Birth Control for Middle Schoolers

Posted by Susan Carney Oct 22, 2007

Like many, I have followed with great interest the recent story of the Maine school district that has decided to make birth control pills available to middle school students. It has been a controversial story, to say the least. There are strong arguments to be made on both sides of the issue, and as both a parent and an educator, I can identify with pieces of both.

As a parent, I understand the argument that birth control pills, or medication of any kind, should not be dispensed to kids without their parents’ knowledge and consent. I certainly would not want school personnel helping my child make that decision. I would hope that when my children reach that age, we will have developed the type of relationship that allows them to feel comfortable discussing these issues with my husband and I.

Then again, I can also see the situation from the school’s perspective. I know that, unfortunately, many young teens are engaging in unprotected sexual behavior. I also know that many children do not have trusting relationships with supportive parents. And I know that each year, young girls get pregnant, changing the course of their lives forever.

Is dispensing birth control pills the perfect solution? No. The perfect solution would be to live in a world where all kids felt secure enough to talk with their parents about important issues such as these, and that whatever decisions were made about sexual behavior and birth control were made by kids and parents together. But we don’t live in that world. Maybe this school district is trying to do whatever it can to address a serious problem in a less than perfect world.