The Sex
Education Curriculum in South Carolina’s Public Schools: The Public’s View
Forrest L. Alton, Robert W. Oldendick, and Katherine A. Draughon
Introduction
Sex. The word alone is enough to stir up strong feelings among the South Carolina public, and the topic often becomes contentious when it includes distribution of sexuality education and information to young people. The apex of this contentiousness often involves the provision of such education in public schools. For several decades, the issue of how sexuality education should be provided in the public schools has been debated in the state, and remains a potentially divisive issue today.
Despite declines throughout the 1990s in rates of teen sexual activity, teen pregnancy, and teen births, South Carolina still has rates that greatly exceed national averages. According to the 2003 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 56.0% of high school students in South Carolina report having had sexual intercourse compared to 46.7% nationally.[1] High rates of sexual activity contribute to high rates of teen births and sexually transmitted diseases (STD). In 1988, the rate of teen births for females ages 15-19 in South Carolina was 65 per 1,000, compared to the national average of 53 per 1,000. By 2000, rates in South Carolina had declined to 59 per 1,000, but were still above the national rate of 48 per 1,000.[2] In addition, in 2003 South Carolina ranked fourth nationally (among all age groups) in diagnosed cases of gonorrhea, tenth in cases of chlamydia, and ninth for new cases of AIDS.[3]
Declines in teen pregnancy have been attributed both to an increase in the number of young people who choose to delay the initiation of sexual activity and to an increase in the consistent and effective use of contraception by those young people who are sexually active.[4] Sexuality education and information that encourages young people to delay sexual activity and to increase their use of contraception if they are sexually active is generally considered to contribute to a decline in the teen pregnancy rate.[5] Even so, South Carolina, like much of the rest of the country, has not been able to reach a consensus on what information and approaches should be presented to public school students in terms of sex education.
Two divergent schools of thought have emerged on this issue. On one side of the debate are those who are opposed to comprehensive sexuality education in the schools, or at best, support education which emphasizes abstaining from sexual activity as the only acceptable option for adolescents.[6] Proponents of this approach, often referred to as “abstinence-only–until-marriage” education, believe that sexual intercourse should not occur, at any age, outside of marriage, and are of the opinion that discussions of contraception should be brief and take place only in “the context of their failure rates.” [7] [8] Accordingly, proponents of this view believe that a comprehensive approach to sexuality, which includes contraceptive information, is not only morally wrong, but more damagingly, promotes sexual activity. There is also some sentiment among this group that comprehensive sexuality education is in direct opposition to what parents want their children to be taught and ultimately undermines their authority.[9]
At the seemingly opposite end of the spectrum are supporters of a comprehensive approach to sexuality education. We say “seemingly” because, at least initially, the views of those in favor of a comprehensive approach parallel those who favor abstinence-only-until-marriage education. The approaches are in agreement in the belief that schools should teach abstinence as the first option for young people and emphasize that abstinence is the only 100% effective method of preventing unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Abstinence is not the source of disagreement between these groups; their divergence comes from the word “only.”
Proponents of a comprehensive approach, referred to as “abstinence-plus” or “abstinence-based” sex education, believe that in addition to a strong focus on abstaining from sexual activity, programs should discuss medically accurate information about contraception. The Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education,[10] published in 1996 by the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, concludes that “comprehensive school-based sexuality education that is appropriate to a student’s age, developmental level, and cultural background should be an important part of the education program at every age.” In 2001, then Surgeon General, Dr. David Satcher, released a “Call to Action” which stressed the importance of approaching the issue of sex education from a comprehensive manner. Satcher stated that education about sexual health should “stress the value and benefits of remaining abstinent… but assure awareness of optimal protection from sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancy, for those who are sexually active.”[11]
In 1988, South Carolina enacted a Comprehensive Health Education Act (CHEA) which, among other things, provides guidelines for the provision of sexuality education in the state’s public schools. Since 1990, there have been more than twenty attempts to change these provisions, either through amendments to the existing Act or through new legislation. In most cases, these proposed changes have reflected a move towards a more abstinence-only approach to sexuality education. For example, in 1998, legislation was introduced to repeal language stating the purpose of the CHEA was to “…promote responsible sexual behavior.”[12] In its place, the bill suggested the following: “the goal of this act is to reduce the incidence of sexual activity among school aged youth.” As recently as the 2003-2004 legislative session a bill was pre-filed “so as to among other things, revise the guidelines of the 1988 Act.”[13]
Sexuality education has been a part of our nation’s public schools for some time, and current laws and policies virtually ensure that adolescents will receive some form of formal education specific to sexuality while they are in school.[14] Nearly all youth ages 15-19 have had some form of sexuality education during their school years[15], and the evidence is that school-based health education programs can have a considerable impact on the health of children.[16] [17] [18]
Given the range of views on the issue of sexuality
education in public schools, where does the public stand on this issue? Do
South Carolinians support an abstinence-only-until-marriage approach to this
topic or are they more likely to favor one based on “abstinence plus”? In order to determine how South Carolina’s
registered voters feel about this issue, in early 2004, the South Carolina
Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy[19]
commissioned the Institute for Public Service and Policy Research to conduct a
survey of the state’s registered voters. The following sections describe the
results of this survey.
Methods
Data for this study were collected by telephone interviews with registered voters in the State of South Carolina, with interviewing done by the staff of the University of South Carolina’s Institute for Public Service and Policy Research (IPSPR). The topics included in this survey were identified by the staff of the South Carolina Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy and were similar to those of an earlier survey on this topic conducted in 1997. IPSPR staff provided technical consultation on the design of the questionnaire and conducted a pretest of the instrument.
The respondents interviewed for this study were selected
from a random sample of households with telephones in the state. Within these
households, a respondent was randomly chosen from among those registered to
vote. To avoid biasing the sample in favor of households that could be reached
on multiple phone numbers, each case was weighted inversely to its probability
of being included in the sample. The data presented have also been weighted to
correct any potential biases in the sample on the basis of age, race, gender,
region, and number of registered voters in the household.
Interviewing for this
study was done between February 16 and April 7, 2004. Calls were made from 9:00
AM to 9:30 PM Monday through Friday, from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM on Saturday, and
3:00 PM to 8:00 PM on Sunday. A total
of 501 fully completed interviews and 46 partially completed interviews were
conducted. For all questions that were answered by 500 or so respondents, the
potential for sampling error is +/- 4.4%.
Results for questions answered by significantly fewer than 500 respondents
and results for subgroups of the population have a potential for larger
variation than those for the entire sample.
Results
One of the first items in the survey concerned the general topic of sexuality education in which respondents were asked, “Do you think that sexuality education which emphasizes abstinence as the first and best option for young people, but also teaches youth about the benefits and importance of using contraception to prevent pregnancy and/or sexually transmitted diseases should be taught in South Carolina public schools?” Approximately three-fourths of respondents believed that such sexuality education should be taught, 11.4% thought it should not be, 8.9% said “it depends,” and 4.4% said they did not know.[20]
Appropriateness of Various Topics as Part of School-Based Sex Education
As part of this study, respondents were asked whether topics such as reproductive anatomy, sexual decision-making and parenting responsibilities should be part of school-based sex education programs and, if so, the earliest grade level at which it should be taught.
The vast majority of South Carolina adults (over 90%) feel
that schools should include information about sexually transmitted diseases,
abstinence, and sexual abuse/rape as part of a school-based comprehensive,
age-appropriate sex education program (Figure 1). In addition, more than 80% of the South Carolina public feels
that teachers should include the topics of parenting responsibilities, physical
changes associated with puberty and adolescence, reproductive anatomy,
contraception, and pregnancy and childbirth in their sex education lesson
plans.
Despite
the fact that most South Carolina registered voters agree that topics such as
contraception, sexually transmitted diseases, abstinence, and sexual abuse
should be included in school sex education curriculums, only slightly more than
two-thirds feel that children should receive information about “sexual decision
making” at school.
Of the 12 sex education topics included in this study, there were two that less than half of those interviewed thought should be taught in public schools: abortion and homosexuality. Among those surveyed, 53.8% thought that information about abortion should not be taught and 57.6% felt that information about homosexuality should not be taught.
Appropriateness of Sex Education Topics by Grade
Level
Support
for Sex Education Topics - Demographic Differences
While the
voting public generally believes that these various sex education topics should
be taught in public schools, there are a number of significant differences
across demographic groups. The largest and most consistent differences are
across age groups, with the general pattern being that younger people are more
likely to support having these topics included as part of the public school
curriculum. Differences across age groups are
Table 1
Earliest grade level at which sex education topics should be taught in South Carolina public schools (% giving each response)
|
|
Grade |
Middle |
High |
Should Not |
|
|
|
School |
School |
School |
Be Taught |
N |
|
Sexually |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Transmitted Diseases |
18.3 |
54.7 |
20.2 |
6.8 |
522 |
|
Abstinence |
22.9 |
55.9 |
12.1 |
9.1 |
527 |
|
Sexual Abuse/Rape |
29.5 |
42.0 |
18.8 |
9.7 |
518 |
|
Parenting Responsibilities |
13.3 |
42.1 |
32.6 |
12.0 |
529 |
|
Changes Associated w/ |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Puberty & Adolescence |
27.4 |
50.2 |
8.3 |
14.2 |
532 |
|
Reproductive Anatomy |
26.5 |
45.5 |
12.9 |
15.2 |
533 |
|
Contraception |
12.2 |
49.3 |
20.8 |
17.7 |
523 |
|
Pregnancy & Childbirth |
13.7 |
45.2 |
23.3 |
17.8 |
528 |
|
Responsible Relationships |
16.4 |
40.7 |
22.8 |
20.1 |
529 |
|
Sexual Decision Making |
11.6 |
38.1 |
17.8 |
32.5 |
531 |
|
Abortion |
5.4 |
23.9 |
16.8 |
53.8 |
519 |
Homosexuality |
7.9 |
24.3 |
10.2 |
57.6 |
518 |
significant for eight of these twelve items. On the question
of whether sexual decision making should be taught in schools, for example,
79.7% of those ages 18 to 29 think that it should be; this declined to 74.7%
among those ages 30 to 45, 64.8% of those ages 46 to 64, and 54.9% among those
age 65 or older.
Similarly, the percentages who think that contraception should be
taught in the schools ranged from 94.2% among those in the 18-29 age group to
77.8% among those 65 or older. Whether a respondent is the parent or legal
guardian of a child age 17 or younger also made a difference in their views on
these items. For four of these items – sexual decision making, physical and
social growth changes associated with puberty and adolescence, reproductive
anatomy, and contraception – parents were significantly more likely than those
who were not parents to believe they should be taught in public schools.
A higher percentage of those who were not parents (49.3%) than those who were (39.5%) feel that information about abortion should be taught in public schools. While other group differences – such as those across education groups, by race, or by religion – are evident, they are not as significant as those found across age groups or between respondents who are parents and those who are not.
Time
Allotted for Sex Education in Schools
When asked if the time required for sex education instruction
in high schools should be increased, decreased, or remain the same, 50.0% say
it should be increased and 39.4% feel it should remain about the same as it is
now; only 6.6% think that the current amount of time allotted to sex education
in schools should be reduced, and 4.0% said they are not sure.
Across subgroups, significant differences were found across age categories, level of family income, and whether the respondent is a parent or not (Table 2). The younger the respondent, the more likely he or she was to feel that the time allotted for sex education in schools should be increased, with approximately two-thirds of the 18 to 29 age group responding that the time should be increased, compared to slightly more than a third of those age 65 or older. None of the 18 to 29 year old respondents thought that the time allotted for sex education should be decreased. South Carolinians with household incomes of less than $25,000 are more likely than those with higher incomes to believe that the amount of time currently required for sex education instruction should be increased. Similarly, respondents who were parents or legal guardians of a child age 17 or younger are significantly more likely (56.1%) to feel that the amount of time devoted to sex education in schools should be increased than were those who are not parents (45.8%).
Support of State
Funding of Teen Pregnancy Prevention Programs
When South Carolina registered
voters were asked if they would favor or oppose increasing state funding for
teen pregnancy prevention programs in their community, a majority (70.0%) said
they would favor such an increase, 23.2% would oppose it, and 6.8% said they
were not sure. Moreover, as the data presented in Table 3 demonstrate, a
majority of each subgroup examined was in favor of increasing state funding for
teen pregnancy prevention programs and – with the exception of those age 65 or
older – more than 60% of each group supported such an increase. The largest
difference in support was across age groups. More than 80% of those ages 18 to
29 say they would support increased funding of teen pregnancy prevention
programs. This percentage declines to 74.2% of those ages 30 to 44, 68.0% of
those ages 45 to 64, and 56.0% of those age 65 or older.
Table 2
Required
time for sex education instruction increased, decreased or remained the same (%
giving each response)
|
|
|
Remain |
Do
Not |
|
|
|
|
Increased |
Decreased |
the
Same |
Know |
N |
|
Total |
50.0 |
6.6 |
39.4 |
4.0 |
491 |
Gender
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Male |
50.7 |
8.2 |
36.7 |
4.3 |
207 |
|
Female |
49.1 |
5.6 |
41.4 |
3.9 |
285 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Race
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Non-White |
57.1 |
5.3 |
34.6 |
3.0 |
133 |
|
White |
46.8 |
6.6 |
42.2 |
4.3 |
348 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Age
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
18 – 29 |
65.2 |
0.0 |
34.8 |
0.0 |
69 |
|
30 – 44 |
51.6 |
11.9 |
34.0 |
2.5 |
159 |
|
45 – 64 |
49.7 |
4.2 |
4.2 |
5.5 |
165 |
|
65 and older |
35.6 |
6.7 |
51.1 |
6.7 |
90 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Education
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Less than HS |
46.2 |
11.5 |
38.5 |
3.8 |
52 |
|
HS Diploma |
53.0 |
6.1 |
37.1 |
3.8 |
132 |
|
Some College |
51.1 |
7.9 |
39.6 |
1.4 |
139 |
|
College Degree |
47.8 |
4.3 |
42.2 |
5.6 |
161 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Income
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Less than $25,000 |
59.6 |
3.8 |
32.7 |
3.8 |
104 |
|
$25,000 - $49,999 |
52.2 |
10.3 |
33.8 |
3.7 |
136 |
|
$50,000 - $74,999 |
42.9 |
9.5 |
46.4 |
1.2 |
84 |
|
$75,000 and over |
44.0 |
2.0 |
47.0 |
7.0 |
100 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Region
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Upstate |
45.2 |
7.0 |
43.0 |
4.8 |
186 |
|
Midlands |
47.1 |
6.5 |
40.5 |
5.9 |
153 |
|
Lowcountry |
60.3 |
4.8 |
33.6 |
1.4 |
146 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Parent/Legal
Guardian
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Yes |
56.1 |
8.1 |
33.8 |
2.0 |
198 |
|
No |
45.8 |
5.8 |
43.1 |
5.4 |
295 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Religious
Affiliation
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Baptist |
52.8 |
5.2 |
39.2 |
2.8 |
212 |
|
Other Protestant |
46.0 |
11.4 |
38.6 |
4.0 |
176 |
|
Catholic |
47.7 |
0.0 |
43.2 |
9.1 |
44 |
|
Other |
43.2 |
2.7 |
48.6 |
5.4 |
37 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|