Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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Associated Press (01.24.06) - Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Chet Brokaw
Rep. Roger Hunt (R-Brandon) said his bill, HB1217, calls for schools that offer sex education classes to emphasize abstinence as the responsible and only effective way to avoid STDs and pregnancy. While the word "contraceptives" may be unavoidable in lessons, the overall program should be abstinence-only, Hunt said.
"The instruction of sexual abstinence may not include models of instruction based on risk reduction encouraging, promoting, and providing instruction in the use of contraceptive drugs, devices or methods," states Hunt's bill.
The bill specifies that students be instructed in biology and anatomy, and that the program must emphasize self-control, discipline and the benefits of abstinence until marriage, and inform students that unlawful sexual activity can be punished as a crime. Education on AIDS and other STDs would be required, as would instruction on how to resist pressure to have sex.
SB196, sponsored by Sen. Stan Adelstein (D-Rapid City), would require schools to provide sex education that emphasizes abstinence but also includes medically accurate, age- appropriate instruction in a variety of topics, including contraception. "I like to refer to it as abstinence plus," said Adelstein.
According to Adelstein, it would be erroneous to focus only on abstinence and leave out instruction on contraceptives and other aspects of human sexuality. "It not only would be a mistake, but it would be putting into law and into practice one set of beliefs," he added.
Adelstein's bill would require that sex education courses address the physical, biological and hormonal changes in adolescence and also discuss how drugs and alcohol can impede responsible decision making.
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