States Abstain from Abstinence Education

A major study of abstinence education that came out this year found that it did not stop teens from having sex. And, for the first time in six years, the Senate appropriations committee cut financing to these programs in June. In addition, 11 state health departments rejected abstinence education this year, while legislatures in Colorado, Iowa, and Washington passed laws that could kill, or at least wound, its presence in public schools. New laws in Colorado, Iowa, and Washington state that sex education must be based on “research” or “science” — which is often interpreted as code for programs that include discussions of safer sex.

Interestingly enough, for unknown reasons, teenagers throughout the country are both abstaining more, and, especially among older ones, more likely to use contraception when they do not abstain.

Teach Your Teen Cell Phone Etiquette

A recent survey by Samsung Telecommunications of more than 1,000 teen (ages 13 to 19) and adult (20 plus) cell phone users found that, among teens, nearly one in ten say it’s OK to answer a phone inside a movie theater, 10% say it’s fine to answer a call during a class, and more than one in three (37%) say it’s OK to answer the phone at a restaurant. While the majority of adults rated themselves as very considerate cell phone users (79%), teens admit that they get a lower grade, with only 32% stating that they were considerate.

Before handing over a cell phone to your tween or teen, teach them to put their phones on vibrate or silent in public places, meetings, or movies.

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page

Issue: August 2007