The Abstinence Clearinghouse Blog

Planned Parenthood to address abstinence more
By Cindy V. Culp Tribune-Herald staff writer
Tuesday, September 27, 2005

When it comes to sex education, semantics can make all the difference. Or at least, that’s what the local Planned Parenthood hopes to communicate at a seminar Thursday.

Called Making Sense of Abstinence, the focus of the conference is to give educators the tools to effectively teach abstinence to teens. But organizers also hope the seminar will help them reclaim a topic that they believe has been co-opted by abstinence-only groups.

The title is different, but the content is relatively the same as what we’ve done before because we do comprehensive (sex education) and abstinence is a part of (that), said Pat Stone, education director for Planned Parenthood of Central Texas. We’re singing the same song. But we’re trying to explain better and attract people who think the abstinence-only camp is the only place to be. We’re trying to broaden the welcome mat.

Bill Taverner, who is the speaker for the seminar, said there is no denying that abstinence has become a buzzword in the past decade. Teens using the word associate it with sex education, he said.

There also is no denying that the reason abstinence has become such a public topic is because more than $1 billion has been poured into federally funded abstinence-only education programs, he said.

The problem with all that, Taverner said, is that teens are often bombarded by the word without knowing what it means or how it can be applied in their own lives. Essentially, he said, teens are being told to just say no.

That approach is dangerous in and of itself, Taverner said. But the abstinence-only phenomenon has sparked another disturbing development the belief that sex education and abstinence education are not compatible.

Certainly, that message has been perpetrated by many who believe in abstinence-only education, Taverner said. Their argument is that comprehensive sex education makes teens more promiscuous.

But the notion has even gained a foothold among comprehensive sex educators, Taverner said. In effect, abstinence has become a turf war, he said.

Among comprehensive sex educators it’s almost become that abstinence is a bad word in our field, said Taverner, who is director of the Center for Family Life Education, which is the education department of Planned Parenthood of Greater Northern New Jersey. They forget that this is a viable choice for young people and it needs to be respected. É I think we have sort of painted ourselves in a corner and begun to believe we’re the anti-abstinence folks and we’re not.

The key, Taverner said, is for abstinence to be taught in conjunction with other information about sexuality. Also, it needs be taught in such a way that teens are clear about what it means, at least for them, he said.

Because there are so many acts in the spectrum between kissing and intercourse, people have a variety of definitions for abstinence and different views on what is appropriate outside of marriage, Taverner said. For example, some people think abstinence includes mutual masturbation or oral sex. Others don’t.

For the purpose of teaching, Taverner defines abstinence as not engaging in sexual intercourse, oral sex or anal sex. But an important part of the seminar, he said, is teaching educators to help teens develop their own definition of abstinence, which may be more or less restrictive.

We want to teach abstinence in a way that is respectful of young people and acknowledges the reality of teen sexual behavior, Taverner said.

Stone, from the local Planned Parenthood, said she wholeheartedly agrees with Taverner’s approach. Abstinence should always be emphasized as a good choice, she said, but safer sex methods need to be taught for teens who choose not to abstain.

I think the problem with abstinence education is the word only,’ Stone said. If it didn’t have that kind of connotation on it, I don’t think it would be that great divide. É I think people have the ideal in mind, but the reality that teachers, nurses and counselors know is different.

It concerns me that even though the abstinence-only folks are saying by their own numbers that half of high school students have had sex by the time they’re out of high school, they’re satisfied giving them no safety net. If only half of the kids could do math, I don’t think the math world would be satisfied.

Not surprisingly, the McLennan County Collaborative Abstinence Project, a local group that teaches an abstinence-only curriculum, takes issue with Planned Parenthood’s approach. But executive director Chris Cobb said a McCAP staff member still plans to attend Thursday’s seminar in case he can learn something.

Cobb said that while some in the community may view McCAP as a rival of Planned Parenthood, the organization does not see itself that way. In recent years, abstinence-only groups also have made a change in the way they talk about the issue, he said, going from moralistic, preachy approach to one that focuses on educating teens about the factual risks associated with not being abstinent.

Under McCAP’s definition, abstinence means not engaging in any activities that include genital contact or stimulation, Cobb said.

I firmly believe you should teach kids the best, Cobb said. Abstinence is 100 percent effective, so that is what we focus on. You’re giving kids a 100 percent solution.