Like stem cell research and abortion, federal funding for sex education is a controversial issue that has long divided public opinion. Up until recently, federal funding for sex education was allocated almost entirely to programs with an abstinence-only agenda, but new policies are breaking with that tradition.

Over the next 5 years, the government will be granting $75 million annually to sex education programs that adopt teaching methods proven to reduce sexual risk behavior and unplanned pregnancies. Most of the approved methods advocate “abstinence-plus” education, which emphasizes the benefits of abstinence while also teaching about contraception and disease-prevention techniques, including condoms. …