Science

Kids Don't Learn From Abstinence Education

With Congress gearing up to review the $50 million Title V abstinence education program, a federally commissioned study suggests that the classes just don’t work. Students who attended the classes started having sex at the same time as students who didn’t, and had the same number of sexual partners. "Members of Congress need to listen […]

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With Congress gearing up to review the $50 million Title V abstinence education program, a federally commissioned study suggests that the classes just don't work.

Students who attended the classes started having sex at the same time as students who didn't, and had the same number of sexual partners.

"Members of Congress need to listen to what the evidence tells us," said William Smith, vice president for public policy at the Sexuality Information and Education
Council of the United States, which promotes comprehensive sex education.

"This report should give a clear signal to members of Congress that the program should be changed to support programs that work, or it should end when it expires at the end of June," Smith said.

The study also showed that students in the programs were were no more likely than other students to have unprotected sex, a charge frequently made by critics of abstinence education.

Study: Abstinence Classes Don't Stop Sex [Associated Press]

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