1. By: Brittney Smith, Destiny Browning, Stephanie McDaniel
Babies having Babies
Pro Sex Education
By: Brittney Smith, Destiny Browning, Stephanie McDaniel

2. Our Cause
We advocate a Bill to require Arkansas public school districts to provide sex education that is medically accurate, comprehensive, and age-appropriate; provides parents the right to opt out of sex education on behalf of their child. Requires the department of education provide a suggested course of study and teacher training upon request of a school district. Defines “medically accurate” and “comprehensive.”

3. Teen Pregnancy Facts
The United States has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates in the western industrialized world.
In the U.S., more than 750,000 girls ages become pregnant every year. More than 80 percent of these are unintended pregnancies.
Nearly 3 in 10 teen girls in the US will get pregnant at least once before age 20.
A teenager who is having unprotected sex has a 90 percent chance of becoming pregnant within a year.
Since its peak in 1991, the teen birth rate declined by 57%. In the past year alone, it dropped by 10%.

4. Teens who become pregnant:
Are more likely to get pregnant more times during their life.
Are more likely to be single parents
Are less likely to get support from the biological father.
Are less likely to complete their education - only 40 percent of teen mothers finish high school. Less than 2 percent complete a college education by age 30.
Are more likely to live in poverty - more than 75 percent of teen mothers need welfare within five years of having their baby.

5. How does it effect us as future educators?
Often times, it is the children of teen mothers that suffer. As early childhood educators, we will likely see some of the effects that teen pregnancy has on the child.
Children of teen moms do worse in school than those born to older parents.
Half of these children fail a grade.
They are less likely to finish high school than children with older parents.
They have lower performances on standardized tests.
Teen mothers are less likely to have good health coverage for their babies.
These children have a greater chance of living in poverty than children with older parents.

6. Teen STD Facts
Young people ages contract 19 million STDs annually.
Two young people (ages 13-29) contract HIV every hour.
Young people age 15 to 24 account for 50 percent of all new STIs, although they represent just 25 percent of the sexually experienced population.
The U.S. has the highest rate of STD infection in the industrialized world.
46% of American high school students have had sexual intercourse and potentially are at risk for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, other STDs.
Only 6 in 10 sexually active high school teens reported using condoms during their most recent sexual intercourse.
1 in 4 teens contracts an STD/STI every year.
Only fifty-six percent of teenagers 12 to 17 years of age think STDs are a big problem for people their age.

7. How does this effect us as future educators?
HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases can be passed to babies while they are in womb or during delivery.
Syphilis had been linked to premature births, stillbirths and, in some cases, death shortly after birth. If the baby survives and the disease goes untreated, it will likely develop problems in multiple organs.
Any sexually transmitted disease that is passed on to a baby could have an effect on its future development.
The following STDs can be passed to babies during pregnancy: Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Syphilis, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, Bacterial Vaginosis, Trichomoniasis, Herpes Simplex Virus, Human Papillomavirus.

8. How does a comprehensive sex education help?
These programs can help youth, delay onset of sexual activity, reduce the frequency of sexual activity, reduce number of sexual partners, increase condom and contraceptive use.
The majority (86%) of the decline in the teen pregnancy rate between 1995 and 2002 was the result of dramatic improvements in contraceptive use.
Teens who receive a comprehensive education about sex are 50 percent less likely to have an unintended pregnancy than those who receive sex educations that are abstinence-only or contraception-only programs.
A new study from the Guttmacher Institute unsurprisingly finds that greater knowledge about contraceptive services is directly correlated to a decrease in young adults’ risky sexual behavior.
California requires medically accurate, comprehensive sex education be taught in public schools and as result, its teen pregnancy rate has fell 60 percent in the past twenty years.

9. Testimonials
I lost my virginity when I was 13 years old. When I was six-teen I found out that I was pregnant. I was terrified and nervous. So many questions ran through my mind. What was I going to do? How was I going to take care of a baby when I’m just a kid my-self? Would the father leave me? Am I going to have to raise this baby on my own? I’ve had many struggles. We married. He felt the need to take care of me. I was thankful but things weren’t always great. At age 18 I had my second little daughter. By twenty I had my son. My marriage was in a down-hill spiral. We both struggled with addictions. We were both having affairs. He went to prison. I filed for divorce. I’ve had to sacrifice a lot to provide for my children. I am drug free now. Sex education would have prepared me for the consequences and what it was going to be like. I believe that a sex education course would have helped me make better decisions.
Julia

10. Testimonials Cont.
I was 13 when I lost my virginity. I thought I loved him. I thought he loved me. After we broke up I didn’t really care who I slept with. I had already lost my virginity. I’m now 21 years old and I’ve had 13 sexual partners. I didn’t always use protection. I was on birth control and but that was it. I went to the doctor and they found that I had genital herpes. I am devastated and ashamed. I didn’t know when I contracted it and I don’t know who I could have spread it to. What if I find a guy I love and it scares him away?
Kate

11. Testimonials Cont.
This story is about a 27 year old woman that contracted chlamydia for the first time when she was 15. She got chlamydia again in 6 months and contracted herpes a few years later. Her then boyfriend decided to look past the disease and they got married. She became pregnant, but lost the baby due to pelvic inflammatory disease that was caused by her chlamydia infections. She is sharing her story because she hopes "to inspire others to treat their body as a temple."
-Anonymous
Full Story can be found here:

12. Opposing Sides: Parental Consent
Parents may oppose sexual education due to their religious beliefs. Some parents may believe that exposing their children to sexual education may make them think it is okay to be sexually active. We believe that parents should be able to opt out of sexual education for their children if it interferes with their beliefs.
The following facts show that most parents would support a comprehensive sex education:
Almost 80 percent of parents support sexual education that includes information about sexual orientation.
More than 90 percent of parents of junior high and high school students believe that it is somewhat or very important for sex education to be included in the curriculum.
100 percent of parents of junior high school students agree that HIV/AIDS is an appropriate topic for sexuality education curriculums.

13. Opposing Sides: Abstinence Only Programs
There are statistics that show that abstinence only education is actually increasing the rate of teen pregnancy. “Teens who receive a comprehensive education about sex are 50 percent less likely to have an unintended pregnancy than those who receive sex educations that are abstinence-only or contraception-only programs.” Since not all high-school students choose to abstain from sex until marriage, they need to know how to protect themselves. When teens are told that abstinence is the only way to stay safe, they do not take any measures to protect themselves if they do decide to become sexually active. We do believe that abstinence should be taught during sexual education, but teens should also know what to do to be safe if they decide not to abstain from sex.
Teens who receive a comprehensive education about sex are 50 percent less likely to have an unintended pregnancy than those who receive sex educations that are abstinence-only or contraception-only programs.
A congressionally mandated study of four popular abstinence-only programs by the Mathematica found that they were entirely ineffective. Students who participated in the programs were no more likely to abstain from sex than other students. Yet these are the only programs that are available for federal funding.
No abstinence-only program has yet been proven through rigorous evaluation to help youth delay sex for a significant period of time, help youth decrease their number of sex partners, or reduce STI or pregnancy rates among teens
Higher pregnancy and rates were correlated with states that used abstinence only programs according to a study in the PLoS One journal.

14. Groups to Collaborate With

15. Resources
"11 Facts About Sex Education in the U.S." Do Something. Do Something. Web. 29 Oct <
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 19 May Web. 3 Nov <
Davis, Jenelle. "Losing a Baby - Chlamydia, PID & Herpes - STD Interviews." The STD Project. A Positive Voice. Web. 6 Nov <
McKeon, Brigid. "Effective Sex Education." Effective Sex Education. Advocates for Youth, 1 Jan Web. 6 Nov <
"Sex Education That Works." HIV and AIDS Information and Resources. Avert. Web. 27 Oct <
"State Policies on Sex Education in Schools." State Policies on Sex Education in Schools. National Conference of State Legislatures. Web. 6 Nov <
"Teen Pregnancy Facts." - Teen Pregnancy Statistics. Web. 1 Nov <
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