ny1.newsx.cc
Grade School Students Could Begin HIV/AIDS Awareness Lessons Monday
03/19/2006 09:42 AM
By:
NY1 News
An HIV/AIDS curriculum meant to educate the city's youngest students could land in classrooms as early as Monday — and that has some teachers and parents concerned.
Under the plan, HIV and AIDS will be explained to students as young as 5 years old during five state-mandated lessons.
Parents can opt to keep their children out of the classes, but they must promise to educate their children at home. The lessons stress prevention.
Kindergartners, however, will not be taught that HIV is a-sexually transmitted disease.
Sex education is usually introduced in the fourth grade.
Some parents tell the New York Post that bringing up the topic in the younger grades is likely to raise more questions than answers.
While teachers say the curriculum is new, the Department of Education says teachers have been mandated to teach about the virus for nearly 20 years, and that the lessons are age-appropriate.
Copyright © 2008 NY1 News