Moderate Reform
The moderate plan includes the content on rape and coercion (and what constitutes consent) discussed in the conservative plan. It will include more detailed information on the LGBTQA+ spectrum, including information on bisexual, pansexual and transgendered people, in addition to lesbians and gays. Furthermore, it will include information on abstinence and healthy sexual behavior, but will require instruction on the choice to be abstinent or sexually active to be from an objective standpoint, citing facts and statistics. It will discuss at length contraception options (condoms, female condoms, birth control pills, IUD (intrauterine device), birth control implants) and their pros and cons.
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ProsBy opening the conversation about non-traditional genders and sexualities, not only will our youth who are queer feel more accepted and gain a larger understanding of their identity, but our youth who are not queer will have their eyes opened to different lifestyles and as a result, become more tolerant as they grow into adults. This will greatly reduce the suicides of queer youth (who are 8 times as likely to commit suicide than their straight peers if given negative regard) by reducing bullying and providing them with dialogue that treats them as human beings, not freaks of nature.
The Center of Disease Control (CDC) states that a lack of sexual harassment policies and education can send a message that harassment and rape are tolerated. By adding in content that teaches that rape and assault is explicitly not okay in any situation--whether alcohol is involved or not--we send the message to our youth that it will not be tolerated. The CDC also recommends that states implement and evaluate a program for high school boys to address alcohol and drug use and the ability to give and receive clear consent for sexual activity. |
ConsThere would definitely be some resistance from more conservative parents about the moving of the teaching of contraceptive methods to the sixth grade from the eighth and shifting the program from abstinence-based to a more comprehensive curriculum. However, according to a study by the University of Washington, students that receive comprehensive sex education (as opposed to abstinence only education) were 60% less likely to get pregnant or get someone else pregnant. In response, we would like to stress that parents can always have their children opt out of these health classes and teach sexual education on their own. Also, by moving the emotional and long-term impacts of sexual behavior from 12th to 8th grade, we hope to reduce the amount of teenage pregnancies and abusive relationships in high schools across the state.
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