Abstract
Statement of the Problem
This study examined what high school students enrolled in a health class thought was the most important aspect within sex education curriculum to effectively reduce teen pregnancy and teen sexually transmitted diseases. The information gained from this study helped to show that teens should be involved in their own sexuality education. Overall, this study sought to obtain a better understanding of what was effective in public high school sex education and what was not, according to the students themselves.
Sources of Data
Two sources of data were analyzed: a survey involving a Likert Scale in which the students rated different parts of the sex education curriculum and a series of open-ended questions that were related to how the students thought the current curriculum should be changed. The methodology employed for this study involved both qualitative and quantitative research designs. Participants were required to fill out a survey. Qualitative data was analyzed using a thematic approach while quantitative data collected was analyzed using t-tests, an analysis of variance, and a correlation test.
Conclusions Reached
The quantitative portion of the survey revealed only one statistically significant difference. Specifically, male students tended to slightly prefer the "refusal skills" curriculum over the female students. However, the qualitative portion of the survey revealed two themes. One theme related to where teens obtain their sex information and the other related to what the students would like to see more of in their sex education curriculum. The in-depth amount of written comments in the open-ended section of the study indicate that teens have a strong opinion about their own education and deserve a voice in how it is structured.