Abstinence Programs

Specialties School

Published

I literally have no clue how to establish an abstinence program. We WERE using the Draw the Line/Respect the Line program but apparently they want $5,000-$10,000 for training of new staff members to teach the program :eek: my Superintendent and I just laughed and laughed when we saw that! :yes: But now I'm tasked with finding a new program and I don't know where to start! Do y'all use a specific program? Are you responsible for teaching it? If so, do you do your own thing or are there specific guidelines you're supposed to follow? I have so many questions.... :nurse:

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Specializes in School nursing.

I teach comprehensive Sex Education, which does include abstinence teaching. But I don't think my curriculum recommendations may be what would be used in Texas, sorry!

But I will stay that the curriculum I use does charge about $1,500 for curriculum and single educator training, so $5,000 isn't too far off if you are talking training of multiple staff members. The training I took to teach comprehensive Sex Ed was well worth the cost.

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WOWZA! I honestly had no clue that was the going rate for training! Holy moly!

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Specializes in Pediatrics Retired.

Ugh...who's toes did you step on to be punished like this?

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OD, *insert whiny face* I don't know!! :down:

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I'm in Pennsylvania but our local crisis pregnancy center will come in and do that type of teaching.

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Specializes in Adult and pediatric emergency and critical care.

Is there a particular reason or need for a formal curriculum versus developing your own?

I have had the distinct displeasure of guest teaching sex ed to older school age and middle school kids, but other than a general outline I never had a formal lesson plan. My goals were always to gauge where the kids were at before we started, teach the relevant material to fill in the gaps and correct any misconceptions, and typically proctor some form of evaluation that the principal or school district wanted. The more I kept it open to the kids guiding it (or at least let them think they were guiding it) the more invested they were. I've never personally taught from someone else's lesson plans, but unless you are truly a great teacher the kids will see right through it, become bored, and do just about anything else they care about.

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Specializes in School nursing.
Is there a particular reason or need for a formal curriculum versus developing your own?

I have had the distinct displeasure of guest teaching sex ed to older school age and middle school kids, but other than a general outline I never had a formal lesson plan. My goals were always to gauge where the kids were at before we started, teach the relevant material to fill in the gaps and correct any misconceptions, and typically proctor some form of evaluation that the principal or school district wanted. The more I kept it open to the kids guiding it (or at least let them think they were guiding it) the more invested they were. I've never personally taught from someone else's lesson plans, but unless you are truly a great teacher the kids will see right through it, become bored, and do just about anything else they care about.

See, I love teaching sex education to middle school and high school students! It is incredibly important and I really think that if the educator doesn't want to be teaching it or feels awkward with it, the kids also see right through that as well. Kids are tough, especially middle school kids.

But I also feel a lesson plan is very, very helpful, to be honest, even if you shape to work for you and your kids. I also took a general sex educator seminar that didn't focus on a specific curriculum, but just how to present factual information that teaches, but doesn't judge or let your own preconceptions get in the way and that was also great. The curriculum I use focusing on social emotional learning and lets the kids guide the discussion. But also provides me with all the tools I needed as an educator, especially in being prepared for questions students ask and how to provide factual answers and additional resources if needed.

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Specializes in IMC, school nursing.

My wife and I have tried to offer this, but our admins are dead set against it, even as an elective. We couldn't teach our best abstinence class, anyway, as we have personal experience we share with our boys. Abstinence would have kept us from having ex-spouses.

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Abstinence-only programs are not good evidence based practice for delivering sex ed. Administrations are right not to shell out money for them, in my opinion.

Relevant study from PLoS One/NCBI: Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy Rates: Why We Need Comprehensive Sex Education in the U.S

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Abstinence-only programs are not good evidence based practice for delivering sex ed. Administrations are right not to shell out money for them, in my opinion.

Relevant study from PLoS One/NCBI: Abstinence-Only Education and Teen Pregnancy Rates: Why We Need Comprehensive Sex Education in the U.S

We all know this, however we are bound by our state/county/school policies. The OP is in Texas, abstinence only is the only "sex ed" those kids get

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Specializes in Adult Internal Medicine.
We all know this, however we are bound by our state/county/school policies. The OP is in Texas, abstinence only is the only "sex ed" those kids get

That's awful.

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