Sex ed in school--worse than 40 years ago? (average, boy, child)
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This is a small part of the greater story of "these are America's problems." A tremendous number of private and public (especially private) schools can teach any old hogwash about sex if the community condones it (or the reactionaries ***** loudly enough). I'd hate to have been LGBT in your high school if that's what my peers thought my sexuality entailed, for example.
It was a horrible environment for LGBT...one of my gay friends tried to commit suicide after his first sexual experience. Another one decided the only way to save himself was to join the priesthood.
Maybe you are unaware of this, but your posts have such a condescending tone.
I doubt anyone participating in this discussion is disinterested in providing their children with appropriate sexual education. Why would you assume it's an all or nothing thing? I do not think that parents should rely on schools to provide a complete education, and definitely won't in the case of my children as we speak frequently about wide ranging topics, but at least it will provide some knowledge to the children who receive no sex ed at home.
If you choose to read a condescending tone in my posts that is your choice. I am not afraid to say what I think about an issue. I am sorry you find that condescending but I am not going to change the way I write.
It really is an all or nothing proposition on this subject. Either you allow the school to be your child's only source of information about sex or you don't. There are no other choices.
If you choose to read a condescending tone in my posts that is your choice. I am not afraid to say what I think about an issue. I am sorry you find that condescending but I am not going to change the way I write.
It really is an all or nothing proposition on this subject. Either you allow the school to be your child's only source of information about sex or you don't. There are no other choices.
How is supplementing what the kids learn in school not a choice? Most of the parents I know are aware of the curriculum in the area schools, and exactly what information is being given out. What isn't shared is how one's parents feel on things like premarital sex and homosexuality. But, any factual information is better than none, and I think it does a real disservice to withhold those facts from kids. Because adults fall down on the job, the schools must pick up the slack. And then again, too many kids don't have a parent that particularly cares.
It was a horrible environment for LGBT...one of my gay friends tried to commit suicide after his first sexual experience. Another one decided the only way to save himself was to join the priesthood.
(Sad, but) Interesting. As a bisexual in an openly hostile (from an LGBT perspective) all boys high school, I considered both myself. Fortunately, I realised that there were other options besides misery and extreme self-denial.
How is supplementing what the kids learn in school not a choice? Most of the parents I know are aware of the curriculum in the area schools, and exactly what information is being given out. What isn't shared is how one's parents feel on things like premarital sex and homosexuality. But, any factual information is better than none, and I think it does a real disservice to withhold those facts from kids. Because adults fall down on the job, the schools must pick up the slack. And then again, too many kids don't have a parent that particularly cares.
Either you are :
1. Leaving the entirety of your children's sexual education to the school
or
2. Not leaving the entirety of your children's sexual education to the school
If you are supplementing what the school teaches then you are choosing #2.
Sex education in general is a farce whether it is taught now or 50 years ago. There is no polite way to teach sexual education and we need to stop trying to be. We try so hard to disguise it so that it doesn't offend anyone that no one learns anything. You can't just draw a uterus on a chalk board and expect teenagers to apply that to real life. Or they will just focus on the birth cycle and fetal development. I'm sorry but that is an introduction to obstetrics and gynecology not sexual education. I'm a physician and I understand the human body better than most so it's not that I don't value that type of education but we are not serving our youth by being afraid to discuss sexual education in a candid manner that young adults will actually understand and apply. Most teenagers learn the real sex ed by talking to their friends, looking at porn and just attempting it and learning on the fly. And in my opinion, that is dangerous. I had the sex talk with one of my oldest son in a very real and pragmatic approach. I took out an explicit pornographic magazine and identified anatomy, intercourse, oral sex etc. Sure it was embarrassing for both of us at first but we got past that and it was great session. More importantly I explained to him that these magazines and films don't convey sex in a realistic way and the point of them is to convey fantasy hence it's not real. They often portray women in a demeaning manner or as objects. That was another element I wanted to teach. We discussed myths in language he could understand. The problem is young adults don't understand the concepts. They hear medical jargon and language but can't apply that information.
Last edited by azriverfan.; 01-30-2013 at 11:28 PM..
The tea party and other extreme right wing authorities have tainted sex education in public schools and have essentially handicapped it. It's another reason to send your children to private school so they can receive what was once normally included in the public education system.
Except that for most people, the only affordable private schools (in my area, at least) are Catholic/religious. The kid still ends up with a limited sex-ed program, and the parents get a tuition bill in addition to taxes. The secular high schools can range from $15,000-$40,000 (depending on day vs boarding, location, etc).
Now let me include the part of the post you "conveniently" omitted:
Quote:
Originally Posted by azriverfan.
......More importantly I explained to him that these magazines and films don't convey sex in a realistic way and the point of them is to convey fantasy hence it's not real. They often portray women in a demeaning manner or as objects. That was another element I wanted to teach. We discussed myths in language he could understand. The problem is young adults don't understand the concepts. They hear medical jargon and language but can't apply that information.
Last edited by Marka; 02-02-2013 at 01:14 AM..
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