Right: condom vending machines are unlikely to be seen in Australian school corridors, but they may, in the future, be generally available through schools in other ways.
Background information
Australia's teenage pregnancy rate is lower than in the United States, similar to that in Canada and Britain, but double Finland's and more than three times higher than the Netherlands.Condoms are often used in sex education programs, because they have the capability to reduce the chances of pregnancy and the spread of some sexually transmitted diseases when used correctly. A recent American Psychological Association (APA) press release supported the inclusion of information about condoms in sex education, saying 'comprehensive sexuality education programs... discuss the appropriate use of condoms', and 'promote condom use for those who are sexually active'.
In the United States, teaching about condoms in public schools is opposed by some religious organizations. Planned Parenthood, which advocates family planning and sex education, argues that no studies have shown abstinence-only programs to result in delayed intercourse, and cites surveys showing that 76% of American parents want their children to receive comprehensive sexuality education including condom use.
In Australia, there is no agreed, comprehensive sex education syllabus. This means that while there are broad policy statements that set curriculum standards, individual schools are given a lot of freedom to teach whatever they feel is relevant. There is also no requirement for when, and at what age, sex education should begin, nor what information about contraception it should supply.
Condoms in schools in the United States
(The following information is an edited version of a report published by the Guttmacher Institute. It can be found in full at http://www.guttmacherinstitute.com/pubs/journals/2819696.html)
Many large American cities make condoms available, if not in all or nearly all schools (for example, the District of Columbia, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Seattle), then at least in some schools (for example, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and Philadelphia). Although many smaller school districts also make condoms available, they are less likely to do so than large urban districts.
Most of these decisions to make condoms available in schools were take and approved at the school district level.
By the beginning of 1995, 52 public school districts had formally adopted condom availability programs. Two subsequently reversed their decisions and ended the programs; the remaining 50 constitute only 0.3% of all public school districts in the United States. By 2003 condoms were supplied at 431 schools in the United States.
The means of distribution varies. Most commonly condoms are supplied by school nurses or other school personnel such as physical education teachers or assistant principals. Some United States schools make condoms available through school health clinics, while a small minority makes condoms available through vending machines.