Ontario Introducing New Sex Ed Curriculum

[JLives]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/n ... -1.2966644

I think this is great and hope we adopt it in BC. It is shocking to me how many elementary school students have their own phones and computers in their rooms. Guidelines need to instilled at a young age and many parents can't/won't handle it.

[Atomoa]

I like this. Proactive.

JLives points out that many very young children have direct pipelines to the world communication network in their bedrooms. There is a technology disconnect between the generations here. I talk to 20 year olds that were hacking their school's firewalls to get at porn in elementary school. Kids born into a world that they have never known without the internet. Many parents just don't know.

It's against the law to endanger a child by leaving it alone with weapons, drugs or known felons. Aside from teaching kids skills, who has the guts to draft a age law regarding unsupervised internet/technology access?

[JLives]

Aside from teaching kids skills, who has the guts to draft a age law regarding unsupervised internet/technology access?

I don't know if you really can since it is so integrated into everything now and will become more so. I think education is the better way to go, for students and parents.

[Tacklewasher]

Seems to not be focussed on sex-ed.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2015/02/23 ... -with-sex/

"Teacher prompt “Being safe helps you enjoy your time outdoors. When cycling on a forest trail, what do you need to be mindful of?”

Student “I need to make sure to wear a helmet, follow trail etiquette and stay in control, so that if there is a fallen tree or another unexpected object on the trail I can avoid it and not be hurt. By following trail etiquette, I am less likely to get into situations where I can hurt myself or somebody else, or damage the environment.”
***
Teacher prompt “What can you do to protect yourself from the sun’s UV radiation outdoors?”

Student “I need to be aware of the UV index for the day and limit my time in the sun during peak periods. I can protect myself by wearing sunglasses and a hat and applying sunscreen.”
***
Teacher prompt “What should you do if you find a pothole on the playing field?”

Student “I should do something to warn everyone of the danger — for example, I could put a pylon on the pothole.”"

Not sure if this is selective quoting, but why would a sex-ed curriculum talking about cycling?

[Atomoa]

I don't know if you really can since it is so integrated into everything now and will become more so. I think education is the better way to go, for students and parents.

That integration is our own fault and is there to chase profits. It's a business model.

We can advertise directly to children, or not. We can regulate what children access, or not.

There isnt a single rule in place in this regard and manufactures and businesses have card blanche. Education is great and definitely not taking away from that concept, but it doesn't go far enough. Leaving children exposed to the internet at "their parental discretion" is really asking for trouble.

(I read that Quebec has banned all advertisements geared to children under 12 - amazing - they could have just "suggested in a pamphlet" that parents don't park their kids in front of the TV for 5 hours a day or that parents should talk to their kids about the lies/deceit of advertising)

[Sige]

Knowledge is power.

I wholeheartedly agree that we need to inform our kids...an informed kid is one who knows what can be lurking out there and what to do if/when something comes up.

[JLives]

This is interesting. http://globalnews.ca/news/1847912/sexua ... ss-canada/

The grade at which children are expected to know the names of all body parts:

Ontario: Grade 1
B.C.: Kindergarten
Alberta: Kindergarten
Saskatchewan: Grade 5 (possibly earlier)
Manitoba: Kindergarten
Quebec: By 5 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 6
PEI: Grade 6
Nova Scotia: Grade 3
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 4
The grade at which children are introduced to the concept of sexual orientation:

Ontario: Grade 3
B.C.: Grade 6
Alberta: Unclear
Saskatchewan: Grade 3
Manitoba: Unclear
Quebec: By 5 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 8
PEI: Grade 8
Nova Scotia: Grade 3
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 9 (may be mentioned earlier)
The grade at which children are introduced to the concept of gender identity:

Ontario: Grade 3
B.C.: Grade 6
Alberta: Unclear
Saskatchewan: Grade 1
Manitoba: Grade 5
Quebec: Between 8 and 11 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 6
PEI: Unclear
Nova Scotia: Grade 4
Newfoundland and Labrador: Unclear
The grade at which children are told about STIs and their prevention:

Ontario: Grade 7
B.C.: Grade 6
Alberta: Grade 6
Saskatchewan: Grade 6
Manitoba: Grade 7
Quebec: Between 12-17 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 9 and 10
PEI: Grade 8 (expected to understand abstinence in Grade 7)
Nova Scotia: Between Grades 5 and 7: HIV/AIDS mentioned in Grade 5, consequences of sex in Grade 6, contraceptive methods in Grade 7
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 7 (HIV/AIDS mentioned in Grade 5)
The grade at which children are told about Internet safety and/or sexting:

Ontario: Grade 4
B.C.: Grade 4
Alberta: Unclear
Saskatchewan: Grade 4
Manitoba: Unclear
Quebec: Unclear, but strong focus on safety/exploitation starting in kindergarten
New Brunswick: Unclear
PEI: Unclear
Nova Scotia: Grade 8
Newfoundland and Labrador: Unclear
The grade at which children are told about birth control:

Ontario: Grade 7
B.C.: Grade 6 (unclear)
Alberta: Grade 8
Saskatchewan: Grade 9
Manitoba: Grade 7
Quebec: Between 12 and 17 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 9 and 10
PEI: Grade 8 (expected to understand abstinence in Grade 7)
Nova Scotia: Grade 7
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 8
The grade at which children are expected to understand consent (healthy relationships in general are discussed earlier, or the two are blurred in many provinces):

Ontario: Grade 7 (some mention in Grade 2)
B.C.: Grade 8
Alberta: Grade 8
Saskatchewan: Grade 9
Manitoba: Grade 5
Quebec: Between 10-11 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 7, emphasized in Grade 9 and 10
PEI: Grade 9
Nova Scotia: Grade 7
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 8
The grade at which children are told about sexual abuse:

Ontario: Grade 4
B.C.: Kindergarten
Alberta: Grade 8
Saskatchewan: Grade 3
Manitoba: Unclear
Quebec: By 5 years old
New Brunswick: Grade 8
PEI: Grade 8
Nova Scotia: Grade 5
Newfoundland and Labrador: Grade 2
Note: Quebec does not have a formal dedicated sex ed curriculum, opting instead to integrate this instruction into other subjects. This approach has resulted in some criticism.

[Glacier]