Sex education in Utah high schools is…what’s that word? Lacking. High schools in Utah are required to teach an abstinence-only course. Anyone who attended high school in Utah probably remembers what we were taught in sex ed because it wasn’t much.
We labeled diagrams of the penis and vagina. We learned about STDs and were shown graphic pictures of what could happen if you had sex. I clearly remember one girl in my class who asked about using protection and asking consent. The teacher was not allowed to answer those questions. Having an abstinence only teaching results in teenagers getting married at a young age so they can get it on or teenagers who have no idea what protection or what safe sex is, and getting pregnant at a young age. Many parents oppose having proper sex education taught in schools because the content is “inappropriate.” Teaching proper sex education doesn’t mean teenagers will drop everything right away to go have sex.
Utah STD rates have been rising over the past few years because there is no proper teaching or training of what to do and what to use to have safe sex. I polled the Her Campus Utah team, and out of twenty of us, sixteen out of twenty were taught abstinence only. Zero out of the sixteen thought it was ineffective teaching. The remaining four went to out of state schools, such as California where they were taught a proper sex education. They put condoms on bananas and were taught about the importance of consent.
Having a proper sex education may or may not prevent teenagers from running out and having sex spontaneously, but it will educate them about safe sex. It will decrease STDs and teen pregnancies. Teaching about consent will also lead to safe sex and for people who don’t realize that yes means yes and no means NO. I know Utah is a conservative state, but teaching proper sex education early will make conversations about sex easier. Many think sex is a very uncomfortable subject to talk about. Not going to lie, it can be very hard to bring up, but by having it taught openly in high schools will lessen how uncomfortable it is for some.
Utah may not be changing their sex education anytime soon, but I recommend to all of those still in high school, do research about safe sex methods and what consent means before acting on your raging hormones.