Published: 02-27-09
(AUSTIN TX) Today Senator Leticia Van de Putte (D-San Antonio) and Representative Mike Villarreal (D-San Antonio) filed legislation that prohibits public schools from providing inaccurate information to teenagers about contraceptives.
Currently Texas school districts can select to utilize abstinence only or abstinence plus curriculum in their schools. There are concerns that some abstinence only programs are teaching students potentially dangerous misinformation.
According to the federal Government Accountability Office some abstinence based education programs provide scientifically inaccurate information about anatomy and physiology as they relate to reproductive health as well as misleading information about contraceptive failure rates and STDs.
SB 1076 and HB 1567 require abstinence curriculum that includes instruction on contraception to provide scientifically accurate information about contraceptives and methods of reducing the risk of sexually transmitted diseases. SB 1076 and HB 1567 prohibit these school districts from discouraging contraception use by students who are sexually active. This legislation does not mandate that schools provide sex education but if they choose to offer a sex education course it prohibits them from providing inaccurate information.
While it is true that abstinence is the healthiest choice for teens we cannot close our eyes and pretend we do not have students that are sexually active. We must equip students with the knowledge necessary to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases and unplanned pregnancies" said Van de Putte.
We have a responsibility to ensure that our children receive accurate information in the classroom particularly when students health is at stake Villarreal said. Were dealing with a myriad of problems in Texas as a result of our sky high teen pregnancy rates. We cannot allow our schools to provide erroneous information - the stakes are far too high.
