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Teen Pregnancy

Did you know that the city of Lubbock is the fifth highest percentage of teen pregnancy in the country? Did you know that Texas has the highest percentage of teen pregnancy in the entire nation? I live in both Lubbock County and the state of Texas and I did not know any of these statistics. I thought, like many others, that the sex education programs were working. It is advertised in the local media that, "abstinence only programs work because if they did not work the government would not federally fund abstinence only programs in public schools." That is obviously not the case! If abstinence only programs are not working…why not try safe sex programs? Many mothers, fathers, grandparents, or legal guardians do not like the idea of safe sex or abstinence being taught to their young sons or daughters. I understand the reasoning behind that decision but the fact is, over half of parents are not willing to take on that role of teaching safe sex or abstinence and are leaving that job to schools; therefore, it is now a debate in every school district of whether it is smarter to teach safe sex or abstinence. I think because teen pregnancy is such a huge issue today, safe sex should be taught. There are many reasons for and against safe sex programs but in the end the pros outweigh the cons but it is up to the parent to make the best decision for their child.
I went to a school right outside Lubbock Independent School District, where abstinence only is taught, and was taught about safe sex. My high school did not have a pregnancy rate and I believe it is because of our program. Our professors taught us everything there was to be taught scientifically about sex. The school had young adult come in and talk about their experience with teen pregnancy, sexual transmitted disease, staying abstinence and engaging in a sexual relationship at a young age. All of the speaker's testimonies were unbelievably impacting. I still remember every word. When the psychologist in...

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