March 2021

A substitute teacher at a local school where her children attend sent this comment. “I had the privilege of substituting in a classroom where Project Respect was presenting.  As a parent I was super impressed with the presenter and especially impressed with the content of the program.  I expected it to focus on condoms or birth control and was ready to counteract the content with my child that was in the class.  It was refreshing to hear encouragement given to the students to wait until marriage for sex.  I also appreciate the focus on proper dating and pitfalls to avoid when dating.   These are the things I am saying at home and I have a great open relationship with my kids but sadly that is not true of all students.  Thank you for speaking so clearly good morals and character to help students through these challenging decisions.”

Benefits of Sexual Delay

• Sexual delay and limiting the number of lifetime partners is important to decreasing the risk of pregnancy and STDs.37
• If a male teen initiates sex by 14, he has almost a 75% likelihood of having 6 or more partners by the time he reaches 20 years of age. A teen girl has 58% likelihood of 6 or more sexual partners by age 20 if she initiates sex by age 14. That risk drops to 10% respectively if the teen waits until he or she is at least 17 years of age.38
• Sexual delay until marriage provides the optimal health outcomes, but even a shorter postponement greatly reduces the physical risks of sex.
• Delaying sex until a lifelong, monogamous, commitment (marriage) with an uninfected partner is the only way to avoid all the possible negative physical consequences of sex.
• Delaying sex appears to aid in the permanence of future marriage.39
• Waiting to have children until marriage increases the likelihood of their flourishing.40
• Waiting to have children until marriage decreases the likelihood that both parent and child will live in poverty.41

Sexual Risk Avoidance Education is Effective

• Twenty-five research studies of SRA programs show significant behavioral changes in improving teen outcomes.42
• An additional 43 studies from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) showed early stage positive attitudinal impacts that tend to predict decreased sexual initiation rates.43
• Compared to their peers, students in SRA education programs are more likely to delay sexual initiation; If sexually active, more likely to discontinue or decrease their sexual activity; and no less likely to use a condom if they initiate sex.44

Sex Education Policy

• 24 states require sex education in the schools.45
• 33 states require HIV/AIDs prevention education in the schools.46
• 35 states permit parents to opt out of sex education classes for their children.47
• 4 states require parents to opt in to sex education classes for their children.48
• 37 states require sex education to include information about SRA and 18 also require information about contraception.49  What this education looks like at the local level may vary dramatically.
• 22 states and the District of Columbia require that sex education include information about skills for avoiding coerced sex.

37U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2010) National Survey of Adolescents and Their Parents: Attitudes and Opinions About Sex and Abstinence. Washington, D. C.: HHS. Accessed August 29, 2011 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/fysb/content/docs/20090226_abstinence.pdf)

38Moore, K. A., Miller, B. C., Sugland, B. W., Morrison, D. R., Flei, D. A., Blumenthal, C., (n.d.) Beginning too soon: Adolescent sexual behavior, pregnancy and parenthood: A review of research and interventions. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of HHS. Retrieved on March 18, 2015 from http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/cyp/xsteesex.htm Ethier KA, Kann L, McManus T. (2018) Sexual Intercourse Among High School Students-29 States and United States Overall, 2005-2015. MMWR Morb Mortal WklyRep 2018:1393-1397. DOI: http://dxdoi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm665152a1

39U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2001). Trends in the Well-Being of America’s Children and Youth, 2000. Office of the Ass.t Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Washington, DC

40Paik, A., (2011) Adolescent sexuality and the risk of marital dissolution. Journal of Marriage and Family, 73:472-485.

41U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2010) National Survey of Adolescents and Their Parents: Attitudes and Opinions About Sex and Abstinence. Washington, D. C. : HHS. Accessed August 29, 2011 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/fysb/content/docs/20090226_abstinence.pdf)

42Wilcox, B., Lerman, R., Price, J., (2015) Mobility and Money in the US States: The Marriage Effect. Brookings Institute accessed April 5, 2018 at https://www.brookings.edu/research/mobility-and-moneyin-u-s-states-the-marriage-effect/

43Ascend (2016) SRA Works. Washington DC

44Ibid

45Ascend (2016) SRA Works. Washington DC

46National Conference of State Legislatures. (2014). State policies on sex education in schools. Accessed March 18, 2015 at http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/state-policies-on-sex-education-in-schools.aspx

47Ibid

48Ibid

49Ibid

50Guttmacher Institute (2014, Mar 1,). State policies in brief: Sex and HIV Education. Washington, DC: Author. P. 4. Accessed March 18, 2015 at http://www.guttmacher.org/statecenter/spibs/spib_SE.pdf
Guttmacher Institute (2018, April 1). State Policies : Sex and HIV Education. Washington, DC: Accessed April 8, 2018 at https://www.guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/sex-and-hiv-education

Quick Facts 2019: Sex Education in America © 2019 Ascend

Teen Opinions About Sex

• Most adolescents support reserving sex for marriage, both in general and for themselves.25
• About one half of 18 and 19 year olds wish they had waited longer before becoming sexually active.26
• More than 80% of older teens believe it is possible for a person to choose to stop having sex after having had sex in the past.27
• Although culture is increasingly sexually explicit, the majority of teens are not having sex.28
• More than 80% of 18 and 19 year olds say they don’t like the idea of casual sex.29
• About 40% of teens say that their sex ed classes make them feel pressured to have sex. 32% say they feel pressure from their dating partner.30

American’s Opinion On Sex Education

• Most Americans want teens to avoid all the possible consequences of sex, not just teen pregnancy.31
• The majority of American parents, regardless of race or political party, support Sexual Risk Avoidance (SRA) education with similar enthusiasm, endorsing all the major themes presented in an SRA education class.32
• More than 8 of 10 parents, but especially women and African Americans, support the dominant themes of SRA education. 33
• Nearly 9 in 10 parents strongly support the way SRA programs share the medically accurate limitations of condoms for preventing pregnancy and disease.34
• Most parents want their children to wait for marriage before having sex.35
• Almost 3/4 of parents are opposed to premarital sex both in general and for their own adolescents.36

25U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2010) National Survey of Adolescents and Their Parents: Attitudes and Opinions About Sex and Abstinence. Washington, D. C. : HHS. Accessed August 29, 2011 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/fysb/content/docs/20090226_abstinence.pdf) 62% say that it is against their values to have sex before marriage; 75% believe that having sex would
make life difficult; 84% oppose sex at their age; 69% oppose sex while in high school. (p. 61)

26Barna Group. (2015). Teens Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author. Albert, B. (2012). With One Voice 2012. Washington, DC: the National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. Retrieved March 18, 2015 at https://thenationalcampaign.org/sites/default/files/resourceprimary-download/wov_2012.pdf This older survey shows that among younger teens, the regret is even more pronounced.

27Barna Group. (2015). Teens Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author.

28CDC (2018). High School YRBS: 2017. 3CDC (2018). High School YRBS: 2017. Retrieved August 6, 2018 at https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/yrbs/index.htm

29Barna Group. (2015). Teens Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author.

30Barna Group. (2015). Teens Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author.

31Barna Group. (2015). Americans Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author. Retrieved April 9, 2018 at https://tinyurl.com/yc2szsay

32Barna Group. (2015). Americans Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author. Retrieved April 9, 2018 at https://tinyurl.com/yc2szsay

33Barna Group. (2015). Americans Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author. Retrieved April 9, 2018 at https://tinyurl.com/yc2szsay

34Barna Group. (2015). Americans Speak Out survey. Ventura: Author. Retrieved April 9, 2018 at https://tinyurl.com/yc2szsay

35Pulse Opinion Research (2012). Parents Speak Out. Available at www.WhatTheyToldUs.org

36U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2010) National Survey of Adolescents and Their Parents: Attitudes and Opinions About Sex and Abstinence. Washington, D. C.: HHS. Accessed August 29, 2011 at http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/fysb/content/docs/20090226_abstinence.pdf)

Quick Facts 2019: Sex Education in America © 2019 Ascend