l crackers she kept to ward off fainting spells for kids who had skipped breakfast were varied and creative. We looked forward to a run down of each day’s adventures. One episode that remains vivid in my memory dealt with sex education.
The point in the school year for giving "The Talk" had arrived. At the time, my mother was covering two different schools. As was the practice in the school district where the schools were located, she sent notices to the students’ parents advising them of the topic to be discussed and inviting anyone interested to attend. At one of the schools, it was just my mother and the students. At the other school, some concerned parents added themselves to the mix.
The result was interesting and instructive. My mother gave essentially the same presentation at both schools. She then opened the floor to questions. At the school without parents, the questions and background information leading up to them were numerous. At the school with parents, the room was silent.
Sex education in schools has changed since my mother gave her presentation. Today, it often includes a discussion of condom usage and, in some schools, condom distribution. Parents’ desire to remain actively involved in their children’s sex education, on the other hand, has not changed. The potential chilling effect of parents’ involvement has also not changed.
While parents have primary responsibility for rearing their children, they need to recognize that sometimes children are more comfortable seeking counsel from others. An informed, accessible health care provider, like a school nurse, can serve this important role. As in the past, the nurse can explain without judgment the consequences of sexual relations. In light of the current reality of teen sexuality, the nurse can also explain how to use a condom properly and, when approached by a student who has decided to have sexual relations, ensure that the student has a condom.
Making condoms available in schools is not a simple matter, however, and the state of the law on the issue is divided. Courts have tended to defer to school boards’ decisions and allow condom distribution programs to stand, but legislators have tended to restrict school boards’ powers and prohibit such programs from being instituted. The debate revolves around rights, responsibilities, and potential liability. It also revolves around the message teens receive from such programs.
The need to reduce the risk of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease for those who decide to have sexual relations requires less divisiveness. Parents can still instruct their children as they see fit, but parents and their elected representatives should entrust school boards with the power to supplement that instruction with informed, health-based programs and services, including condom distribution programs. The principal message teens should receive is that their continued health and safety is key.
