Public Health Institute Public Health Institute Brown·Miller Commun.
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OAKLAND,
CA, May 24, 2007… Craig and Mary are raising their three
daughters in an evangelical, Republican household in Redding, California. Given
their demographics, you might expect them to be fierce supporters of the Bush
Administration’s abstinence-only-until-marriage sex education policy. You
would, most likely, be wrong.
According
to the first-ever statewide poll of parents devoted to this topic, a whopping
89 percent of California parents want students to receive comprehensive sex
education that includes information about contraception and protection from
sexually transmitted diseases – a desire that remains uniform regardless of the
parents’ locale, religion, politics, race or education level.
“We
were astonished by how universal this support is for comprehensive sex
education,” admits the study’s primary author, Dr. Norman Constantine of the
Public Health Institute’s Center for Research on
Adolescent Health and Development. “We expected these high levels of support in
liberal urban areas but did not anticipate the equally high levels of support
in California’s more conservative, rural settings – especially among
self-identified evangelical Christian parents. What this shows is that the vast
majority of parents put the health and safety of their children above politics
and ideology.”
The rigorous study asked 1,284 parents throughout California what
they wanted students to be taught during sex education classes. Abstinence-only
sex education is presently the national policy, however, for over a decade
California has declined federal funding that mandates abstinence-only education
– a pattern other states are now following. Nine out of ten California parents
chose comprehensive sex education, and parents were nearly unanimous (96
percent) in opposition to abstinence-only requirements that prohibit
instruction in or promotion of the use of contraceptive methods at any grade
level.
No single subgroup by region, religion, income, education or
political party dipped below an 80 percent support level for comprehensive sex
education. The lowest level of support was recorded by those who identified
themselves as “very conservative,” but even they showed overwhelming support at
71 percent. Perhaps most surprising was that 86 percent of those
self-identifying as evangelical Christians reported supporting comprehensive
sex education.
According to Constantine, the strong support for a comprehensive
approach to sex education is encouraging in light of California’s escalating
levels of sexually transmitted diseases such as chlamydia
and gonorrhea. “We have to make sure that students receive age-appropriate,
medically accurate and comprehensive information about how they can protect
themselves,” Constantine said.
And
although any sex education in California schools is required by law to be
comprehensive, Constantine points out there are serious flaws in how that
education actually is provided. A recent school-district survey found that
nearly half (48 percent) of schools are not covering all required topics, and
88 percent violated one or more of the sex education provisions of California's
Education Code.
“These
findings should clear the way for wary educators in every region of the state
to embrace the comprehensive sex education programs consistent with California
law,” Constantine said. “School superintendents, administrators and educators
can now be assured that they have the support of parents, as well as the law,
in providing quality, comprehensive programs.”
The study’s results will be published in the September issue of Perspectives
on Sexual and Reproductive Health, and a summary report can be found at: http://teenbirths.phi.org.
The
Public Health Institute is an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to
promoting health, well-being and quality of life. The study was funded by a
grant from The California Wellness Foundation.
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