Concerned about rising teen birth rates and skyrocketing infections from sexually transmitted diseases across the state, legislators have introduced a proposal to provide students with comprehensive, medically accurate and age appropriate sex education.

However, opponents of the proposal argue the legislation - if approved - could have the opposite effect on teens, resulting in a growing number of STDs, pregnancies and abortions.

The future of the Assembly bill - AB458 - is uncertain. It was referred to the Assembly Education Committee Sept. 30; a public hearing was Tuesday, but a formal committee vote on the proposal hasn't been scheduled yet.

State Reps. Kristen Dexter and Jeff Smith, both Eau Claire Democrats and parents of teenagers, support the legislation and have signed on as co-sponsors of the bill.

"We have an increasing rate of teenage births, and this is not the direction we should be going," said Smith, the father of two daughters. "Obviously, the abstinence-only strategy is not working as much as I wish it would."

The bill provides that a school board may offer an instructional program in human growth and development, and, if it does, that program must provide medically accurate information and, when age appropriate, address a number of issues, including the benefits of abstinence and reasons for it.

"I do not understand the argument against providing the tools teens need to make the right decisions," Smith said. "And we're talking about education here; we're not talking about anything else ... (like) providing them with contraceptives."

Milwaukee-based Wisconsin Right to Life sent a memo to state legislators in opposition to the bill.

"Wisconsin Right to Life strongly believes that we must speak out in one voice to protect the health of our youth, to reduce the number of pregnancies among our youth and to reduce the number of abortions obtained by our youth by advocating programs that focus on abstinence from sexual activity," the memo reads. "It is the healthiest course for our youth to take and is the only way to insure that sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy and abortion will not result.

"Unfortunately, AB458 would require that students be taught about a number of activities that could endanger their health and could result in a growing number of teen sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancies and abortions."

Birth rates among teens nationwide went up in 2006 and 2007, following large declines from 1991 to 2005, according to a study conducted by the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And sexually transmitted disease cases have increased as well.

Chlamydia remains the most commonly reported infectious disease in the U.S., according to the CDC. Young females, ages 15 to 19, had the highest chlamydia rate - 3,005 per 100,000 population in 2007.

State Sen. Sheila Harsdorf, R-River Falls, believes parents are in the best position to teach children about sexuality, so it will be consistent with their values.

"But if schools are involved, I think it is reasonable to have districts be able to choose an abstinence-focused curriculum free from mandates that require contraception education, since we know abstinence is the only method that is effective against teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases," she said.

Dexter, a parent of two teenage daughters and a pre-teen son, believes parents are the best source of information regarding human growth and development. However, not all parents are talking to their children.

"It can be an uncomfortable thing to talk about, but (students) need to get accurate information from somewhere," Dexter said.

Dave Tackmann, who teaches seventh-, eighth- and 10th-grade health classes in the Altoona school district, where Dexter used to serve on the school board, agrees, and he applauds the Assembly bill for requiring that human growth and development programs offered by school districts must provide medically accurate and age appropriate information.

"This gives kids age-appropriate facts," said Tackmann, also a father of three grown sons. "Living in a society where kids are getting so many different messages about sex, you have to give them the necessary tools to make informed decisions."

That said, educators teaching sex education also need to have the trust of the community, including their students' parents, said Tackmann, who sends a letter home to parents at the beginning of each health class that provides an overview of the coming lessons and his telephone number in case someone has a question or concern.

In the Eau Claire school district, required health courses are taught in seventh and ninth grade, and a health elective is offered in eighth grade, said Ann Franke, director of secondary education.

In reviewing the bill and the proposed requirements for districts offering a human growth and development curriculum, "they seem to be right in line with where we're at," she said.

That said, Franke said educators realize parents might have question or concerns, and all teachers are open to meeting with them.

Each of the three middle schools also has a health night where parents can learn about the curriculum and talk to health educators, she said.

Tackmann is curious to see if the bill will eventually go through.

"While I think it's been a long time coming, this can be a difficult issue for some," he said.

O'Brien can be reached at 830-5838, 800-236-7077 or christena.obrien@ecpc.com.

Health Education

Under current state law, school boards may provide an instructional program in human growth and development in grades kindergarten through 12 that may include instruction in:

n Self-esteem, responsible decision-making and personal responsibility.

n Interpersonal relationships.

n Discouragement of adolescent sexual activity.

n Family life and skills required of a parent.

School boards also may provide instruction in human sexuality, reproduction, family planning, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), prenatal development, childbirth, adoption, available prenatal and postnatal support, and male and female responsibility, according to the state Legislative Reference Bureau. If school boards offer instruction in any of these areas, they must also provide instruction in marriage and parental responsibility.

More than two dozen representatives have proposed an Assembly bill dubbed the Healthy Youth Act.

The proposed bill provides that school boards may offer an instructional program in human growth and development. If they do, the program must provide medically accurate information and, when age appropriate, address all of the following:

n Communication between the pupil and the pupil's parents or guardians about sexuality.

n Reproductive and sexual anatomy and physiology.

n Puberty, pregnancy, parenting, body image and gender stereotypes.

n Skills to make responsible decisions about sexuality and sexual behavior throughout the pupil's life.

n The benefits of and reasons for abstaining from sexual activity.

n The health benefits, side effects and proper use of contraceptives and barrier methods approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections.

n Methods for developing healthy life skills, including setting goals, responsible decision-making, communication and stress management.

n How alcohol or drug use affects responsible decision-making.

n The impact of media and peer messages on thoughts, feelings and behaviors related to sexuality.

The proposal requires each school board that elects not to offer human growth and development instruction to notify each pupil's parent or guardian of that fact.

- Christena T. O'Brien