[slygirrl]

Okay this story happened at the junior high my son will be attending some day (provided I don't move before that) and I am curious on other people's stand points on sex education, especially in junior high... Here's the link:

http://www.ksdk.com/news/news_articl...storyid=139858

I really don't see what these girls did as necessarily a problem. Yes, it probably was a distraction, but it got the point across. You cannot expect with an abstinence only curriculum that these kids are going to learn anything. I went to two different high schools growing up and each had a different approach regarding sex education (granted one of them was a Catholic school that's why). The public school I atteneded we had EDUCATION about the possibilities of what could happen if you did become sexually active. Outside of the obvious, since there were several girls already romaing the halls at 15 with "baby bumps", but also STDs. I think we have to educate our kids on what the possibilites actually ARE instead of promting the idea that abstinence is "the way" because it's not going to change what your child actually does. I don't want my kids to go out and have sex in junior high and I realize the values and education must start at home, but when the school becomes involved in touching this subject I think it's sort of old fashioned to act like enforcing an abstinence only curriculum is going to prevent kids from going out and having premarital and/or unprotected sex. I think opening up the curriculum and warning them about the very real dangers of unprotected sex and the consequences that could follow is worth exploring. I don't want my kids to go out in the world uneducated about sex, as some kids are, not knowing what the ramifications of their actions could be. I'll do my part as a parent, but I think the school should have a more open curriculum regarding this issue. What do you think?

[Kristin1981]

I am all for sex ed and I think it is a great class to teach kids and teens about the risks they take if protection isn't used,It also teaches alot obout STD's and many other things like preg and all....

I don't think telling children and teens that abstinence is the way to go at all cause everyone knows if you tell a child no they will do it anyway to spite you or see what the huge fuss is...Teaching safe sex gets the point across that there are risks you take if you don't use condoms/Bc and whatnot...

[twinzplus3]

I'm 100% in favor of abstinence education at home. Frankly, I find that permissive parents are more likely to have promiscuous kids. . .I guess the difference is they (as in the parents) know about the sexual activity.

I am not in favor of any type of sex education program at school to be honest. What I see is that the more schools delve into character education and the further they get into the mentality that "we have to teach these kids this because their parents aren't", the more education suffers. What I would be in favor of is curriculum that is more centered on working with the parent. . .but I realize that's not entirely feasible.

[mcmama]

Sex education is fine to a degree. My kids have benefitted from it in a private school.

But what the girls did was wrong. This was disruptive, provocative. Now, maybe they need to open up some discussion at the school about the point the girls may have been trying to make - that teens are having sex, and it is not safe. At my son's school, there's an aids awareness group which raises money for hospice care and distributes written material about how you get aids at assemblies. Not a huge focus, but the voice is heard and the information is out there.

I think that kind of approach dissuades the "condoms fix all" approach to a lot of sex ed. It's really more complicated than that.

[jkl123]

In a perfect world, parents would teach their kids about sex on their own, in the manner they deem appropriate, stressing their own beliefs about abstinence,

Unfortunately, it is not a perfect world.

I am strongly for sex ed in this day and age for many reasons. First off, knowledge is power. Kids need to know what choices they have in a given situation. By choices, I don't mean whether or not to have sex. But they need to know how to handle particular situations. Girls need to learn to respect themselves and know they do not need a boy's affection to be valued. Boys need to learn to respect girls and not see them as objects or 'scores'. This is all part of sex ed. They need to know the very real statistics of teen pregnancy, how many teen parents ever graduate college, how many have to live off the 'system, how many boys and girls have contracted STDs before they are 18. This is very real and very valuable information... info the parents don't always have. Many parents don't care to talk to their kids, are too busy to talk to their kids, don't know how to talk to their kids, or procrastinate in talking to their kids... should these kids suffer and have to remain uneducated?? You rely on the school to know how to best teach your child science, spelling, and math... surely, they know how to teach sex ed.
I also believe that schools almost have a responsibility to teach about domestic violence... one in every 3 girls will be abused in some way by a boyfriend before they graduate high school. Pretty scary statistics. Because our society is so faster-paced, and it is the schools that have them a majority of the time, I see it as beneficial all around for the schools to implement some education program about sex.
This is not to let the parent off the hook - it is their responsibility to teach the child about their morals regarding sex.

[swt1899]

I teach sex ed to 7th graders at my school and we teach abstinence as the only 100% way teens will not get pregnant, contract and STD, etc. We do cover birth control types, but we also include their failure rates. The curriculum we teach is mandated by the district and we stick to a strict schedule and do not stray away from it as it is a sensitive subject.
Parents do have the right to deny their child from being in the classroom during this unit, but they are required to teach the curriculum to their child at home. The students are sent to another room during the class period to do an alternative assignment... but the assignment is related to the topic. This to is mandated by the district.
We have a VERY open line of communication with parents throughout the unit. We require the students as part of their grade to complete family discussions and bring them in to turn in. Parents can also share questions with the teacher and we do have a parent night before the unit starts so that parents can see exactly what we are teaching them. It's been very successful and the students do learn a lot.
Now details on certain topics are not shared with the students. Like oral sex... I can't go into specifics. I usually explain it as putting your mouth on an area that is usually covered by a swim suit. Or exactly how sperm gets into the woman to fertilize the egg. If they ask I have to tell them to ask their parents.
Parents and the school system have to work together for this to be a success. Now the girls on the news wearing shirts with condoms on it. That is distracting and a bit inappropriate. Our school would suspend them too for this. If they wanted to address this issue, they should have gone about it in a more proper and mature way. They could have gone to the teacher, then to the school board, then to the district to see if the curriculum could be changed. Curriculum always changes to fit the needs of the students.

[angelic_ky]

i really think that sex ed should start at home and be coloured by the parents personal views (whether be wait til marriage or just wait for the right person etc); schools should then continue it with a more scientific approach

[hennypenny]

I applaud those girls for making a stand. They are crying out for their right - an education. Abstinence is all well and good, but kids still need to know all about sex ed

[Alejandros Mommy]

I have had this talk somewhat with our 8 year old. When I was PG he wanted to know about babies and I gave him a general chat about it...he was 6 at the time...but I believe that parents need to be open about sex with their kids. This will enable kids not to cave into peer pressure.
I want my boys to respect girls/women and not view then as a 'score' card...we are teaching them this through our own actions.

[slygirrl]

I know this is kind of a controversial subject because each parent has their own feelings about how sex should be discussed with our kids. While I agree you have to be open about it I still think at a young age I wouldn't really discuss it with my kids. Devin was almost oblivious to HOW a baby got in mommy's tummy, it was almost like "Okay it's there" and that's it.

And while I don't condone the method the girls took to get the point across and I agree they could have approached it better, but they are what? 13 or 14 years old? Kids that age rebel to get their point across. I see the shirts as nothing more than that. Yes, they were a distraction and I by no means expect the school to be free spirited about sex and start handing out condoms or the number to Planned Parenthood or anything of that nature, but these kids that they are strictly teaching absitinence to, some of them will likely become statistics at some point in high school. I am going to e-mail our superintedent about this subject because I think the curriculum should be "updated". To expect kids to adhere to abstinence at this day in age is unrealistic, especially when the very role models they look up to are living proof of what can happen when you have unprotected sex (a.k.a. Jamie Lynn Spears) Not that I expect them to change the curriculum, but I think they should at least consider broadening it some. Of course sex education begins at home I fully agree with that, but if schools are going to takeon the responsibility of teaching sex education to our kids they need to adapt the curriculum to this day in age where pregnancy rates are declining, Illinois is still in the top 5 in the country with the highest statistics of teen pregnancy, I don't know where we stand as far as STDs go, but I'd imagine it's close. Our kids aren't stupid but they will make mistakes and I would rather have my kids taught what CAN happen rather than being told just not to do it and not truly see what CAN happen should you choose to act irresponsibly.