Real Life Teens

Gr 8 Up—Featuring staggering statistics such as the fact that one in four teen girls has a sexually transmitted disease (STD), this film provides important information for viewers. Diverse teens give advice and express their concerns, making the production more powerful. Additional facts, interspersed with the teen narratives, are offered by a doctor who specializes in STDs. He explains that, in addition to sexual contact, some STDs can be passed through skin to skin contact or by any exchange of body fluids. Teens have many misconceptions about STDs and often don't realize that becoming infected can have permanent consequences including sterility, cervical cancer, and in the case of Herpes, being permanently contagious. Most teens get much of their information from the Internet, and Dr. Shaw cautions that 70 percent of what they read online is inaccurate. The teens note that the seriousness of these illnesses is often not stressed to them. Schools may be overly cautious about the legal ramifications of giving information that is too explicit. Teens are encouraged to get tested if appropriate and given information about hotlines that are available to them. An informative, effective presentation from the perspective of teens.—Constance Dickerson, Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library, OH