ATLANTA (Reuters) – public schools of United States being made “little progress” in the expansion of the instruction on how to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV, a new federal study concluded.
Between 2008 and 2010, the percentage of public schools that teach key issues on prevention not increased by 45 States studied, reported the centres for the Control and the prevention of diseases of United States (CDC for its acronym in English).
. In primary schools, 11 States reported decreases in the period of two years and none had increases, the CDC added. The level of instruction in secondary schools remained stable.
“With little advance is like we are describing this,” told Reuters Laura Kann, one of the authors of the study.
Research did not explain why this type of education seems to be stagnant, Kann said. “The decision on what is taught is a local decision,” he added. “We asked schools what they are doing.” “Don’t ask it why”, specified.
Instruction in public schools may be effective in decreasing rates of teenage pregnancy and STDs like HIV, Kann said.
“We have evidence that teach these issues can contribute to reduce the risk of HIV, pregnancy and STDs (sexually transmitted diseases),” said the expert.
The CDC survey revealed that the percentage of schools that teach the 11 prevention topics suggested in the sixth, seventh or eighth grades ranged from 12.6 percent in Arizona to 66.3 per cent in New York.
Schools that teach eight of the topics suggested in the ninth to twelfth grades ranged from 45.3 per cent in Alaska to 96.4 percent in New Jersey.
(Published in Spanish by Ana Laura Mitidieri)
