Board members call sex-ed curriculum a 'failure'
Two want to look at outside provider for curriculum
Calling Elmbrook's existing human growth and development curriculum "a failure," School Board members joined advisory committee members in asking for more information about a pre-packaged sex education curriculum to replace the district's lessons.
Board members Tom Gehl and Gary Jones were the most vocal at a March 25 work session, requesting that district administrative staff look into the cost and possibility of implementing a curriculum created by a third-party company.
"We're failing … our culture is consuming our kids," Gehl said. "By almost any measureable you would care to choose."
Eileen Depka, assistant superintendent of educational services, said a pre-packaged curriculum could be costly and take as long as two years to implement.
She and Melanie Stewart, director of assessment and student learning, agreed to look into the option but urged that in the meantime, the School Board approve an updated set of human growth and development concepts. For the curriculum to be implemented in the 2009-10 school year, the concepts would need approval by the end of May.
The concepts - what students are expected to learn from the curriculum - are the result of nearly 18 months of work by administrative staff and members of an advisory committee. They also incorporate feedback and concerns from parents and teachers.
Start from scratch?
Gehl and Jones objected that all of the concepts are based on the district's existing curriculum, which they believe is not adequately spurring students to avoid risky behavior involving drugs, alcohol and sex.
"What do we do about it? This (the current curriculum) does nothing about that, and it never will," Gehl said. "We're going after an elephant with a BB gun."
Stewart said district staff have been open to the idea of a pre-packaged curriculum, but estimated purchasing one would cost the district $75,000.
Jones said if a pre-packaged curriculum isn't an immediate possibility, he would like to see an entirely new district-made curriculum created with new concepts, not based on existing ones.
Depka said the new concepts achieve their objective by appropriately informing and educating students.
"I'm very comfortable with the lessons that are developed," she said.
No consensus on some issues
However, the advisory committee did not reach consensus on three of the concepts, which means Depka and Stewart will make recommendations about them to the School Board.
Committee members disputed whether to continue to describe family structures in an open-ended way, leaving room for single-parent homes and homes with homosexual parents. Some members said families should be clearly defined as having a mother, a father and children. Depka and Stewart said they would recommend the open-ended description remain intact.
Another concept that didn't get unanimity says that confusing feelings during puberty are normal. Committee members argued whether this should include feelings about sexual orientation. Depka and Stewart said they might recommend leaving out feelings about sexual orientation from the concept.
The third disagreement was whether emergency contraception should be listed as an option for rape victims. Depka and Stewart said they will recommend keeping emergency contraception in the list.
Isral DeBruin can be reached at (262) 446-6608.
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