One of the things that has a great influence in both how I enact sexuality education and how I conceptualized my approach from the get-go is my background with teaching in the Montessori Method.

In the last week, a congressional committee began -- finally!

According to the Alan Guttmacher Institute and other reliable sources, a sexually active young adult who does not use contraceptives has around a 90% chance of becoming pregnant within just one year. That's not a new statistic or anything a lot of people don't know, but it's one that makes clear how important it is for sexually active teens to find, have and use a birth control method which works for them.

I came across an interesting study on the state of sex ed in Illinois today. Illinois, like most states, receives money from the federal government for abstinence-only sex ed. Some highlights of the study include:

Like watching video clips online? The cleverer, the catchier, the crazier the better? What about quality vids about things you truly care about, for you and by you? Look no further than the FreshFocus video contest sponsored by RH Reality Check, in partnership with Isis, Inc., Advocates for Youth, SIECUS, and the National Sexuality Resource Center!

CHOOSE WIFE.

That was a sign being held up by a protester this week in front of the clinic where I work in addition to my job here. Two words, but they speak volumes. (Though I confess, it took me a little while to get pissed, because I couldn't stop saying it in an Elmer Fudd voice for a few minutes.)

You have probably heard that the teen pregnancy and birth rate is up in the United States, for the first time since 1991. As is reasonable, the primary issue most talking about this are addressing is abstinence-only sex education and, due to the way the U.S. has only given federal funding to those programs since 1996, the lack of comprehensive sex education.

Attention Scarleteen Readers 18+ and eligible to vote in the US: Election Day is Tuesday, November 6. If it is an election year for your jurisdiction, please head out to the polls on Tuesday to cast your ballot. It's a quick-and-easy way to make a difference, as well as a right and responsibility of being a citizen. The right to choose and access to accurate, inclusive sex education are two major issues that Scarleteen is all about.

I read about this site in a book that I'm currently reading. I thought I'd check it out for myself. I think the content of your site is terrible. You think that you give teens all the information that they need so they can make informed decisions about their sex life. What bologna. The only decision that teens need to make is to not have sex until they are married. Certainly we all need to be informed about our physical health, our bodies, and how to have a healthy sexual relationship. But what about talking to teens about abstinence?

I sent this in response to the New York Times piece published last week regarding abstinence-only education. Alas, I didn't hear back from them, so I offer it up here instead. I feel it's important to get as much informed commentary out there on this issue as possible right now, especially considering the recent continuance and increases given to abstinence-only funding.

When this press release from the American Life League passed by my desk this evening, I couldn't even wave my usual fist, sigh my usual sigh, or give a good barbaric yawp. Screeds like this often leave me in that space, bizarrely feeling like I've been somehow redeposited in time to the McCarthy Era, but this one was a real doozy: I feel like someone dosed my dinner.

"We're Celebrating - And Planned Parenthood Knows Why, Says American Life League