I've discovered that our school district has completely dropped the ball on Sex Ed.

[Ilsa]

Not only do they not teach it in favor of Abstinence teaching, as far as I can tell, they don't notify parents that they aren't teaching it. Definitely a YOYO situation in educating children. No wonder our pregnancy rates are so outrageous here in Texas.

[seabeyond]

1. what do your abstinence class not teach. both my sons were taught

birth control, disease, emotional, all while being taught abstinence. i know the kids know about condoms.

so even in an abstinence class, what are they NOT being taught.

year after year after year of these classes.

[Ilsa]

2. I spoke with the school nurse, and she said the teacher told her he wasn't

going to cover STDs and some other stuff in his class. Basically is blowing it off. She taught an Abstinence class for him, but sex ed in middle school is almost nonexistent. I verified this with another nurse in another middle school in our school district.

[w8liftinglady]

3. Sex ed is unheard of in my son's school district as well

Abstinence is taught in high schools.
http://www.kwtx.com/centraltexasvotes/localheadlines/40544152.html
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/editorial/outlook/6608807.html
http://www.ppnt.org/advocacy/legislation-court-cases/state-legislation/education-works.html
http://www.offthekuff.com/mt/archives2/2009/02/013353.html

[seabeyond]

4. i have watched this. i have one son in it now. have another son that just went thru it. start 5th

grade, with the bare minimum. each grade escalates on info they receive. by 8th grade, class is gender separated and they get into the gruesome and gory pictures and talk about it all.

date rape, disease, BC, sexting.

now, we talk about it all, all the time in this house seeing how not shy i am. anything that comes up on the radar nationally that i think is a lesson for my boys, we discuss. i live in the reddest of red. kids, today, know what condoms are. i have issue that with big teen preg rates we claim on abstinence program. though i am a believer these dare and abstinence program do the opposite of their intent, i also think the real issue (in our area anyway) is girls are thinking it is cool to be preg, and getting preg to get out of house, and getting preg cause they want someone to LOOOOOOVE them which makes me vomit a bet. but they do know what a condom is.

[w8liftinglady]

6. my kids all got the condom talk as well...

I did point out genital herpes,aids,clap and high-school babies.
They think condoms are a good idea.
NO word from the schools about them,though.

[Neurotica]

12. Do you have an actual sex ed curriculum?

If you do, you probably want to look through everything. As a parent, you should have the right to do this.

Many of the abstinence-only programs use stereotypes and fear and shame. They also frequently cherry-pick facts to support their ideas.

So you would want to see what information is being presented to your child, and how it is being framed. That way, you can correct any misrepresentations at home using the materials you acquire from Planned Parenthood and elsewhere.

[Taitertots]

5. If only they had someone who watches over them to explain these polemic and complicated issues

If only children required adults to bring them into the world so there would be someone who could do this.

[Ilsa]

8. I've already made plans for acquiring educational materials from Planned

Parenthood. I trust them to provide the most accurate and age-appropriate information.

I'd like to see it presented in a group, such as in school, for better peer impact. As a nurse, I can explain specifics, etc, but my son will need the socializing aspect of being able to discuss sex ed.

[Neurotica]

10. Try SIECUS as well

The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (siecus.org).

They have lots of excellent resources.

[Taitertots]

13. It is good to hear that you are actively parenting your children

Keep it out of school because you don't want your children to hear the stupid things other people think (absence only, no condoms...) and they don't want to hear the things that you advocate. I wouldn't want my ideology forced on them any more than they want mine forced on them.

[davsand]

7. They don't discuss it my daughter's Jr High

WE discuss it at home, however, whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Frankly speaking, given the conservative assholes at her school I'm not terribly unhappy about it, if you want the truth. This is the same crew that had a substitute science teacher discussing abortion in the classroom asking for a show of hands for "who thinks abortion is ok?" My (then) 12 yr old daughter, who picketed with me for access to emergency contraception here in the state of Illinois, raised her hand. Given the tone of the whole discussion that took a LOT of fortitude on my kid's part and I was very proud of her.

I called the administrator about it and threw a fit. He actually DEFENDED the sub claiming it did not happen like my daughter's version of events and saying I was the ONLY person he'd heard from. (Funny how he freaking knew what version of events was "true" when I called unless other parents had either chewed on him first or unless it was a planned lesson...)

Anyhow, I really would rather teach my kid my version of sex ed--including stuff like the biology of human reproduction, the truth about STD's, and human sexuality. I spend time and energy supporting Planned Parenthood and I really prefer their approach to the "Billy Bob's Redneck Purity" version put out by that school.

YMMV.



Laura

[Lucian]

9. Abstinence-only education is a failure.

Teens are going to have sex. There's noting a person can do to prevent that. That's why teens should be taught the responsible ways of having sex. They should be taught about STDs, how to use a condom, and the repercussions of their actions (teen pregnancy, etc.).

I'm glad I had a good sex ed class when I was in jr. high and high school.

[MadHound]

11. Texas,

I imagine that the local schools, teachers, administrators and school board caught hell when they were teaching sex ed, and decided to drop it.

So what have you done to help your school board stand up and vote in favor of teaching sex ed? Perhaps you should run for the local school board so they can hear from people other than the same old RW fundies that now probably inhabit it.