**Reply to Two Students***Minimum 250 words each reply**
student one**(David Rettew)
Sexuality has been an increasing dilemma over time but especially in the 21st Century. Sex itself is a problem among teens and adults alike. The majority of the time, the act is committed out of impulse with little thought to the consequences that may come after. While I was going through high school, relationships were broken determining whether or not the guy or girl was willing to “put out.” These problems do not stop after graduation. There is an ongoing issue with women on Navy ships and isolated duty commands who become pregnant less than a year after arriving at their new duty station. It has come to the point that military medical facilities have condoms readily available to their patrons and STD prevention propaganda displayed all over the walls. The blame does not fall only on the young women but also on the men who did not properly prepare for a sexual relationship. If there continues to be a lack of education and understanding of human sexuality, we will continue to fight these same issues for centuries to come.
I believe sexuality education should be taught in public schools during the early years, ages 7-10. Why, do you ask? My daughter is 10 now but when she was 7, she was brighter than the average girl her age when it came to street smarts. Children at that age are receptive to learning about the world and their bodies. They find the idea of sexual acts, such as kissing, repulsive but understand small concepts of love that are displayed by their parents every day. They use the words, “I love you” before ever understanding why they love that person or thing. They learned these things from their parents, TV, social media, schools, and teachers. They begin to understand why their parents hold hands, kiss each other, and sleep in the same bed without fully knowing why except that they love each other. I do not believe all aspects such as sex and STD’s should be taught at ages 7-10, but I do believe general education on the subject should be taught. Ages 10-12 should definitely have sex education and the reality of STD’s talked about and discussed. Education should also be taught to explain the bodily changes a boy and girl will face as they go through puberty. Not all parents are willing to talk about these things with their children. I know mine didn’t. I chose to talk to my children about these things, but some children learn differently than others, so other avenues may be beneficial to their learning development.
With new modern technology and children becoming more aware of things at earlier ages, I believe education in the home, public, and community is appropriate when it comes to teaching sexuality. I as a parent can talk to my child based on my morals and belief system but children need to hear about it from every avenue. As a parent, I cannot restrict sexuality on my children based on my beliefs. I can raise them the way I believe is right and give them the sexual education I believe they should know but they are growing into young individuals with their own way of thinking. All I can do is give them the tools and knowledge they need to succeed. Children now a days are educated through their unlimited access to television, social media, and internet. Adults are not always able to monitor everything they do or see but we can have a role in the education they are taught in the home, public or community education settings. As Deb Levine said in her article, Pop Culture Sex Ed: What Media Teaches Us About Sexual Health, “We have to reach youth in all media channels, and we need to find cost-effective ways to do it.”
The curriculum should include the genetic makeup of a man and woman. With more and more children becoming confused about sexual identities, it should include material that would better help them understand what they are feeling and going through. It should include the side effects of STD’s and also the conception of a child up until birth. The curriculum should be age appropriate and should not be meant to scare our children, but rather to develop their understanding and make them aware of the consequences of not being ready or prepared for a sexual relationship.
Who should be responsible for developing and approving the curriculum for our children is very debatable. Honestly, I believe Doctor’s and Professor’s who has devoted their life to learning about human sexuality and human health should write the curriculum. It should not be the ideas of one but the source of many ideas. I would rather my child have too much information than relatively no information at all. If parents continue to have active communication between their children then I do not think that sexual education from other sources would be such a bad idea.
student two**(Breanna Evetts)
Human sexuality throughout the world is different. People have different perspectives on human sexuality. I believe the age someone should start learning about sex education is in middle school so about the age of 12-14 should be the start of learning about human sexuality. I feel learning about human sexuality should be taught in school and at home. I think it’s important to stay educated and it helps to learn from more than one person.” in short, they may know about sex, but they don’t feel at all educated about it.” Levine, D. (2011, May 10) I believe both public and community would be a good way to educate people on human sexuality and not just educate but really teach them students so they don’t just know about sex but can use and show their own perspective on the situation. The curriculum should include ways to stay safe during the practice, that saying no is acceptable, I feel it should include the consequences of not using contraceptives. I feel the parents of the students should get to decide on approving the curriculum. I believe if the student decides to evolve themselves in sex they should know of the consequences of what could happen. To teach younger people about human sexuality try to stay open minded and make it fun to learn instead of just another class. I believe parents would have a big impact on how their children feel when it comes to human sexuality. Another way teens get their information on this topic is the online world which is good but diagnosing yourself on the internet can be very bad and tell you that you have something you don’t. Make sure your children feel comfortable to see a professional so they can plan and hear clear correct information.
**********NOTE*** please reply like if i was the one replying back directly to the student.
