Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Surprising Results in Florida High School Sex Survey

TAMPA, Fla., Dec. 12 (UPI) -- A survey of a Florida school district found that nearly half of high school students and one in five middle school students have had sexual intercourse.

"We really do not understand what's going on with kids today," Lloyd Zimet, who oversees prevention and wellness programs for Hillsborough County schools, told a small group of Parent-Teacher Association parents and grandparents last week, the Tampa Tribune reported.

The survey of more than 5,000 randomly selected Hillsborough students revealed that nearly one-third of high school students said they were propositioned to buy, bought or sold drugs while at school. More than 9 percent of male and nearly 12 percent of female high school students said they were physically forced to have sex.

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey, designed by the Centers for Disease Control, requires a sampling of students from every Hillsborough high school every two years, the newspaper said.

Middle school students were asked 53 questions and high school students were asked 89 -- a mix of health and safety questions on topics such as diet and physical activity and sexual behavior.

No comments: