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Kansas Abstinence Network

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What is Comprehensive Sex Education and
What do Parents Want Their Children to be Taught?

What does the research show?
“Analysis of “comprehensive” sex-ed programs reveals that these curricula contain little if any meaningful abstinence message. On average, these curricula devote about 4 percent of their content to abstinence. Out of 942 total pages of curriculum text reviewed from 9 different “comprehensive” sex ed curricula, not a single sentence was found urging teens to abstain from sexual activity through high school.”
Melissa G. Pardue, “More Evidence of the Effectiveness of Abstinence Education Programs.”  The Heritage Foundation.  As publicized by Zogby International.  May 5, 2005.

What do parents want their children to be taught?

  • “79 percent of parents want young people taught that sex should be reserved for marriage or for an adult relationship leading to marriage.”
  • “Only 7 percent of parents want teens to be taught that sexual activity in high school is okay as long as teens use contraception.”
  • “Some 68 percent of parents want schools to teach teens that individuals who are not sexually active until marriage have the best chances of marital stability and happiness."
  • “While 52 percent of parents want schools to provide basic biological and health information about contraception, only 23 percent want schools to encourage teens to use condoms when having sex, teach teens where to obtain condoms, and have teens practice how to put on condoms."
  • “Parents believe that abstinence should be given emphasis that is more than, or equal to, that given to contraception. Some 44 percent of parents believe that teaching about abstinence is more important than teaching about contraception; another large group (41 percent) believe that abstinence and contraception should be given equal emphasis. Only 8 percent believe that teaching about contraception is more important than teaching about abstinence.”

Source:  Zogby International Poll, 2004, of a representative national sample of parents with children 17 or younger.
As published by Robert Rector, Melissa G. Pardue and Shannan Martin.  “What do Parents Want Taught in Sex Education Programs." Jan. 28, 2004