By Leilah Bruno:
The Worcester Public School committee recently had a meeting posing the question, “Should the Worcester Public Schools adopt a comprehensive model for sex education that explores contraception, the role of consent and the LGBTQ community or a more conservative sex education model that focuses on mainly abstinence?”
This is a common issue that school committees deal with when asking about this form of education. There are only 2 types of curricular that usually mainly teach abstinence or consent and contraception and depending on the place and school, one or the other is taught.
On a twitter poll targeting teens still in high school and college, we asked “What type of sex education did you learn in high school and middle school?” Out of 109 votes 12% of people learned abstinence, 28% learned contraception and consent, 38% learned a mix of both, and 22% of people had no form of sexual education.
On another twitter poll, we asked the same group of people. “What type of sex education should public schools adopt?” Out of the 48 votes that were received 2% voted abstinence, 46% voted for consent and contraception, 48% of people voted for both types and only 4% of people voted for no sex education.
The Worcester Public Schools questioned if they should just adapt to the Michigan Model for Health which is a program that is a “comprehensive Pre-K through 12th grade model that aims to give children the knowledge and skills needed to practice and maintain healthy behaviors and life styles.”
The schools seem to want to adapt a method where they teach both abstinence from sex and if kids choose to do so, consent and contraception. The CSE or the Comprehensive Sex Education teaches about abstinence and avoiding STDs and pregnancy along with teaching kids about condoms and contraception and teaches them communication skills that will let allow them to explore their options.
Another big question that is asked is “Should LGBTQ be introduced as well?” A Junior student at Assumption college believes so. “I think it depends at what age,” she states. “Its better to teach the students true fact than let anyone influence discrimination. If not there will be misunderstandings in society.” Another student, a senior at Assumption college believes so too. “It’s important that nobody feels excluded and its good to know that if you do not wear protection male or female you can be at risk for and STD or anything.” Even parents believe so. A local mother of two kids in middle school say that “It is only right to introduce them to a part of the world that they are going to see. It’s harder for them to adapt if they do not know all the possibility out there and if they are in the LGBTQ community, to know that there are options for them too and that they should be practicing safe sex as well.”
THE AC301 