Long-term reductions in sexual initiation and sexual activity among urban middle schoolers in the reach for health service learning program

Abstract 

Purpose: To evaluate the sustained effectiveness of a middle school service learning intervention on reducing sexual initiation and recent sex among urban African-American and Latino adolescents from 7th grade through the 10th grade.

Methods: During the fall of seventh grade and again in eighth grade, students were randomly assigned by classroom to participate either in community youth service (CYS) or not (controls). Service learning is an educational strategy that couples meaningful service in the community with classroom instruction. Students in both intervention and control conditions received classroom health lessons. Surveys were conducted at seventh grade baseline and at the end of 10th grade, approximately 2 years after intervention. Self-reported sexual behaviors of youths who had participated in CYS were compared with those of controls receiving classroom curriculum alone (n = 195).

Results: CYS participants were significantly less likely than controls to report sexual initiation (2 years CYS, odds ratio [OR] = 0.32; 1 year, OR = 0.49) as well as recent sex (2 years CYS, OR = 0.39; 1 year CYS, OR = 0.48). Among those who were virgins at seventh grade, 80% of males in the curriculum-only condition had initiated sex, compared with 61.5% who received 1 year of CYS, and 50% who received 2 years. Among females, the figures were 65.2%, 48.3%, and 39.6%, respectively.

Conclusion: A service learning intervention that combines community involvement with health instruction can have a long-term benefit by reducing sexual risk taking among urban adolescents.

Keywords:  Gender differences, Minority health, School health, Service learning, Sex education, Sexual risk-taking