Parents support sex education in schools; however, opt-in policies put students at risk of not getting this information at all.
Most people agree that home is where kids should first learn about sex, sexuality and what it all entails. And although many parents are willing to embrace the discomfort of that first (possible) awkward conversation, there are parents and caregivers that choose not to talk to their kids about sex. For those children who do not get “the talk” at home, the classroom becomes their only source of information.
When it comes to sex education most states are opt-out, which means that parents can remove their kids from the class if they do not want their children to attend the lesson. However, Utah is one of the few opt-in states in the country.
So, what happens when parents do not provide written permission for their kid(s) to attend the sex education section of their health class?
Opt-in policies create obstacles that hinder students from accessing the sex education they have a right to receive. With an opt-in policy, teachers need written permission from a parent that allows the student to attend a sex education class. Moreover, this policy creates a burden on school staff because those forms need to be processed before the class. The opt-in consent excludes children from sex education because sometimes those forms never reach the parents, or they are not returned to school.
Nationwide, STIs have significantly risen in the past 20 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a 505% increase in primary and secondary syphilis cases, and a 481.3% increase in chlamydia cases. These numbers are high, and research shows that a pre-pandemic decreased effort in STI education could have led to this rapid rise in cases.
Utah is no exception to this, and since 2020, STIs have increased by 291%. In Utah, youth aged 15 to 24 represent only 16.3% of the population, but they accounted for almost 60% of reported chlamydia cases in 2020.
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