Parents not allowed to have kids opt out of sex education

[Lace Neil Singer]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...x-lessons.html

Is this a good idea, or will it provoke outrage? Should all kids receive the education regardless of parental feeling? Discuss.

[BroomJockey]

Parents are often squeamish, or poorly educated on the topic, or deliberately mislead their children on this topic. They're already abrogated a fuck-ton of responsibility, I say make damned sure kids know what's up, and the parents who would protest loudest are the ones we should be watching the closest to make sure they're not screwing up their kids.

Call it a nanny-state if you want, the "government deciding for parents," but you know what? Like I just said, a lot of parents suck balls at this particular topic. They didn't cover it in my school at all until grade 5 or so, and then it was just generalities between boys and girls, and about puberty. It wasn't until grade 7 or so we got the whole STDs and sex and pregnancy stuff. And if a parent's not discussed the topic at all with their kid by then, they've let their kid down. After all, we just had a thread about an 11 year old mother.

[blas87]

I'm damn glad that I was educated about sex, pregnancy, STDS, and the whole nine yards in school.

Why?

All my mother ever told me was that sex before marriage was evil, blah blah blah blah blah....

Yeah. Good thing I went to school and learned about it.

[Greenday]

Will it cause an uproar? Absolutely.

Is it necessary? Absolutely.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

My gut reaction was "you should not force teachings on kids and not give parents a say", but simply reading Blas's post made me think a bit harder before I made a decision on how to answer.

I mean, it's not like I didnt know that some parents do not teach their kids anything. I knew that. Her post kind of put it in my face, though. BroomJockey's post, too. But Blas pretty much nailed it in stark black and white.

[BroomJockey]

BroomJockey's post, too.

Reading back, I admit to being a touch... overenthusiastic, I think. I stand by the basic sentiment, but maybe without the fervor.

[Talon]

Will it cause an uproar? Absolutely.

And you can bet your spleen that the loudest uproar will come from places where teen pregnancy rates are the highest.

Is it necessary? Absolutely.

It's unfortunate that this kind of action is necessary.

[jackfaire]

The most disturbing thing about that article was the comments. People being blatantly ignorant or pointing out that apparently all of society's woes are thanks to the governments that have fought progressive thought every step of the way.

I am sorry but it isn't indoctrination as one commenter put it. It is life.

The best analogy I can make is the book The Outsiders compared to Leave it To Beaver. According to the show Leave it to Beaver families were happy in the fifties everyone knew their place and it was gee willikers swell. The book The Outsiders shows the reality.

People seem terrified that if their kids know the real world they will become these horrible people rather than being able to defend against the bad parts and work to improve the world.

What you don't know can hurt you! Every person I knew when I got to college who had lead the sheltered life of no sex ed, no drug or alcohol education etc were the ones that went wild when the parents were gone. The rest of us had some knowledge of the world.

If I don't teach my daughter that touching a hot pan is bad but rather let her touch it and burn the heck out of herself I am called a horrible parent by people who will have the you should have worn a condom with their son who was kept out of sex ed and learned from his buddies, "She can never get pregnant the first time"

[Rapscallion]

I generally feel that it's down to the schools to teach facts and the parents to teach morals/responsibility. Too much of the latter is being put on the former.

Rapscallion

[Flyndaran]

I'm divided.
I needed sex education when I developed a sex drive at age 10. What parent would think that it would be needed that early?
I think too many parents would prefer to bury their heads in the sand teaching kids only when it's right... which is always long after kids learn on their own.

[Cats]

IMO, sex is an important part of life (I mean, it IS how the vast majority of people got here!), and just as important and language, math, and science. Unless you're going to educate your own kid about sex and prove you have done so (such as by testing out), I have to say I think the burden should fall on the schools (though I wish it didn't need to be). I don't think opting out should even be an option.

Many people experience sex (as in, the act itself, not seeing it in media and stuff) as teens; why not be sure they're being safe about it? How is learning to be responsible about something that can have serious and life-changing 'complications' be a bad thing? You need to learn how a car works in basic terms and what to do with it before you drive one, do you not? Granted, that's not a very good analogy, but still, getting involved with one without prior knowledge has a higher chance of not turning out so well.

The people who are in an upraor better not be the same people who whine about teen pregnancy rates, seriously.


MY parents never taught me a damn thing about sex or puberty, for that matter. However, being the youngest child, they might have been aware that the schools I attended (as my siblings went there as well) did have pretty good sex ed teachers.

Kids need to know about sex before it's too late. Yeah, I know its uncomfortable to talk to your own kids about, but that's what comes with the territory of being a parent; you have to sometimes put your own personal feelings aside to do what is right and best for your children.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Reading back, I admit to being a touch... overenthusiastic, I think. I stand by the basic sentiment, but maybe without the fervor.

No, no, I didn't 'mean it as a bad thing. You made a good point. It was just Blaa' simple, eyewitness statement that really started chipping away at my own opinion.

[LeChatNoir]

I'm divided.
I needed sex education when I developed a sex drive at age 10. What parent would think that it would be needed that early?

10 doesn't seem that early. We had our first sex ed class in grade 5, which was around age 11 or so.

And yeah, I don't have a problem with parents not being able to opt their children out of sex ed. It's not all about morals. It's about biology, and being responsible about it.

[gremcint]

The closest thing to sex ed was in grade 9. As part of phys ed we watched some videos, one being basically it's ok to be gay and the other was a tour of the human body. There may have been more that I don't remember but for the most part I don't recall anyone every outright telling us: you stick your dick in her vagina and move it to have sex.

When the time comes you should be as blunt as possible and be clear, it's a part of parenting and dodging around the issue just leads to confusion and messed up kids. They are going to learn it somewhere they may as well learn it in a safe environment where the facts can be accurate.

Honestly the number of kids who think that pulling out means she won't get pregnant just outright shows how badly they need this.

[blas87]

*blush*

But in all honesty, my personal experience with my mother and her.....Stone Aged views of sex....is not the way ALL or even most parents deal with it, but truth be told, there ARE a lot of parents who have their heads in the sand or just don't want to even go there. Do all of them pull stunts like my mom and try to scare you into thinking you're a heathen who will burn in Hell if you aren't married? Well no, I think most just refuse to even speak of it.....and that's how kids learn about it the wrong way.....from peers and what their peers are doing (which isn't always the smart way).

Just felt I needed to explain that a bit better. I love my mother, I truly do, but she has her moments.