The issue of sexual health for teenagers through college-aged students (15-24) has become increasingly more pertinent. This demographic has the highest rate of infection of Sexually Transmitted Infections (CDC). Teenage pregnancy rates are higher than they should be. Policymakers, parents, teachers, etc. have long wondered what should be done about this growing issue. That's where the topic of sexual education comes in. Sexual education has been a controversial debate for decades. To be more specific, the debate has been centered on the effectiveness of sexual education programs and which type should be taught in schools. A few of the studies I researched returned results that were contradictory. But for the most part, the more recent experiments either conclude sexual education programs as a whole—meaning abstinence-only and comprehensive, are effective. By effective, the researchers looked into several characteristics. They generally looked into the rates of unplanned pregnancy, contraction of Sexually Transmitted Infections, use of contraceptives, age of first sexual intercourse, and knowledge of sexual health. Based upon all of the research, I concluded that comprehensive sexual education programs were overall more effective in decreasing high risk behaviors and delaying the age of first sexual intercourse than abstinence-only programs.
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