Cedarburg School District's medical advisor, some parents want alternative sex ed program
CEDARBURG- Parents and the Cedarburg School District's medical advisor say the current sex education program isn't teaching students the facts.
There's a group of parents who disagree with how the district is teaching sex education -- so they've taken matters into their own hands.
The current sex education program is called "Choosing the Best," and it's a program that's teaching some middle school and freshman students in the Cedarburg School District.
"It is in reality focused on a really specific value set and that value set is that all intimate contact outside of marriage is wrong and damaging and shameful," said Dr. Dan Hagerman, the school district's medical advisor.
Dr. Hagerman is also part of Cedarburg Parents for Responsible HG&D Education -- which is a group of about 20 parents leading an unusual effort to offer students an alternative curriculum off-campus.
That group believes the current curriculum doesn't accurately teach their kids about sex.
"Our plan is to put together a fact-based, medically accurate comprehensive sexuality program," said Dr. Hagerman.
The group is still working on specifics of their curriculum and a place to hold class. But, they're planning on using resources from other school districts to teach the subject.
"We want our kids to get the facts and info that they can use to be safe and healthy," explained Dr. Hagerman.
Dr. Hagerman says the alternative program will be up and ready to go by the end of the year.
The school district tells the Journal Sentinel their curriculum focuses on risk and does address contraception in middle school -- which they've never done before.
Fredrika Harper, the Director of Curriculum & Instruction at Cedarburg School District sent an email to TODAY'S TMJ4 about their sex education program:
"After three years of study by two advisory committees, the Human Growth and Development program in the Cedarburg Schools has been updated. Human Growth and Development is taught at grade five in science, grade six in Family and Consumer Education, grade seven in science, grade eight in physical education, and grade nine in health class. Parents are asked to review the instructional plan and declare whether they want their child to participate or not. The 'Choosing the Best' Program will be used at grades 7,8, and 9. Choosing the Best is an evidence-based, medically accurate, abstinence-centered program that is designed to motivate students to make healthy choices through relationship education, refusal-skill coaching, character education, and parent-teen interviews."
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