Should Condoms
be Given Out in High Schools? 
Condoms should be handed out to high school students for a number of reasons.
There are situations in which many people have different opinions.
It is my belief that condom distribution in high schools would make
a lot of students feel very comfortable and happy to know they have some
protection available for them.
Some high schools give out condoms. Studies have shown that such
programs are successful. According to the Minnesota Organization on
Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention and Parenting (MOAPPP), 66% of females
and 68% of males are having sexual intercourse by the age of 18. Also,
in a study conducted by the Allen Guttmacher
Institute in April 1999, reseachers found that 106 out of every 1000 females
between the ages of 15- 19 were pregnant, had a miscarriage, or an abortion
within the previous year (Maryland). There is much more data that could
be provided to appeal to both sides of the question of condom distribution.
Here are some key pros and cons to the situation of condom distribution.
|
PROS :
|
CONS :
|
|
* Condoms available for the
students who need them
|
* The cost of distributing
condoms in schools would be very high
|
|
* A decrease in teen pregnancies
and diseases
|
* The school would be promoting
kids to have sex even though it is safe sex
|
|
* This will open up kids minds
about asking questions
|
* The best way to prevent pregnancies
is abstinence
|
* Decrease in
the amount of money spent on supporting unwanted and unplanned teen
pregnancies and abortions
|
|
Some
people may say "practice what you preach," meaning that most schools are
required to teach sex education. In sex education you are taught
to practice safe sex. So, if you are taught this, then why not have access
to the tools needed to practice safe sex in the places it is being taught
most? 
Condoms are 90% effective, according to MOAPPP. If the goal is to increase
the use of contraceptives among sexually active teens, then condoms should
not be hidden behind counters of local stores. Instead, they should
be in areas that are heavily populated by teens, like in schools.
Lawrence Harvey, Illinois College, Jacksonville
IL.
date last revised:
