand why we are setting our teens up to get burned. If you give them the “true” information and they decide not to use it, then in my opinion that’s on them. I did however really like how the kids in the Netherlands made a game and quizzed each other over the information. That seems to be an efficient method of teaching children. They can go learn the information on their own (so if it’s the first time they’re every hearing about it there won’t be quite as big of a shockwave) and then come back together and reinforce the information in a fun way. Nobody wants to sit and listen to an adult awkwardly talk about sex. If the teachers aren’t comfortable talking about it in front of others, then there is NO way teens are going to be comfortable talking about it. We need to better prepare our teachers, so they can do a better job reaching our students. I am by no means letting the parents off the hook, but some parents just aren’t around so I think the education received at school must be equipped to make up the difference.
ReplyDeleteLauren
I absolutely agree that the lack of real sex education is to blame for the high teen birth rate, STI, and other sex statistics in the US. We can not ignore a problem and expect it to go away in time. As a society, we need to petition for real sex eduction taught in schools. Rather than assume parents will talk to their children so it is not the school's responsibility, we need to accept that currently. sex is a taboo topic and quite honestly parents are not talking. As a generation uncovering the truth, I can only hope by the time we are parents that we change this and talk to our own kids. While it is great to aspire to be abstinent, like the video says, 90% of teens break that promise. Like Lauren said, teens think they are invincible. As a society, we are prone to thinking we are invincible. We text and drive, drink and drive, eat horribly, etc.. Then, we we suffer the consequences, we sulk "Why me?" Well, it is time that we all take personal responsibility for ourselves and that the US take responsibility for it's youth so we don't have to ask that question anymore. It works in the Netherlands, so it can work here.
ReplyDelete-Alison