Abstinence is the safest and most effective way to prevent unwanted pregnancies and STIs. We all know that. However, do you know what a condom is? Are you aware that condoms can prevent pregnancy and STIs as well, but are not 100 percent effective? Yes, you probably do know that. Where did you learn that information? Did your high school or middle school give you the correct information regarding contraception?

Next week, the Assembly Committee on Education will take up two conflicting bills relating to sex education in schools at a public hearing. One bill stresses the importance of comprehensive sex ed that includes abstinence, methods of contraception, pregnancy, responsibilities of men and women in sexual relationships and sexually transmitted infections. The other bill defines sex ed in the state of Wisconsin as abstinence-only education.

One of the main problems with abstinence-only education is the misinformation that it gives students. Unfortunately, abstinence-only education has turned into let-me-tell-you-about-the-evils-of-sex-because-I'm-your-teacher-education. When the students who receive this education decide to have sex, they use condoms at a lower rate than students who receive comprehensive sex ed.

Students should not be misled into believing myths that have become commonplace in abstinence-only classrooms. Allow me to clear a couple things up for you: no, masturbation will not make you go blind and correct use of contraception is important to be aware of if you decide to have sex. Instruction on human growth and development is not a soapbox to preach a teacher's moral values to students; it is an opportunity to prepare children for what they might experience in their futures.

In a perfect world, parents would tell their children everything they need to know and there would be an open forum for discussions about sex and all other topics in every home. Not every home can be like this, though, and teen pregnancy is a major problem in this country. It is especially a problem in Milwaukee, where the African-American teen pregnancy rate is the highest in the country. The dropout rate of pregnant teens is incredibly high, and children of teen mothers have low birth weights and are more likely to repeat the mistakes of their parents. Unless students receive comprehensive and correct information about sex, this cycle won't have a chance to stop.

According to a Columbia University study, teens who take a virginity pledge may be less likely to have premarital sex, but the ones who do are much less likely to use contraceptives. This is a dangerous path to go down that can lead to more unwanted pregnancies. Proper instruction on pregnancy and STIs can save lives. HIV, AIDS, chlamydia and other STIs are serious problems all over the world, and condoms are a good way to prevent them. Abstinence being the number one way of course, but more than half of teens age 15-19 have had sex. It's time to face reality.

Abstinence-only education is dangerous for the youth of today. After the push it received from President Bush's funding ultimatum, it has become a more popular curriculum for some schools. If parents object to accurate information being given to their children on matters of public health, they should have the right to send their kids to a different class for abstinence-only instruction. However, most parents feel comprehensive sex ed is important. In fact, 77 percent of Wisconsin voters favored such a curriculum in 2004.

Students deserve complete and accurate information in all topics they study in school. Sex should be no different. Comprehensive sex ed is not a solution to all the problems concerning teen pregnancy and STIs, but it is at least a step in the right direction.

Julie Isen ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in political science.