Is it time for you to have "The Talk" about the Birds and the Bees? Do you think that your child/teen would benefit from having a place to get answers about sex from his/her peer group (moderated by adult experts)? Do you need to refresh yourself on the latest information about Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)and birth control before talking to your teen? Rutgers University has the Answer.
Answer, formerly known as the Network for Family Life Education, is part of the university's Center for Applied Psychology in Piscataway, NJ. Their mission is to provide and promote comprehensive sexuality education to young people and the adults who teach them.
Answer fulfills its mission through its Sexuality Education Training Initiative, which helps teachers and other youth-serving professionals create dynamic and effective educational experiences for young people, and their Teen-to-Teen Sexuality Education Project, which uses the power of teen-to-teen communication to provide millions of teens with the information they need to make responsible decisions about sex.
Sex, Etc. Web Site
With 22,000 unique visitors per day in 2009, the Sex, Etc. Web site, Sexetc.org, is one of the most popular online sexual health sites for teens. The national site features 16 topic areas plus the following:
* Stories written by Sex, Etc. teen staff writers and national contributors
* Chats and Forums moderated by adult experts (health educators, social workers and medical doctors)
* A Video gallery with more than 15 videos on a variety of sexual health topics
* An Ask the Experts section where teens can receive personal and confidential answers to their questions
* A Take Action section where teens can learn to advocate for comprehensive sexuality education
* Spotlights on teens who are making a difference
* A Sex Terms glossary of more than 400 terms
The Sex, Etc. magazine allows teens to hear directly from other teens about the sexual health issues they face every day. Backed by adult health professionals at Answer, these teen-written stories provide honest, accurate, comprehensive information related to sexual health, body image, relationships and much more. It is published three times a year.
Disclaimer: Parentspotlight is simply sharing this Rutgers University ANSWER program as a resource for sex education. We are NOT suggesting that teens should engage in sex. We believe that if teens/young adults are more informed about the risks/dangers of sex (such as date rape, sexually transmitted diseases, and unwanted pregnancy) they will make better choices throughout their lives. We believe that parents are a students' first teacher and that regardless of what is taught in school (or not taught in school) that sex education is ultimately the parents' responsibility.
