In Fields' article she discusses the sexual education debate and the intersections that play a role in young adults knowledge (or lack there of) on the topic. Members of the school board in Southern County saw two options--abstinence only and abstinence plus. Fields argues that within the debate many important situations were not observed let alone addressed. In addition, she explains how the population in question was being underrepresented causing the core of the issue to be ignored.
Our discussion primarily focused on the pros and cons of abstinence only curriculum versus abstinence plus. With religion (especially Christianity) being a very important part of policy-makers decisions, it is seen that with more knowledge on the topic we are encouraging "sinful" behavior and agency for teens. We all agreed that providing all the available information on this topic was an effective way to address the issues of teen pregnancy and the prevalence of STIs. We discussed how and why people often simplify the issues of sexual education. In answering this question, we mentioned the fact that this is partially due to assumptions and stereotypes that are held by the individual and our nation's institutions. With policy-makers, and other people in positions of power making decisions, fitting (more times than not) in the Euro-American heteronormative mold there are large populations that are generalized, simplified and/or ignored. Another question brought up was how can we incorporate the experiences of those who are currently not represented or focused on. By addressing all topics related in sexual education, problems facing underrepresented groups (such as high teen pregnancy rates in the African American community) and boys' lack of presence in issues pertaining to this would be addressed. Knowledge is power, it was decided, and was the key to address the many problems relating to young adults sexual activities.
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