When it comes to sex education, students face a great disservice.

The quality of sex education students are receiving is inexcusable. According to the National Conference of State Legislature, only 19 states require their curriculum to be medically, factually or technically accurate.

It’s a scary thought to wonder what the other 31 states are actually teaching students.

There should be a national standard to which sex education is taught. Every state should be required to teach the most current and medically accurate material available.

Students are receiving faulty information, and it’s affecting how they perceive others.

According to the Huffington Post, three students in Arkansas were banned from attending classes because they were suspected of being HIV positive. The Arkansas School Board Association reserved the right to bar students with communicable diseases.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services state that HIV is not a communicable disease.

According to the Seattle Times, director of prevention and health education for Seattle’s Lifelong AIDS Alliance Ace Robinson said that some schools are still teaching AIDS prevention from the 1980s.

The HIV/AIDS scare was at its peak in the 80s, and information during that time on how to prevent contracting the disease was representative of the panic people felt.

By giving today’s students the same outdated information, we set them up for a life of ignorance.

The education system cannot leave it in the hands of parents to discuss these matters with their children. Not every child gets “the talk,” and no one should be under the assumption that every person is well informed on the topic of sex.

All throughout middle school and high school I received the sex-ed courses we were required to sit through, but looking back I realize the material I was taught was extremely vague.

It wasn’t until I took a human sexuality course at a community college that I was given in-depth information that would clear up any future confusion.

These are the types of courses students in high school should be taking. A poll conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International reports that nearly 27 percent of 13 to 16 year-olds are sexually active. The same poll also reports that sexual activity is much more common among 15 and 16 year-olds.

It seems as though the age at which teens are becoming sexually active gets lower every year, and in order for teens to be accountable, they must be informed on how to be responsible with their sex life.

In certain cases, some parents may be against sex education because of the fear that it will increase their child’s desire to engage in sexual behavior. However, parents do not shy from lecturing their child about drinking responsibly out of fear that they will drink regardless of their wishes.

We must realize that young adults are going to become sexually active. The reality is that they will be more prepared if they are educated factual and accurate information.

-Dominique Wald is a senior communication major from Santa Clara, Calif. She can be contacted at 335-2290 or by [email protected]. The opinions expressed in this Column are not necessarily those of the staff of The Daily Evergreen or those of Student Publications.