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PaperclipPerfector  5d ago (text post)   22646 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of April 21, 2025

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I had sex education in fourth grade, around ten or eleven. I think my parents had told me about the basic process before that.

I would argue that a child deserves to know how puberty works (which entails the biological end-game, which is sex and pregnancy) before that child enters puberty herself or himself.

Today, the other thing to keep in mind is that at least some children will have unfettered smartphone access. Now, kids sharing random porn videos in the school yard is going to be damaging no matter what, but kids first encountering the very concept of sex when their classmate shows them a gross video is likely much worse.

I think it's the name that is to blame. "Sex education" sounds like teaching children about sex, with lab work and home projects.

I agree that children should be taught about puberty so they don't come into the classroom reeking like billy goats, for example.

But why piss off parents by calling this "sex ed for primary school"? Call it "human body education", segregate it from "sex ed", shift the latter to the age when it's not as controversial.

This is just the euphemism treadmill. IMO the way you make it mostly uncontroversial is by:

  • making the curriculum absolutely transparent
  • making every individual lesson opt-in

Why not make every individual school lesson opt-in, then?

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