Sex Education In Schools

My health class is pretty informative, but there is still stuff I wonder about and stuff I think would improve health classes everywhere.  I also want to talk about a program that was used at my middle school called "Project Truth."

I went to a catholic middle school so they really stressed on abstainance. In 7th and 8th grade we had to go through the agonizing 40 minute lecture on how you will absoultly get AIDS if you have sex before marriage. It seems like we didn't learn much from that program, which really irritated me.  It was more like they were trying to scare kids into not having sex, rather than just informing them on possible risks, birth control, etc.  And it always seemed like the teacher in the program had millions of friends who all had AIDS because they didn't wait to have sex before marriage.  Kids shouldn't have to be scared of sex just because they don't have a ring on their finger!  I really think that program should be put to an end.

My sophmore year, I took health class.  It was much more informative, we talked about birth control methods, pregnancy, STD's, HIV and AIDs.  But there was some questions left unanswered.  It may seem like a dumb question, but I really want to know, can tow partners be virgins and still run the risk of HIV or AIDS without protection?  I just wondered because of needle sharing can cause HIV if the needles aren't clean.  So say your partner was pierced and maybe the place wasn't too clean, should they get tested in case the needle was infected that they were pierced with?  Another question, we learned about STD's through oral, vaginal, and anal sex, but could you also receive something from fingering?  And lastly, since health is a program to teach about these kinds of things, they want students to at least practice safe sex if any right? So, why can't some health classes pass out condoms to students who may request them while talking about birth control methods? At least they're practicing safe sex right?  But in a way I can understand, it might give teens a false sense of security and make them think it's all right to sleep with anyone.  I think some schools should consider having gynecologists come in one day to talk to teens about the tests they do, such as pap smear tests, pelvic exams, etc.  My health teacher did a good job teaching it to us, but it might be even better to have some one experienced in that field.

I would say the health programs in high school are way more informative than the one's in middle school.  It seems as though the middle schools are just sheltering the children and not giving them the information they need before they enter high school.  In high school, there's so much going on, especially sex.  And if programs like Project Truth keep sheltering kids, it runs a higher risk of pregnancy by freshman year.  Kids have the right to know, and not just from school.  Their parents should be talking to them about sex and relationships.  Even if it is awkward, they can't keep it from their children forever.  Parents are the most responsible for telling their kids about these things. My mom talks to me about this stuff all the time and it's not uncomfortable, it just takes time.  And the parents who don't talk to their kids, are usually the one's complaining about condom ads on tv.  They hide things from their children and when the kids go into highschool, most of them end up pregnant, maybe not freshman year, but sometime during high school.  It's better to have kids informed of AIDS and HIV, than to have a pregnant teen or a teen with HIV or AIDS because they didn't use protection.