Texas School District Sex Education quality it's not

[doggie]

this is like the loony tunes of sex ed. virginity is like a stick of gum it should be left wrapped. virginity means not participating in any sexual activity at all.

well since they have rampant teen pregnancy it seems to not work well.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/0 ... 41610.html

A Texas school district is apparently teaching sexual education in the worst way possible: by trying to shame students into staying virgins until marriage.

Sexual health advocate Katie Gustainis Vela recently obtained what appears to be an instructional worksheet meant for teachers who lecture on sex ed. Vela tweeted a photo of the worksheet -- which likens people who have premarital sex to pieces of chewed gum or used toothbrushes -- and indicated that it is used in the Canyon Independent School District. (According to ThinkProgress, Vela currently lives in Boston but used to reside in Canyon.)

[Chicken bones]

The Texas Panhandle is not exactly a bastion of liberal thinking. Sigh. Ironically,on the district website, one of the discussion topics for the sex Ed program is "Personal Value and Self-Worth." I guess you can only have worth if you are a totally abstinent virgin.

[doggie]

Or a wrapped tooth brush. Hey if you stay wrapped and have sex is it really sex?

[dianapavelovna]

Texas sex ed is notoriously bad. Check out this report from the Texas Freedom Network if you want to be horrified.

[Full enough quiver]

I don't know that it's any better anywhere else. I homeschooled my girls, until the older one started public high school last year, so they learned about sex from me. They know very well how their bodies work. They know how boys' bodies work. They understand their menstrual cycle and fertility. They know about various diseases and the best ways to prevent them (obviously the older more than the younger). I assumed this was standard, especially in supposedly "liberal" California, yet I'm consistently appalled by the things my daughter's friends don't know. One didn't know that condoms have an expiration date, and that you have to use a new condom if you do it a second time. She's pregnant now. Another didn't think it was possible to get pregnant on your period. You guessed it, she just had a baby. One claims that taking the pill is the same as having an abortion, and that the pill will give you cancer. Another didn't know you can get an std from oral sex. These are 15-16 year olds, and they're completely ignorant. I know it isn't the school's responsibility to teach these kids what they need to know, but why the heck don't the parents teach them?

[smittykins]

know it isn't the school's responsibility to teach these kids what they need to know, but why the heck don't the parents teach them?

Because, duh, if you teach them anything about sex(outside of "Don't do it"), that's totally giving them permission to go out and have sex! :evil: :roll:

From a Catholic priest who had a local, Sunday-morning radio show years ago: "Telling kids 'don't have sex, but if you do, use a condom' is like telling them 'Don't rob a bank, but if you do, wear a bulletproof vest.'"

[Eater of Worlds]

You know, one of the reasons Elizabeth Smart stayed with her abductor even when she had the opportunity to escape was because of the bubble gum statement. She said she was taught that your virginity was like a stick of gum and who wants pre-chewed gum? She felt that her life was completely over so she might as well stay where she is. It's a really terrible way of teaching sex ed. It was a horrible way for her to realize just how bad that kind of teaching is and now she talks about how abstinence only and shamed based sex ed causes problems, it doesn't relieve them.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/20 ... e_and.html

[RosyDaisy]

Take a look at Alabama's sex ed regulations:

http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/alcode/16/40A/16-40A-2

Guess what? It ain't working.

[GawkingToo]

You know, one of the reasons Elizabeth Smart stayed with her abductor even when she had the opportunity to escape was because of the bubble gum statement. She said she was taught that your virginity was like a stick of gum and who wants pre-chewed gum? She felt that her life was completely over so she might as well stay where she is. It's a really terrible way of teaching sex ed. It was a horrible way for her to realize just how bad that kind of teaching is and now she talks about how abstinence only and shamed based sex ed causes problems, it doesn't relieve them.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/20 ... e_and.html

That's not exactly true. She did think about that statement that first night, after she had been raped, but then decided that her parents would love her no matter what. She has stated multiple times that the reason she didn't leave was because she was afraid of her abductor and also afraid of what he would do to her family if she left.

She had been asked to speak at a conference on child victims of [sex] trafficking and when she asked how she'd be able to help, the conference organizers explained to her that a lot of times people ask of the sex trafficking victims, "Why didn't they run?" If you watch her entire speech, the stick of gum comes up in the context of how she's been asked, "Why didn't you run?" and how her experiences might shed light on why many sex trafficking victims don't run. She described the worthlessness she felt but if you listen carefully, it was in the context of, "Once you feel that way, I can see how that would lead people to not reach out for help."

I'm not saying the feeling of worthlessness didn't play a role in her not seeking help, just that the article kind of takes it out of context, and since then she's been careful to emphasize that she was terrified of her captors and that was the main reason for not seeking help.

The New Yorker article is paywalled, unfortunately, but it discusses it in great detail: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013 ... act_talbot

Here's a link to the entire speech: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ot3SdCip7XI

- At 2:55 she describes how she realized her family would love her no matter what

- At 5:25 she discusses why she didn't run

- At 7:30, she shifts to the topic of prevention of child trafficking and why trafficking victims don't run

- At 8:30 she discusses how much shame she felt that first night and how that feeling might be a reason victims wouldn't run, and how children should be educated to know that they'll have value no matter what

[CynicMom]

"Personal Value and Self-Worth."

This means "do not have sex". People who value themselves don't have sex. People with self-worth don't have sex. Having sex is proof you don't have these things. I have heard this argument a LOT. I'm not sure how it's supposed to make sense.

[CynicMom]

Actually I just figured out a way it might make sense. If you assume that women do not enjoy sex and only do it in exchange for things from boys (cause everyone's cis, of course), then people who have sex with their boyfriends aren't exacting the correct payment. ie, they're having sex in exchange for promises, pleasure, or even money. This is much worse than having sex in exchange for a wedding. Only after the wedding. This is selling yourself for the highest possible price and proves you have personal value and self-worth.

[FloraKitty35]

:angry-banghead: :wtf: :angry-screaming:

[NotALoserLikeYou]

"People want to marry a virgin." - says who? Is that a scientific statement?

[Mama Mia]

I don't know that it's any better anywhere else. I homeschooled my girls, until the older one started public high school last year, so they learned about sex from me. They know very well how their bodies work. They know how boys' bodies work. They understand their menstrual cycle and fertility. They know about various diseases and the best ways to prevent them (obviously the older more than the younger). I assumed this was standard, especially in supposedly "liberal" California, yet I'm consistently appalled by the things my daughter's friends don't know. One didn't know that condoms have an expiration date, and that you have to use a new condom if you do it a second time. She's pregnant now. Another didn't think it was possible to get pregnant on your period. You guessed it, she just had a baby. One claims that taking the pill is the same as having an abortion, and that the pill will give you cancer. Another didn't know you can get an std from oral sex. These are 15-16 year olds, and they're completely ignorant. I know it isn't the school's responsibility to teach these kids what they need to know, but why the heck don't the parents teach them?

I think that's partly due to the increased emphasis on testing and teaching to the test. Sex ed isn't something that's on the state tests, so it gets minimal attention. I attended the same schools as my children and had a much more complete curriculum than they did. I was shocked at some of the misinformation they had, similar to what your kids friends have shared. Because I went to the same schools I guess I just assumed they would be learning the same things :embarrassed:

[Eater of Worlds]

Gawking Too, I'll look for some non-paywalled sources. I'm deaf so most things on youtube are not accessible to me. The google "automatic captions" simply don't work.

[GawkingToo]

Gawking Too, I'll look for some non-paywalled sources. I'm deaf so most things on youtube are not accessible to me. The google "automatic captions" simply don't work.

Sorry about that. I don't blame you for going off the website you linked to, I just think they kind of took what she said and stretched it a bit. (But even that could be up for debate, as the speech in question was kind of all over the place, to be honest.) I'll see if I can come up with a transcript.

[mirele]

I see things have not improved since 1975, when I got "sex ed" in sophomore health class. It was two class sessions of the Texas Department of Health's "VD Slide Show." All those infected penises and vaginas were supposed to make us swear off sex until marriage. Oh, and nothing at all about how to protect oneself from these diseases, just DON'T DO IT.

[Chicken bones]

Jeez, we didn't get a slide show in my health class (in a Texas public school in the 80s). Our high school health class did cover info on STDs, pregnancy, etc, but it wasn't particularly in depth. I did go to a "good" school district, though, where the health class (one semester)was required for all students and we did generally have conscientious and well-educated teachers.

[Becoming_Me]

At least public schools have sex ed no matter how bad it may be, I had to figure things out by myself thanks to parents who share a gene pool with chickens.

This was the extent of my sex ed:

You are going to have a period soon, wear pads so you won't be embarrassed by having blood on your clothes

Don't kiss before marriage

Don't wrestle with boys

Why in heavens would I need to know anything else?