survey

Arlington Teens Getting More Exercise, Having Less Sex

By ARLnow.com

Arlington teens are more physically active and less sexually active than they were three years ago, a survey of Arlington students has found.

The 2010 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which polled 8th, 10th and 12th graders in Arlington, found that more teens say they’re getting adequate exercise than three years ago, when the last survey was conducted.

In 2007, 40 percent of teens said they were getting adequate exercise — defined as at least one hour of exercise, five or more days per week. In 2010, that number jumped to 50 percent.

There was little corresponding change in obesity rates, however. The obesity rate remained steady at 9 percent, based on students’ Body Mass Index. In 2010, 13 percent of teens were “at risk for obesity,” compared to 14 percent in 2007. The percentage of students describing themselves as “overweight,” however, actually grew — from 25 percent in 2007 to 27 percent in 2010.

Meanwhile, fewer Arlington teens say they’ve having or have ever had sex.

In 2010, 27 percent of students said they had ever had sexual intercourse, while 18 percent said they’re currently sexually active. In 2007, 30 percent of teens said they had ever had sex, while 20 percent said they were currently sexually active.

Only 4 percent of teens say they were sexually active before age 13, compared to 5 percent in 2007.

Among sexually active youth, 63 percent used a condom in 2010, compared to 61 percent in 2007. Last year 75 percent of students reported using at least one type of reliable birth control.

In 2010, 4 percent of students said they have gotten someone pregnant, versus 5 percent in 2007. The number of students reporting more than four sexual partners in their lifetime remained steady at 8 percent.

Flickr pool photo by Chris Rief

Bullying Up Slightly in Arlington Public Schools

By ARLnow.com

Students are reporting more incidents of bullying at Arlington’s public schools, according to the 2010 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, which is expected to be officially released later this month.

According to the survey, which was summarized at a school board meeting last week, 22 percent of students surveyed said they have been a victim of bullying, compared to 19 percent in 2007 and 22 percent in 2004.

Twenty-seven percent of 6th graders say they’ve been bullied, compared to 22 percent in 2007 and 33 percent in 2004. Twelve percent of 6th graders said they were the victim of cyberbullying in the past year.

Bullying is most prevalent in 8th grade, with 28 percent of students saying they’ve been bullied.

Bullying becomes less common past middle school, the survey found. Twenty-one percent of 10th graders and 14 percent of 12th graders reported being bullied.

Among 6th graders, 27 percent reported having possessions stolen or damaged at school, 7 percent reported missing school because it “felt unsafe,” and 35 percent reported being involved in a fight. The results were all above 2007 levels, but below 2004 levels.

The Arlington Partnership for Children, Youth and Families, which conducts the survey, concluded that more intervention is necessary to fight bullying, especially in 6th and 8th grade.

Among all grade levels surveyed, more students than ever said they believed that adults would help with their bullying problem. Seventy-six percent of 6th graders, 67 percent of 8th graders, 65 percent of 10th graders and 72 percent of 12th graders agreed with the statement “if I tell an adult about bullying, they will try to help.”

Last week two state legislators who represent parts of Arlington introduced bills to make bullying a crime in Virginia and to better equip public schools to protect bullying victims.

The Arlington Partnership for Children, Youth and Families declined a request from ARLnow.com to release the full results of the survey before the group briefs the Arlington County Board on Jan. 26.

Flickr pool photo (top) by Chris Rief

Arlington Teens Drinking Less, Joining Fewer Gangs

By ARLnow.com

A new survey of Arlington high school and middle school students, cited this morning by the Sun Gazette, shows that certain vices, like drinking, are on the decline.

That’s the good news.

The bad news is that Arlington students are, in fact, still drinking, joining gangs, smoking pot and carrying weapons in somewhat surprising numbers.

According to the survey, the percentage of 10th and 12th grade students who reported binge drinking in the past month has fallen from 29 percent in 2004 to 22 percent in 2010.

The percentage of middle school and high school students who have carried a weapon in the past month is 10 percent, down from 14 percent six years prior.

The percentage of students who say they’re a member of a gang is down to 3 percent. While lower than the 8 percent of kids who said they were gang members in 2004, the fact that there are an average of three gang members in every four Arlington middle and high school classrooms is still striking.

Bucking the downward trend, the percentage of high school students who reported actually using marijuana recently remained steady 21 percent.

The percentage of students who say their parents would disapprove of marijuana use is 95 percent. If taken literally, that means that one out of every 20 Arlington households doesn’t mind if their kids smoke pot. The percentage of students who say their parents would look down on cigarette use is one percent above the pot figure, at 96 percent.

See the Sun Gazette article for more detailed information.