Tag Archives: sex ed

New Video Game Is Like “Avatar,” But Teaches Teen Girls About Abstinence

Jessica WakemanJuly 27, 2010 //

An open dialogue about sex? That would be much too simple. Instead, the University of Central Florida has created an “Avatar”-like video game “that promotes sexual abstinence,” according to Fox News Orlando. How does it work? A pre-teen girl puts on a “motion capture” suit outfitted with marks which are picked up by infrared light and then simulated on-screen. Then the girl gets propositioned by another avatar. “A boy similar in age might approach the person playing the game and might ask her to make out or there might be some sexual innuendo,” explained UCF Professor Anne Norris of the UCF Institute for Simulation and Training. “They’ll have an opportunity to interact with the avatar and they’ll get points for social skills that they develop.” Which I assume means she says “no” to sex.

And hey, Floridians, the whole shebang will cost you $434,000 in federal tax dollars! Keep reading »

Provincetown, Mass., Offers Condoms To All Students — Yes, Even Elementary Schoolers

Jessica WakemanJune 24, 2010 //


Starting in September, the small, seaside town of Provincetown, Massachusetts, will give a condom to any student in grades 1 through 12 who asks for one — but only if they listen to a “birds and the bees” talk first. Keep reading »

Were You Clueless About Sex Growing Up?

Jessica WakemanJune 22, 2010 //

My first introduction to s-e-x was at the New England Aquarium in Boston when I was in 4th grade. My friends and I were on a Girl Scout trip and let’s just say us Girl Scouts knew about more than just tasty cookies after watching a pair of rock hoppers in the penguin pen. The next year, the health teacher separated the boys into one room and the girls into another room for the big puberty talk. By that point, I had read enough Judy Blume books to understand about menstruation, but fun facts about sexual activity — in humans, of course — were news to me.

I wasn’t the only kiddie who grew up naive about the birds and the bees: the Facebook group, “We bet we can find 100,000 people who were clueless about sex growing up!” has 120 members so far and is growing. After the jump, read a couple funny — er, funny/sad — stories from the sex ed trenches. Keep reading »

Boys Exposed To Porn Are More Likely To Sexually Harass Girls

Jessica WakemanJanuary 26, 2010 //

Porn: whether you love it, hate it, or feel indifferent, you can’t deny it influences people just like any other form of media. Generally, “Think of the children!” hand-wringing is something I ignore because I think it can get really overblown. But a recent report on how exposure to porn affects young boys is a brash wake-up call that not worrying about their exposure is to their, and our, detriment. Keep reading »

Today’s Lady News: Abstinence-Only Sex Ed Going Limp

Jessica WakemanDecember 17, 2009 //
  • What? Could this be? You mean school kids will actually learn useful stuff about sex? Like how their own bodies work and how not to get pregnant? CRAZY TALK. But if the rumors are true, Congress recently passed the 2010 Omnibus Appropriations spending bill, which eliminates funding for abstinence-only sex ed. And yesterday, President Obama signed the bill, which means $115 million will be allocated to comprehensive sex ed programs that teach both birth control and abstinence, as well as teen pregnancy programs. That sounds totally rational, for once. [Reproductive Health Reality Check]

Keep reading »

Breaking News: Casual Sex Won’t Ruin Your Life!

Jessica WakemanDecember 10, 2009 //

Breaking news! Hooking up won’t lead to ruination, death by AIDS, and a locust plague. A recent study by University of Minnesota School of Public Health found young adults who had casual sex were in a no worse emotional state than ones who had sex in committed relationships.

Researchers spoke to 1,311 young adults between the ages of 18 and 24 about their last sexual encounter and found that the one-fifth who last had casual sex and the four-fifths all felt emotionally similar afterward. “We were so surprised,” said Marla Eisenberg, an assistant professor at UM. “The conventional wisdom is that casual sex, ‘friends with benefits,’ and hooking up is hurtful. That’s what we’ve been teaching kids for decades.”

Obvi. That’s because conventional wisdom is crap. Keep reading »

New Pap Smear Recommendations Could Increase STDs Among Black Teens

Annika HarrisDecember 7, 2009 //

Going to the gynecologist is never a pleasant experience, but most responsible women suck it up at least once a year to have an annual pap smear. The new pap smear recommendations say women should delay getting their first test until they’re 21, regardless of whether they’re sexually active. But for some women, the pap and fear of developing cervical cancer were the only reasons they went to the doctor in the first place, and once they were in the stirrups, their doctor could examine them for signs of STDs. The new pap guidelines mean a whole generation, mainly teens, will be unlikely to get tested for STDs and STIs as they begin having sex. Black teens are especially at risk; find out why after the jump. Keep reading »

Today’s Lady News: Spain Teaches Masturbation In Sex Ed Program

Jessica WakemanNovember 12, 2009 //
  • “Pleasure is in your own hands” is the new pro-masturbation slogan used by a sex ed program in the Extremadura region of Spain. The campaign has upset some Catholics in the country, despite having received funding from local youth and women’s affairs ministries. [Guardian UK]
  • The federal government released a report on Tuesday which found that DNA evidence culled from “rape kits,” which are performed when a victim visits an emergency room or doctor’s office after a rape, are often never sent to crime labs. A CBS news investigation found that when raped kids are not tested for months or even years, the rapists are walking free and continuing to commit crimes. [CBS News]

Keep reading »

Teen Girls Get Money For College By Not Getting Knocked Up

Jessica WakemanNovember 5, 2009 //

Here’s a unique scholarship money idea: earning cash for your empty womb! A program at University of North Carolina at Greenboro called College Bound Sisters, started by two doctorate-holding nurses, has paid teen girls one dollar per day for college if they don’t get pregnant. Keep reading »

An Orgasm A Day Keeps The Doctor Away, British Kids Are Told

Jessica WakemanJuly 13, 2009 //

Jeebus. Why does everybody get so freaked out when adults dare to talk about teenagers masturbating, considering horny 13-year-old guys probably jerk off more than anyone in the world? Alas, there’s drama in Sheffield, England, because medical professionals are circulating a pamphlet to teens which suggests that self-pleasure might be more satisfying than, oh, having sex before they’re ready or getting knocked up. The pamphlet is called “Pleasure” and it says:

“An orgasm a day keeps the doctor away….Health promotion experts advocate five portions of fruit and veg a day and 30 minutes’ physical activity three times a week. What about sex or masturbation twice a week?”

Keep reading »

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