Schoolchildren are being controversially asked to consider oral sex as part of a course aimed at cutting teenage pregnancies.

A moral row has erupted with family campaigners saying it is not the answer and will not protect youngsters from sexually transmitted diseases.

But course manager John Rees has defended giving teenagers advice such as 'Don't go on, go down'.

He said the course makes it clear that sex under the age of 16 is illegal.

"It's about saying to them, 'You can hold hands, you can kiss and cuddle, it may even get as far as oral sex..'

"If you listen to young people's music or look at the messages in so-called young men's literature, you see that youngsters are swimming in a soup of sexual messages and innuendo," Mr Rees said.

But Family and Youth Concern director Robert Whelan is worried about the message being sent to youngsters.

"On the whole, I think their heart is in the right place but there is this unfortunate aspect of oral sex I wish they had left out," he said.

The course titled A Pause - short for Added Power and Understanding in Education - is taken by around 100,000 pupils, aged 14-15 years, in more that 150 comprehensives.

It is backed by Exeter's Department of Child Health and the Government's Teenage Pregnancy Unit.

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What a slogan: 'Don't go on, go down'
The way i look at it is if you tell a kid to do something they always do the opposite.
Kids will do what they want to do as long as we educate them, hopefully they will do the right thing.
In the UK we have a high teenage pregnancy rate, so any education about sex is better than none.

What was it Madonna once said: “Hey you don’t be silly put a condom on you willy!!”


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[This message was edited Sun Mar 2 15:54:15 PST 2003 by katt]

The state of the nation!

That is soo nasty...
YOu guys can do me though

I don't know if the whole thing is as terrible as people are making it out (although that slogan was a bit of a blunder). There are plenty of 14 and 15 year olds who are you having sex without having the slightest clue as to how to be safe about it. I have an 8 months pregnant 15 year old little sister to prove it.

i wish they were teaching 15 year old girls that shit when i was at school

i think school should include a 6th grade class where birth control is studied, moving right into family law and paternity suits, followed by the legal aspects of an 18 year garnishment of wages. perhaps kids would think if they knew what consequences their actions had

I went to a Convent school for all girls and nothing like that was encouraged..of course girls did it, but if it is deemed Ok at such an early age where do the kids moralities lie?


Fortunately I was old enough to know what I was doing when I did it and to enjoy it...what about the shy kids who may feel peer pressured into thinking this is what everyone does at that age and they should be doing it to?

It is good in a way that they are discouraging sex, but hell, when I have given a man a blow job they want the full monty afterwards, I think it will only lead on to sex... Maybe cos I am older I view things in a different way, but I still believe kkids grow up too quickly these days...

it never did me any harm im the King Of Cunnilingus

To add, and not to edit the previous post, we were given open sex education and taught about birth control, I think kids of that age, either do not have the education or they are pressured or too 'loved up' to believe anything...it is sad..I know...