PHA-Exchange> Abstinence-only, do we have money to waste?

[Claudio]

MINNESOTA: STATE'S ABSTINENCE-ONLY SEX EDUCATION DOESN'T WORK ANY BETTER, REPORT SAYS 

www.aegis.org
Star Tribune (01.04.04) - Monday, January 05, 2004 
Josephine Marcotty 

An independent study commissioned by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) found the state's $5 million abstinence-only sex education program is not working. At three schools with the ENABL (Education Now and Babies Later) program, of 413 junior high students surveyed, the rate of sexual activity increased from 5.8 percent to 12.4 percent in 2001-2002 - a pattern similar to that of kids statewide. The rate of students reporting they would likely have sex before high school graduation increased from 9.5 percent to 17 percent.

 
Critics of ENABL questioned why MDH waited six months after the report's completion to post it, with little fanfare, on its Web site last week. The 91-page report recommends including more information about contraception in the program. Of 2,500 Minnesota parents surveyed, only one-fifth wanted abstinence-only education and 77 percent wanted their kids to know about contraception. 
"We take it very seriously," said Carol Woolverton, assistant commissioner of MDH. But it is too early to say whether the department will find ways to reach sexually active kids with information about contraceptives, she said. ENABL - paid for with state and, mostly, federal money - would lose federal funding if it changes from abstinence-only. 

 
The five-year-old ENABL program is coordinated by schools, local organizations and parents. It primarily consists of a five- hour curriculum including statistics, reasons why kids should wait until they are adults or married to have sex, and suggestions on how to avoid sex and risky situations where sex might occur. It also encourages them to talk to their parents about sex. The program includes information about condom failure rates but nothing on their efficacy for preventing pregnancy and disease. 

The findings raise the question of whether sexually active kids are getting the information they need to avoid pregnancy and STDs, said Connie Schmitz, the Professional Evaluation Services consultant who headed the study. However, Minnesota Family Council President Tom Prichard said ENABL is not working because its abstinence message does not go far enough: Kids should wait until marriage to have sex - not just until adulthood - and should abstain from any physical or sexual contact. 

On a happy note, researchers said that between 1998 and 2001, kids surveyed showed a greater willingness to talk to their parents about sex. 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://phm.phmovement.org/pipermail/phm-exchange-phmovement.org/attachments/20040205/1540caa5/attachment-0001.html>