A graphic created by two Grade 8 girls. Their on-line petition received more than 38,000 signatures, calling on the province to make consent a part of the new curriculum.
Photo Credit: CBC

Sex-ed update for Ontario schools gets strong support from experts and students

“Sex-ed curriculum update” is how most media outlets are describing the province of Ontario’s new “Updated Health and Physical Education Curriculum“, released on Monday.  The program will be introduced into classrooms, from grade one to the end of high school, beginning in September 2015, Training for teachers is under way.

The update refers to the last program, released in 1998, and everyone agrees so much has changed since then. Social developments in the most populated province in the country have included the legalization of same-sex marriage, the younger onset of puberty and the pervasive role of technology in student’s lives.

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Some of the updates this fall will have grade one children, around 6 years old, learning the proper names for body parts. In grade three, they’ll learn about same sex relationships and respectful communication. From grades four to six, they’ll be learning about the risks of sharing sexual images and information. In grade seven, at 12 or 13, they’ll be introduced to contraception, gender identity, sexually transmitted diseases, the meaning of consent and the risks of sexting.

‘Once a person sends a sext, they lose control of it.’

According to a recent study, “Young Canadians in a Wired World“, 11 per cent of Grade 10 students and about 14 per cent of those in Grade 11 say they have sent a sext,  Even students in elementary school have sent sexually explicit pictures of themselves to someone on-line.

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© CBC

There is an accompanying Parent Guide, available from Ontario’s Ministry of Education. “Peers, romantic partners or even strangers can pressure or coerce a young person to participate in sexting,” the guide advises. “Once a person sends a sext, they lose control of it.”

People working in the sexual education field praise the new curriculum.  Lyba Spring, who has worked as a sex educator with Toronto Public Health for 30 years, spoke with CBC News. She said the most important issue is consent.  She said, “there’s no encouragement to really think through what one is willing to do.”

Dr. Miriam Kaufman, head of adolescent medicine at Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto, says “Kids start asking about things very, very early in terms of their own sexuality”  Asked about the parents’ role, Dr. Kaufman told CBC News, “The parent role is essential… but as parents we’re not all that good,” explaining that while she has written books on the topic and taught classes, she was not all that comfortable speaking to her own children about sex.

Some parents, however, are opposing the changes.  Over 200 people protested in front of the provincial legislature yesterday in Toronto. Most are upset with the lack of consultation.

Teach a ‘consent culture’

But students themselves have taken an active role in the revision.  Lia Valente and friend Tessa Hill, both 13 year-olds in grade 8, created an on-line petition on having consent included in the new curriculum.  It received 38.000 signatures. “We’re asking for it to teach a lot more than just asking for permission,” explained Lia. “It’s understanding what is a clear, enthusiastic, affirmative ‘yes,’ and what consent looks and sounds like, so understanding body language, facial expressions and how the lack of ‘No’ isn’t necessarily ‘Yes.”‘

“The health and physical education curriculum is out of date, in fact it’s dangerously out of date,” Premier Wynne said last week.  Now the province’s 4,000 schools have the remaining school year, until the end of June, to get prepared.

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