There's been a lot of hype in the news and in blogs about the sexting craze that seems to be happening among teens - talking dirty via text, and whatnot.
This is something that parents are all in a tizzy about, but I'm starting to think they are missing the bigger picture here.
I've heard stories from my friends who have siblings still in high school about conversations they overhear between these teenagers about "getting laid" last night or giving a "BJ" in a janitors closet.
One of my teacher friends has even walked into a middle school bathroom to find two students having sex in a stall. We're talking middle school here people!
I didn't even understand the mechanics of sex at that age, let alone how to have it standing up, balanced between a mop and a floor waxer. My excitement consisted of waiting for the bell to ring and dismiss us from class so I could walk by my crush at his locker and pass him the note I wrote him in study hall.
"Will you go out with me? Circle yes or no." And no, "out" did not mean to the girls bathroom to hump it out.
Okay, so my lame past is totally not the point.
This behavior is definitely something that won't be remedied by taking away your teenager's (or pre-teen, as the case with middle schoolers) cell phone. There's definitely a deeper issue here.
I've always believed that kids should be properly educated about sex. Now I'm not just talking about preaching abstinence and showing grody pictures of STIs to scare kids out of having sex. No, what the public school system really needs to do is discuss the options - maybe then we wouldn't have so many "oops" situations on our hands.
(Editor's Note: I've heard that some schools are educating on contraceptive options, but where I grew up, in podunk Michigan, they did not.)
It seems like texting is the ICQ of our days - please tell me I'm not the only nerd who used this technology. Best IM ever!
Anywhosits. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it is all about the sexting, and if we take away the cell phones the rest of the behavior will stop too.
But I tend to think that kids these days (I'm sounding older already) are starting down the path of finding their sexuality a lot sooner than we ever imagined doing.
With all the crazy MTV shows that portray drinking and drugs and sex as glamorous, who could blame them right? So maybe, let's take away all technology and kick the kids of today outside for some fresh air - after all, that's what our parents did to us, right?
What are your thoughts on the teen sexting issue?
Cheers!
-A
3 comments:
Sexting is just a new outlet for an old problem....kids will always find a way to talk about/engage in sexual behavior. granted, they're doing stuff WAY younger these days, which is hugely alarming but i think you're right, taking a way the cell phone won't fix the problem.....
I definitely think that sex is coming way too early for the newest generations and I think a lot of it has to do with the way media portrays things. My little sister dresses and acts like I do now, not like I did when I was 15. And it scares me to death. These kids know more about sex than I do, and I'm married. Sex has lost the importance that it used to have, and I for one thinks it's really sad that it's no longer something special, just something you do because everyone else is.
i've warned my 13 year old cousin that anything miley cyrus does isn't cool, including taking naked photos of herself.
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