Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Abstinence-only sex education works
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Ken Cuccinelli
Cuccinelli, of Centreville, represents the 37th District in the Virginia Senate.
I am writing in response to Shanna Flowers' recent criticism of abstinence programs in Virginia's schools ("Kaine's take on teens and sex is practical," Nov. 15 column). You really should require Flowers to educate herself on subjects before you print her opinions in your paper. Her one source of data appears to be comments of a boy at Patrick Henry High School who said, "You walk up behind a girl, whisper in her ear and it's on."
According to Flowers, high-risk students such as the boy at Patrick Henry must be shown how to have sex safely. Reality check: Promiscuity among teens is never safe. All social science data show that the earlier teens engage in sex, the less likely they are to perform well academically, and the more likely they are to drop out of school, be depressed, attempt suicide, experience sexually transmitted diseases, have children out of wedlock and to live in poverty and be dependent on welfare as adults.
Additionally, teens who engage in sexual activity are more likely to have unstable and less-enduring marriages as adults.
Astonishingly, Flowers believes it is not realistic to educate these high-risk kids on the countless dangers they are facing. Instead, Flowers believes value-free "how to have" sex education is the most realistic approach to educating our children.
Has "how to have" sex education helped at-risk youth? Do graphic presentations of how to put on condoms prevent the many problems listed above, or do they encourage our kids to experiment with sex, with all of the attendant problems? The answers should be obvious.
Are we encouraging at-risk youth to achieve their highest potential as human beings and to treat themselves and others with respect, or are we relegating them to the lowest levels of human self-control because "they're going to do it anyway"?
Our kids are bombarded with sexual images and information that push them toward sexual activity on television, in movies, on the Internet and from their peers. They don't need "how-to" information. They need to be told that they are thinking, moral beings in control of themselves, and they need to be told that some choices are better than others. That's not what they get in Flowers' favored "how-to" sex education.
They need to be shown what they can achieve if they make good choices, and they need to be shown the consequences of bad choices before they make them. It is crucial for us not to give up on kids, especially high-risk kids.
Under the leadership of Govs. George Allen and Jim Gilmore, Virginia instituted the Virginia Abstinence Initiative. For 10 years successful abstinence-only programs have operated across the commonwealth. Recently, Gov. Tim Kaine announced that he was terminating the funding for these programs to help close a gap in the budget shortfall. He is sacrificing the futures of children and teens throughout Virginia.
Kaine has asserted that he has no data showing that these programs work. This is simply untrue. A recent study of Virginia's abstinence education programs showed that, after just one year in the program, participants had a substantially lower risk of sexual initiation than students who did not participate. Those positive results have held up for 10 years.
Countless other abstinence program evaluations show very positive results, especially among at-risk youth. While I can't list them all here, the results are widely available from a quick search on the Internet.
Don't be fooled by the recent statements of Kaine. Real abstinence education is essential to reducing the number of out-of-wedlock births, preventing sexually transmitted diseases and improving overall emotional and physical health among youth in Virginia.
True abstinence education programs help young people develop a healthy sense of self-control and self-worth and an understanding of healthy intimacy. Abstinence programs provide our children with a positive vision for their futures and give them the tools they need to make healthy decisions.
That's why this administration's intention to literally throw away $275,000 of federal matching money by cutting our state share of abstinence funding must be contested, and I and others will fight to keep that money in the budget in the coming General Assembly session.
