Comprehensive risk reduction sexual education
Local governments can invest in this strategy using State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF) from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
- This strategy can help promote healthy childhood environments. The U.S. Department of Treasury has indicated that strategies that help achieve this outcome are eligible for the use of Fiscal Recovery Funds.
- Investments in this strategy are SLFRF-eligible as long as they are made in qualified census tracts or are designed to assist populations or communities disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.
Program overview
Sex education including abstinence and contraception: Comprehensive risk reduction sexual education provides adolescents with knowledge and skills to make healthy choices related to sexual activity. Students who participate in these education programs delay initiation of sexual intercourse, have fewer sexual partners, and increase their use of contraceptives.
Delivered by health educators in schools or community settings: These sexual education programs can be implemented in schools as part of a health curriculum or in other community settings where adolescents can access them. They are typically targeted toward middle and high school students and delivered by trained health educators, who may have backgrounds as teachers, counselors, case managers, or health care professionals.
Provide youth with knowledge: Comprehensive risk reduction sexual education programs teach the benefits of abstinence and of delaying the initiation of sexual activity while also providing information about contraception and protection against sexually transmitted illnesses (STIs).
Developing skills that reduce risky behavior: Sexual education programs help students develop a set of skills to make informed, healthy choices and act responsibly in their sexual encounters and relationships. These skills may include accessing reliable health information, products, and services; communicating with family, peers, and teachers about issues affecting their health; and analyzing family, peer, and media influences on health and behavior.
- Cost per Participant
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Not available
Multiple studies with rigorous designs demonstrate that comprehensive risk reduction sexual education is a well-supported strategy for improving adolescent sexual health.
A 2020 literature review found that comprehensive sexual education increased knowledge of sexual diversity, reduced dating and intimate partner violence, reduced the risk of child sex abuse, improved social/emotional learning, among other outcomes.
A 2012 systematic review found that comprehensive sexual education programs reduced rates of pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections, increased rates of abstinence, and reduced sexual risk-taking behavior (e.g., multiple sexual partners, not using contraception).
Connect students to health services: Sexual education programs should also help youth connect to health services in their school or larger community. This may include sites that offer STI testing, relationship counseling, or access to different contraceptive methods. Inviting medical practitioners into sexual education classrooms can help students feel more comfortable approaching doctors and other medical professionals, and providing students with clear lists of resources and locations where services are offered ensures that they know where they can go.
Engage parents and families: When parents and families understand what students are learning in sexual education courses, they are better equipped to reinforce those messages at home. As such, educators should provide parents and families with a description of and explanation for curriculum content at the start of sexual education courses.
Expand beyond reproductive development and pregnancy: Strong comprehensive sexual education programs do not limit their scope strictly to reproductive development. Instead, they should include a range of topics relevant to improving students’ ability to make healthy decisions related to sexual activity. Key topics may include sexual reproduction, sexuality, gender identity, domestic and interpersonal violence, sexually-transmitted diseases and infections, and more.
Make education inclusive for LGBTQ+ youth: Sexual education programs should be inclusive of LGBTQ+ youth by incorporating and addressing their experiences, needs, and relationships. Educators should avoid heteronormative stereotypes and assumptions of straight relationships and sexual encounters in lectures and discussions. Health behaviors that are disproportionately relevant to the LGBTQ+ community should also be included, such as HIV prevention strategies.
Consider offering programming in non-school settings: While school-based settings tend to be effective for the delivery of sexual education curricula, they do not necessarily reach all youth. Sexual education in non-school settings can help to reach students who have dropped out of school or are struggling to engage with programming at school. For example, it may be helpful to implement comprehensive sex education programs in shelters serving housing-insecure youth or at community health clinics.
