I do not believe that teaching of absitnence needs to be replaced. I do believe teaching abstinence in conjunction with educating our children about sex provides a balanced ground for decision making on this subject for our children. Abstinence always needs to be an option. It should never be replaced. Children need to know that this is a viable and life saving option for them.

Please do not replace the abstinence only education.  It is working.  Less teens are sexually active, in part because we as a society place the bar higher when we tell them, that we know they can control themselves and are not simply animals acting on urges, which is what abstinence education is all about. 

I think teaching abstinence is a waste of time, why do you have to "teach" that anyway isn't that something you should be told by your parent's?  Why waste resources on something that is "common sense" to most intelligent people, lots of teens are sexually active anyway we all know that but I don't think it's a teacher's place to teach "abstinence" to any child.
Parent's need to start being more accountable for their children's behaviour and stop expecting teacher's to do their job for them.

I believe that a well balanced and focused program that preaches abstinence as well as teaches children about their bodies and what happens if they have unprotected sex (pregnancy, STDs, AIDS/HIV, etc.) is the best possible programmatic mix.  Either/or approaches just don't work.  I do believe that the abstinence teachings should be delivered without religious content, however.  You're a pragmatic leader.  Combine all of the best in the techniques available!!

I think you have hit the nail on the head when you say "preaches abstinence" wenbellz. Abstinence is, at the root, a religious idea. While it is definitely the safest option it is unfair to preach one's religious beliefs to students under the pretense of edcuation. I think people need to realize that while abstinence may be the right choice for some, many teens are going to have sex and while we are only promoting abstinence, teen pregnancy and STD's are on the rise. It is important for teens to be given age appropriate sex education that includes information about all of the safe sex options out there (including but not limited to abstinence). Having this knowledge will impower teens to make better choices.

Our teens need to hear all their options. Abstinence education has played a key role in the teen birth rate reduction in the last decade, as well as the increase in teens who have not had sex. It would be a serious mistake to defund these programs when they are having such a positive impact.

Wow.  THIS is the most popular suggestion to our new president while we are engaged in two wars, a depression, and facing the retraining of millions of displaced workers?  I'm not saying it's not important, but, please at least here let's practice some sanity.  No way this should be the most popular idea.  Let's try a little harder.

Abstinence-only education does not work. The facts are clear on this matter. Where is there the most teen pregnancy in America? It isn't in places like Massachusetts that have comprehensive sex education. It is in the "red states", the states where government policy and particularly education policy are the most affected by conservative religious doctrine.

The facts show that teenagers who receive abstinence-only sex education have sex earlier; they have more unprotected sex; they have more teen pregnancies; they have more STDs; and they have more abortions. By any measure that has to do with sexual health, they are less prepared and more vulnerable.

Comprehensive sex education is the only sex education worth the name. Abstinence-only sex education is a right-wing fantasy.

Yes, as a young adult of generation y iIcan safely say that having a urologist for a father and the easy slogan "Wear a condom until you want to be a father" has kept me happy and safe.

I fully support the idea of teaching kids about safe sex at appropriate ages.  More important, in my opinion, is teaching PARENTS about safe sex practices and having THEM tell their children about them.

And although I know this is going to anger many, you should start this education (parents, this is you) as early and calmly as the first time your kids hear about dating or sex on tv.  If you dont make sex a huge deal (good or bad) they probably wont either and are much more likely to choose to have sex with the right person at the right time.

Again, I am 20, what do I know?  Oh yea, I was just a kid and experience all those ridiculous attemts at abstinece education.  It didnt work, all it teaches is teenage pregnancy and STD's (or STI's as they are now supposed to be called)

In response to an earlier commenter, it is absolutely appropriate that a teacher, not (only) parents give teens accurate information about sex.  I was far more comfortable getting it from my health class teacher than I would have been talking about it with my parents, and the quality of information I got was much higher. 

We do not have a culture of giving kids straight, age-appropriate answers about sex in this country, and it does us more harm than good to be afraid of it.  I wouldn't even consider abstinence until marriage to be a desirable thing, personally, and I know many people who agree.  Far better to have healthy, rewarding, nurturing and responsible sexuality, since human history has proven we're going to have it.

And yes, this is a high priority.  Sex is a very important part of everyone's lives, sacred, as our President-elect has described it, and we should treat it with respect.  It deserves to be taken seriously, as our human preoccupation with it clearly shows.

IS CHANGE.GOV A DECEPTION?

Why has Obama been ignoring the demand of his supporters for a single payer health care system?  Does he have political debts to the insurance companies, HMOs, and pharmaceutical corporations? Government officials don’t worry about “affordable” health care, they get it for free.  We should take health insurance off the backs of employers and have a generalized Medicare system for all citizens and resident aliens.  Are we who participate in this exercise being had?

 Communities need comprehensive sexual health programming. Research suggests that abstinence only programming may delay the onset of sexual activity. But, after initiating activity teens are more likely to engage in unprotected sex.

Like it or not, we have an epidemic of sexual transmitted infections in this country. Well rounded and comprehensive sexual health programming, including sex education using a variety of methods, is key to stemming the tide of infections.

 I was raised in a semi-rural area of Pennsylvania in the 1950s and early 1960s.  As part of health education in our sophomore year, we had several classes on the reproductive system and the transmission of venereal diseases. They cleared up some potentially risky misconceptions and, rather than encouraging promiscuousness, made me more cautious notwithstanding my raging hormones.

Kids need to know!!  Some students may follow abstinence, but believe me the VAST MAJORITY of pre-teens and teens are not going to listen to a word anyone has to say about this bs abstinence deal.  It doesn't sound like any fun and no teenager is going to do it.  That's why they need to be educated about the emotional and physical consequences.  My parents never even said a word about sex to me or my two sisters (i'm a girl too) and all three of us ended up having sex at a very early age.  Cause we didn't understand it.  But parents are the key in the education of our teens on sex.  The government needs to spend more money on giving the parents a 'how to talk about sex ed' education!!!!  Please talk to your kids!!!  I wish my parents had.