As a leader of schools I have never made public stands on sexuality. The clear reason for that is that all good teachers lead/teach without fear or favour and must care for every child and family as they come to us.
We have always had many families of Christian and other faiths within schools I have been involved with. Our promise to them, and all families, is that our provisions would not contradict the home values and parents are paramount – not the school/system. My stand has always been that sex and sexuality education belongs in the home – not the school. This is very much the stand that the nationwide online school Mt Hobson Academy Connected take. I helped the school establish but am no longer actively involved – it is a great option for parents with concerns about what and how their children are taught.
As this government often does; they have written a form of curriculum – in this case: Relationships and sexuality education: A guide for teachers, leaders and boards of trustees. Boards of Trustees and schools are currently having to do a huge amount of work on this and are supposed to be fully consulting with their communities. The two key guides cover Years 1 – 8 and Years 9 – 13. Their aim is that “relationships and sexuality education” is woven through every subject area and the documents make suggestions for how to include it is subjects such and English, Math and science.
As per normal much of the documentation is wordy and has to be dug through for clear understandings of implications to be gained. However it is worth every parent and grandparent doing so.
Key questions to ask:
– Will the implementation of this curriculum wide programme enhance my child’s learning and improve their future outlook?
– Are schools the place for children to be told what to think ideologically – particularly where views may strongly clash with those of the family?
– Is this a programme that will get more children back to school and engaged in learning?
This is where the documents are located: https://hpe.tki.org.nz/guidelines-and-policies/relationships-and-sexuality-education/
It is worth sharing through your networks. If you have questions or concerns, the comments are a good place to express them. Keep in mind – it is up to parents to engage with their schools and that every parent has a right to attend Board of Trustee meetings and those must be notified.
