The Current System Of Sex Education - 1308 Words

It is clear that the current system of sex education that California provides for its minors is inadequate. Presently, California’s education model includes instruction on STDs and the prevention of their contraction, contraception, or methods of preventing pregnancy, and the option to abandon one’s child after the mother gives birth (California Department of Education). Said topics are certainly of import to the general population, and should therefore not be rejected altogether, but the list is nowhere near comprehensive. The requirements for initiatives allow educators to skip over topics such as LGBT identities, responsible adoption practices, and the role the internet plays in sexuality. Ignorance on these topics at best leaves their†¦show more content†¦As Freud notes at the beginning of his essay entitled â€Å"The Infantile Sexuality†, â€Å"It is a part of popular belief about the sexual impulse that it is absent in childhood and that it first appears in the period of life known as puberty† (Freud 44). He is, however, quick to note that â€Å"this, though a common error, is serious in its consequences†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (44). It is crucial that children in middle school learn that the desires that they have had and will have are normal. Around the age of 11 (when kids start middle school), most female bodies will start to hit puberty, with male bodies following soon after. It is important to stress that experiencing sexual impulse is a common experience that in and of itself is not wrong or harmful. Only actions can be classified as such. II) Ask a Doctor -- Encourage QA That said, it is important to provide accurate and honest information regarding the nature of sex in American culture. Even if parents and guardians refuse to speak about sex with their children, it is unlikely that their children will remain ignorant about sex for long. Whether or not the information they receive is medically accurate, culturally appropriate, or even legal, on the other hand, is heavily dependent on the savviness of the child, and is ergo left to chance. It is thus the responsibility of the educator to provide the kind of information that will