Advocates on both sides are as passionate as ever: SIECUS controversy report 2004-05 school year.

The 2004-05 school year brought many of the same issues and players to local debates around sexuality education in our nation's schools as in previous years. Opponents of comprehensive sexuality education continued their work to shelter young people from information and skills that they believe will encourage sexual activity. Their constant targets are sexuality education curriculum that include information on contraception; programs or materials that mention lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) individuals; books or videos deemed "sexually explicit;" and organizations such as Planned Parenthood that provide medically accurate sexuality education to many school districts across the country.

Despite these ongoing attacks on high quality sexuality education and the current political climate in which the Bush Administration favors and finances the abstinence-only-until-marriage approach, advocates for more inclusive and comprehensive programs continue to fight on the local level. Parents, students, school board members, supportive organizations, and public health professionals have all furthered the cause of comprehensive sexuality education this past school year. They have challenged restrictive abstinence-only programs, presented school officials with public health data and research, and advocated for the rights of students.

SIECUS tracked 153 controversies in 38 states in the 2004-05 school year. This number represents a steady increase over the past three years. Similar to recent years, controversies have centered on the focus of sexuality education curricula; the specific information found in books, textbooks, pamphlets, videos, and other materials; and the appropriate role of outside organizations and educators. Other continuing trends include the disproportionate focus on LGBTQ issues and the increasing role of state policy-makers in local sexuality education decisions.

CURRICULUM CONCERNS

The majority of controversies that SIECUS follows each year centers on local disputes about sexuality education curricula. In many cases parents or community members, emboldened by the current administration's policies, criticize programs that are more inclusive (though often still far short of comprehensive) than the abstinence-only-until-marriage programs they would prefer. While these cases bring about all kinds of compromises, there are still advocates of medically accurate sexuality education across the nation who stand strong against the barrage of complaints.

Montgomery County, MD: A Noteworthy Example

One particular story that unfolded just outside our nation's capital highlights some of the common themes and most important trends in this debate. SIECUS has been tracking the debate around sexuality education in Montgomery County, MD since April 2002. After nearly three years of careful consideration and research, the Montgomery County School Board decided in November 2004 to update its Family Life and Human Development Program to include a video demonstrating proper condom use and revisions allowing teachers to initiate conversations about sexual orientation. The revised curriculum had been developed by a Citizens Advisory Committee, has passed through all of the appropriate channels of approval in the district, and had gained the support of school officials. Nonetheless, the school board quickly began to hear from a small group of parents who were unhappy with the changes to the curriculum. Suddenly, Montgomery County was dealing with two of the very issues that are at the center of so many controversies: contraception (condoms in particular) and sexual orientation.