Deng Jun, a doctor from Tian-en Hospital in Beijing told The Shenzhen Daily,
"Girls who have abortions are considerably younger. Most of them are junior
middle school students aged 14 to 15." Before the students who visited him were
in late high school.
A 2004 survey from Suzhou University indicated that 4.2 percent of junior high
school girls were sexually active, versus 4.6% of senior high students. While
these rates remain significantly lower than those of their U.S. counterparts
(just under half of unmarried American teenagers between 15-19 have had sex),
the attitudes of Chinese teens towards sex have become increasingly liberal.
Only 6 of 1,300 girls polled in a 2007 survey said they would tell their
boyfriend "no" if he wanted to have sex. Of the total 2,300 teens polled, a
collective 85% said teenage sex was okay if it was either consensual, or the
two people really loved each other.
By comparison, only about 30% of American teens approved of unmarried
16-year-olds having sex, though about 60% approved of 18-19 year olds having
sexual relationships, according to a 2002 study from the National Campaign to
Prevent Teen Pregnancy.
These differences in attitude could indicate future social trends. Even though
Chinese teenagers aren't nearly as sexually active as their American
counterparts, casual sexual attitudes could soon translate into casual sexual
behavior.
International and Chinese family planning organizations are hoping that
education can provide a solution to this situation. Some Chinese educators are
trying provide sex education at an earlier age, but the lack of strong sex
education has caused many Chinese youth to look elsewhere for information.
According to one study, 75% of Chinese youth get most of their sex education
through online pornography.
Considering the Chinese government's crackdown on internet pornography, and the
fact that it's illegal in China, a 15-year-old boy caught looking at internet
porn probably won't be able to escape the wrath of authorities by telling them
that he's only accessing "educational material."
Government officials have expressed concern over the lack of sex education, and
say they can do more to stop the rise in teen pregnancy. Ru Xiaomei of the
China National Family Planning Committee told The New York Times the government
was "on the right path . . . but we don't say we have done very well, or
perfectly."
The questions then remain: is there a "perfect" way to educate Chinese youth
about sex, and what is the right way to reach students about these delicate
topics? And how will this method be carried out?
As we've seen with the U.S. sex education debates, educating the youth about
sex is hardly a non-controversial topic. I imagine it will ignite similar
fireworks in China, though the two sides might be even more extreme:
comprehensive sex education vs. maintaining the status quo of little to no sex
education. Implementation will also probably vary throughout the different
provinces.
Despite the controversy, given the rising teen abortion rates and teen
pregnancy rates, China has to re-evaluate the current system.
CBN.com
