— A new law requires the Illinois State Board of Education
(ISBE) to adopt National Sex Education Standards this upcoming school year.
However, not all schools are required to adopt the new
curriculum. Districts and parents are able to opt-out of the National Sex
Education Standards.
In accordance with the National Sex Education Standards, ISBE
says elementary schoolers will learn about consent, boundaries, and healthy
relationships. Middle schoolers will learn about dating violence prevention and
sexual harassment. High schoolers would learn more about their bodies,
pregnancy, and sexual health.
Kathleen Willis, a Democrat representing District 77 near
Chicago, was one of the lawmakers who crafted the bill. She said that it is all
about "age-appropriate" education.
"You're not teaching kindergarteners about the sex act,
you're teaching kindergarteners about good relationship building, about not
being bullied by others, not being forced into a situation that makes you feel
uncomfortable," Rep. Willis said. "I think those conversations as
soon as a child is able to comprehend is a good conversation to have."
Willis said most of the school districts in her area are
adopting the National Sex Education Standards.
Republican Illinois State Representative Adam Niemerg, whose
district covers the Effingham area, said most of the schools in his district
are opting out of the program. He's also urging all school districts to do the
same.
"These five-year-olds, these eight-year-olds, should be
focusing on learning, on playing basketball, on enjoying their summers - not on
sexual identity politics at this particular point in their life," Rep.
Niemerg said.
The ongoing debate: should sex education be left to the
parents? Lawmakers are split.
"I believe its the parents' obligation to have those
conversations with their children at the proper age," Niemerg said.
"It's not about the school district's purview to have those conversations
with those kids when the parents are the parents and they should teach those
children right or wrong. There can be an argument made about indoctrination
instead of education when it comes to our youth in schools in the state of
Illinois."
Willis said this curriculum is not indoctrinating the
state's youth and some kids don't have parents to teach them about important
topics.
"Not everybody has a parent that's willing to have those
conversations and talk to them," Willis said. "We hope most children
do, but not everybody does and unfortunately that's when the schools have to
step up and take care of that kind of stuff that many parents would say,
'That's the role of the parent,' and, in your household, I hope you're doing it
if that's what you think is your role as a parent. But not every child has that
ability to go to a parent."
Decatur Public Schools will be adhering to the national
standards.
When asked about the upcoming curriculum in Springfield,
District 186 sent us the following statement:
As a District, we have reviewed the National Sex Education
Standards that have been adopted by the Illinois State Board of Education.
Springfield Public Schools District 186 will continue to offer comprehensive
health, safety and sexual health education as part of the K-12 curriculum as
per school code, ILCS 110/3.
District 186 is currently reviewing the curriculum resources
provided by the Illinois State Board of Education to determine how these
resources can be integrated into the comprehensive personal health, safety and
sexual health education curriculum for District 186 schools. Per law, sex
education in Illinois is optional for students and parents may choose to opt
their student out of instruction related to these topics. We will continue the
practice that allows families to opt their student(s) out of sexual health
education and provide other curriculum options.
District 186 recognizes how complex and sensitive this topic
can be and we want to assure our community that we are doing everything in our
power to review and make decisions that will best suit our community’s needs
and include parental choice.