My topic of sex education in the U.S. would make a great podcast because it's relevant to everyone no matter who they are or where they are from. Everyone has a  body and our schools behaving as they are is a disservice to everyone. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, “24 states and the District of Columbia require public schools teach sex education” (Blackman,1), “20 states require that if provided, sex and/or HIV education must be medically, factually or technically accurate” (Blackman,1), “33 states and the District of Columbia require students receive instruction about HIV/AIDS,”(Blackman, 1). This means that people are not getting enough or any factual information that everyone needs. It's a blindingly obvious problem that I feel must be addressed now.

    Because people aren't able to get what they need from school they will believe everything they hear. Old wise tales about contraceptive methods are getting out of hand and their is also is serious gap of knowledge when you look at people who haven’t gone to college or even finished high school. Some of the most widely believed wise tales are that it is far less likely that someone will get pregnant if sex is had standing up, birth control doesn’t work 50%+ of the time for pregnancy prevention (it works 99% of the time) and ¼ of people with a high school diploma or less think that, even without medical confirmation, that they are infertile and need no contraceptives (DeMers). These are perfect examples of why we need more intensive and inclusive sex education courses early on.

    According to ebsco in the U.S., “ 27 states require that abstinence be stressed”(Zalaznick, 2), even though pro-abstinence or abstinence-only curriculums have been proven to have no positive results. Abstinence teaches kids to never have sex until they are married, and make sex a really shameful event especially for females. This creates a society of people uncomfortable with their sexuality, an essential piece of everyday life.  According to a New York Times article, “...a Cochrane meta-analysis that looked at studies of 13 abstinence-only programs together and found that they showed no effect on these factors, or on the use of protection like condoms”(Carroll, 2), “these factors” being amount of sexual partners, amount of teen pregnancy, use of contraceptives and amount of STDs. Many other studies have had the same results, so if that's the ideal outcome why are we, as a country, not using the effective method?

    In the Netherlands they start sexual education in kindergarten. They are far more advanced than the U.S. because they understand that 1 sexual education is more than just contraceptive methods and shaming children. Their program thrives off of talking about sexual orientation, rape, emotion health, love, relationships, drugs, alcohol, as well as what most of us think of when it comes to sexual education in America. And 2 they talk with kids from a very young age so that they never feel the shame, or awkwardness that most American kids feel talking about anything health and sex. “The system allows for flexibility in how it’s taught. But it must address certain core principles — among them, sexual diversity and sexual assertiveness. That means encouraging respect for all sexual preferences and helping students develop skills to protect against sexual coercion, intimidation and abuse… Eight-year-olds learn about self-image and gender stereotypes. 11-year-olds discuss sexual orientation and contraceptive options. But in the Netherlands, the approach, known as “comprehensive sex education,” starts as early as age 4” (Melker 1). The bottom line for their program is that sexual development is a normal process that everyone goes through and therefore you have the right to blunt and accurate information (DeMers) something America has turned a blind eye to. I want to use the Netherlands as a guide of what we should strive to have and for people to realize how much we are missing out on.

    My interview source Mrs. Supple health teacher is perfect to interview. We have easy access to her, in fact I already contacted her via email and she is waiting for my email saying the sex education podcast is a go so she gives us her phone number to record a conversation. She has been working as a health/ sex education teacher for many years and has even received awards for her work. She will have a different perspective having been involved in the topic for more years than us and she has been both the teacher and student so her experience is well-rounded.

    In conclusion, everyone has a body and 99% of people have sex in their lifetime so we need to know how to be safe and protected without shame. This is the exact opposite of what is happening right now. Especially in middle/ high school so those who can't get a higher level of education are prepared and teens especially are just about to enter this new world of sexuality, peer pressure, alcohol, gender, relationships, drugs, extreme stress etc. and to have a successful society the people  as individuals need to be as sound as possible. It’s such a disservice to America as a whole, similar to the foundation of a house being cracked. If the most basic parts of people aren’t sound it’s bound to collapse. We need to bring this issue to the forefront of people mind no matter their level of power to affect the most amount of necessary change possible. That is why I strongly believe the topic of sexual education should be our podcast topic.

Works Cited

Blackman, Kate, et al. “STATE POLICIES ON SEX EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS.” State

Policies on Sex Education in Schools, National Conference of State Legislatures,

21 Dec. 2016,

www.ncsl.org/research/health/state-policies-on-sex-education-in-schools.aspx.

Carroll, Aaron E. “Sex Education Based on Abstinence? There's a Real Absence of

Evidence.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 22 Aug. 2017,

www.nytimes.com/2017/08/22/upshot/sex-education-based-on-abstinence-theres-a-real-absence-of-evidence.html.

Melker, Saskia de. “The Case for Starting Sex Education in Kindergarten.” PBS, Public

Broadcasting Service, 27 May 2015, www.pbs.org/newshour/health/spring-fever.

Rampell, Catherine. “The Sex Ed Gap.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 17 Oct.

2014,www.washingtonpost.com/news/rampage/wp/2014/10/17/the-sex-ed-gap/?

utm_term=.bdc

Zalaznick, Matt. “Beyond the Birds and Bees.” Ebscohost.com,

web.b.ebscohost.com/src_ic/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=34625a6a-4f39-480

5-8ea1-ac105f3957e0%40pdc-v-sessmgr01.