Should condoms and birth control use be encouraged in school - Term Paper Example

CONDOM & BIRTH CONTROL USE ENCOURAGED AT MIDDLE OR HIGH SCHOOL? Should condom and birth control use be encouraged at middle school and high school? Should condom and birth control use be encouraged at middle school and high school? The primary responsibility of public health in any developed or developing country is to prevent a disease or a number of diseases, rather than curing one. This is done through continuous surveillance of new cases and by promoting healthy behavior throughout all walks and spheres of life. According to the definition of health, as provided by the World Health Organization, “Health is a state of complete wellbeing (physically, mentally and socially). Health does not merely pertain to being free from disease or sickness.” (World Health Organization, 1948) According to this definition, it is important to be physically and mentally free of worries and issues. There are many public health controversies that have been controversial for the society as a whole. One of them is teenage birth; although the birth of a child is the sweetest gift of nature, it becomes a problem when it is not planned and teenagers are unable to take care of their babies. This eventually leads to bigger controversial issues of abortion, adoption etc. To increase awareness, contraceptive education and contraceptives are made readily available at high schools and middle schools so that people indulge in safer sex rather than getting themselves into something they do not want. This essay presents both faces of the argument, concluding with the opinion of the writer. Birth Control at High School: Introduction of birth control measures and availability of contraceptives at the middle school and high school level is a controversial issue for many. However, the need for such an attempt was rooted in the society, as more and more teenagers were indulging in unsafe sexual intercourse at a younger age, leading to unwanted pregnancies. During the 1950s, there was a hike in unwanted teenage pregnancies across the US and UK for decades; this trend declined sharply in the 1990s. The reason for this is the increased awareness generated in schools about safer sexual intercourse and ways of contraception. There were various methods of contraception introduced in the American market in the 1990s that helped control teenage pregnancies. Surprisingly, Abstinence was also a major factor in the lowering of this rate (Boonstra, 2002). Introduction of condoms and birth control at the middle or high school left is bound to make the audience aware of the issues and the methods which are available for them if they do want to be active sexually and avoid pregnancies. Knowing your options can help you decide which one you want to use; however, there is another side of this debate where some believe that introducing such concepts and products to young minds make them indulge more in these activities. As they are introduced to the idea of safe sexual activity, they would be more prone to try it out. Arguments in Favor of birth control provision: The idea that students should be provided with condoms and contraceptive in high school and middle school might seems highly controversial but it is a straightforward method of making sure that the intended audience of these products has access to them if and when the need arises. It is highly improbable to stop students at the teenage level from taking part in sexual activities; it is the age where exploration and breaking rules is in fashion. Growing up and puberty can be difficult to deal with, resulting in activities that many parents might not approve of at the teenage level. Abstinence although is taught by almost all care-givers, guardians however, in many cases, it is not practiced by the youth. Therefore, for the chunk of the youth who does not believe in abstinence, provision of condoms and birth control at high school can be the only way they can have safer sexual activities; at that age, it is difficult to make purchases due to financial reasons or social reasons. Therefore, experts believe it is important to make sure the teens know they have the facility at their disposal (Kathy, 2007). Experts, who believe this is the right way to go about, also believe that education should be provided apart from just providing the products to the youth. They should be made aware that there will be no judgement from the teachers or administrators of such products and that they should feel free to have questions; buying contraceptive products at such a young age is considered taboo and looked down upon in many strata of society. Just because a person can bring a horse to a well to drink water, it cannot make the horse drink the water forcefully. This similar attitude can be developed when educating young teens about birth control and providing them with condoms at high school. The view that introduction of such products to the teens can induce in them a need to go try them out is not proved. The teenagers will do what they want to do, when they want to do. They are brought up to be independent and make their own decisions. The best thing that the society can do as a whole is educate them about the good points and the bad and help them make an informed decision. Provision of condoms at high school/ middle school also helps fight against STDs. Serving dual purpose, condom availability will also save our young adults from exchanging harmful disease during their sexual encounters (Berger, 1990). Parents are also backing the idea of providing contraceptives to their children at the middle school level (CBS News, 2007). According to an associated press-ipsos poll, 67 percent of parents feel that contraception should be made available to the children at middle school. This controversy has also risen after 17 middle school students from Portland schools became pregnant in the past four years. This is showing that more and more children are indulging in sexual activities are a much younger age than we would like them too. There is no stopping them, however, methods of contraception can be provided to them for safer options (The Washington Post, 2007). Arguments against the topic: There is a vast assembly of people who are against the introduction of such products at such a young age. The supporters of this idea believe that introducing such products to children at a young age will make them want to try them out. Rather than this introduction, proper teaching and knowledge should be given to them about unwanted pregnancies and transference of STDs. They should be educated about the repercussions of having babies at such a young age, or acquiring a sexually transmitted disease if they indulge in sexual activities. Enthusiasts of this claim are firm believers of abstinence and believe that people should wait it out till it is the right time (Associated Press MSNBC.com, 2007). Religion also plays an important role for many in this regard, they believe that one should abstain till they are able to support a baby and marry off. Also, even if a person conceives, is its immoral to go forward with abortion. The pro-life debate comes into play. Schools are also questioning the morality of providing these products at the school level as being in direct conflict with the schools’ inconspicuous purpose of teaching the children values. Provision of protection will only go against this moral ethic, according to some. Conclusion: Ignorance is bliss – a common phrase that many people believe in. However, when it comes to contraception, ignorance can lead to big problems. It has been established that more and more of the younger generation are now indulging in sexual activities at middle school. According to many polls, girls have stated that they believe 13 to 15 years is the right age to go forward and try sexual activities. Owing to such a societal shift in norms and values, it is only right to provide the young adults with the means and methods to be safe, rather than sorry later. Provision and knowledge of birth control and condoms will not only help against unwanted pregnancies, but also save the younger generation against sexually transmitted disease. Well developed community youth service along with involvement of community at the classroom level is researched to have positive impact on the sexual behavior of young teenager (O’Donell, 1999). References O’Donnell, L., Stueve, A et al. (1999). The effectiveness of the Reach for Health Community Youth Service learning program in reducing early and unprotected sex among urban middle school students, Vol. 89, 179-181. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://ajph.aphapublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/89/2/176?maxtoshow=&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=birth+control+middle+school&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance&resourcetype=HWCIT World Health Organization. (1948, April 7). WHO Definition of Health. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://www.who.int/about/definition/en/print.html The Body. (2000, June/July). Fact Sheet: Public support for sexuality education. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://www.thebody.com/content/art2433.html The New York Times/J. Berger. (1990, December 22). Condoms in Schools. Retrieved March, 28, 2011, from http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9C0CE1D6123DF931A15751C1A966958260&sec=health&spon=&pagewanted=1 Associated Press MSNBC.com. (2007). Most OK with birth control at school, poll finds. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21577133/ns/health-kids_and_parenting/ Denverpost.com/Katy Human, Jeremy P. Meyer. (2007, October 31). Do Schools have birth control role?. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://www.denverpost.com/ci_7316531 CBS News (2007, November 1). Birth Control at School? Most say its ok. Retrieved March 28, 2011, from http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/11/01/health/main3439598.shtml The Washington Post/ Stacy Garfinkle (2007, November 2). The Debate: contraceptives at school. Retrieved on March 28, 2011, from http://voices.washingtonpost.com/parenting/2007/11/the_debate_contraceptives_in_s.html The Guttmacher Report of Public Policy/ Heather Boonstra. (2002, February). Teen pregnancy, Trends and lessons learned. Retrieved on March 28, 2011, from http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/tgr/05/1/gr050107.html Read More