Sex

CHOICE/LESS 404: Sally vs. Sex Education

Jenn Stanley

Season 4 of CHOICE/LESS is all about teens, sex, abortion, and the law. So far this series has posed the question, if adults and children have a hard time talking about even the most basic sex stuff, then why do 38 states force minors to tell their parents if their seeking an abortion? This episode explores what role schools should play in educating young people about sex.

[PHOTO: Common school supplies such as pencils and rulers on a desk with a flier telling students about free condoms available from a school nurse.]
Today's comprehensive sexuality education must include not just condom access such as that advertised by these fliers in a California classroom, but wide-ranging conversations about consent and sexual violence. Sexuality education advocates have always been attentive to those topics, but interest in such issues has been heightened by the onslaught of allegations about sexual harassment and violence. Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images

Season 4 of CHOICE/LESS is all about teens, sex, abortion, and the law. So far this series has posed the question, if adults and children have a hard time talking about even the most basic sex stuff, then why do 38 states force minors to tell their parents if they’re seeking an abortion?

This episode explores what role schools should play in educating young people about sex.

Nicolette Pawlowski: Some parents view their children as pure, and that means asexual. It’s devoid of connection to their bodies and other relationships outside their family. That’s just not the reality. Whether or not [sex] is something the parent wants them to do or not, it’s about dealing not with ideology but reality. It’s about meeting children where they are at. Whether or not they stay abstinent until marriage, they need this information for after they get married.

Transcript (PDF)