Factors associated with the content of sex education in U.S. public secondary schools.

CONTEXT: While sex education is almost universal in U.S. schools, its content varies considerably. Topics such as abstinence, and basic information on HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), are commonly taught birth control and how to access STD and contraceptive services are taught les...

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Publicado en:Perspectives on Sexual & Reproductive Health Vol. 35; no. 6; pp. 261 - 270
Autores principales: Landry DJ, Darroch JE, Singh S, Higgins J
Formato: research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Wiley-Blackwell Nov/Dec2003
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
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      dt: Nov/Dec2003
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      pub: Wiley-Blackwell
      place: Malden, Massachusetts
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        atl: Factors associated with the content of sex education in U.S. public secondary schools.
      aug:
        au:
          Landry DJ
          Darroch JE
          Singh S
          Higgins J
        affil: Senior Research Associate, The Alan Guttmacher Institute (AGI), New York
      sug:
        subj:
          Course Content
          Sex Education In Adolescence
          Adolescence
          Sexual Intercourse Education
          Confidence Intervals
          Contraception Education
          Descriptive Statistics
          Funding Source
          Logistic Regression
          Multivariate Analysis
          Questionnaires
          Random Sample
          Self Report
          Sexual Abstinence Education
          Surveys
          Teachers
          Human
          Adolescent: 13-18 years
      ab: CONTEXT: While sex education is almost universal in U.S. schools, its content varies considerably. Topics such as abstinence, and basic information on HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), are commonly taught birth control and how to access STD and contraceptive services are taught less often. Factors potentially associated with these variations need to be examined.METHODS: Data on 1,657 respondents to a 1999 national survey of teachers providing sex education in grades 7-12 were assessed for variation in topics covered. Logistic regression was used to ascertain factors associated with instruction on selected topics.RESULTS: The content of sex education varied by region and by instructors' approach to teaching about abstinence and contraception. For example, teaching abstinence as the only means of pregnancy and STD prevention was more common in the South than in the Northeast (30% vs. 17%). Emphasizing the ineffectiveness of contraceptives was less common in the Northeast (17%) than in other regions (27-32%). Instructors teaching that methods are ineffective and presenting abstinence as teenagers' only option had significantly reduced odds of teaching various skills and topics (odds ratios, 0.1-0.5).CONCLUSIONS: Instructors' approach to teaching about methods is a very powerful indicator of the content of sex education. Given the well-documented relationship between what teenagers learn about safer sexual behavior and their use of methods when they initiate sexual activity, sex education in all U.S. high schools should include accurate information about condoms and other contraceptives.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
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