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Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)
FCPS new FLE curriculum
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Anonymous
| Please write comments to your school board member, write comments and ask questions using the link they provided, and opt your kids out. FCPS makes decisions without parental input and then asks for questions/from comments after decisions have been made to make it look they include parents. Writing comments here is fine but does nothing. |
Anonymous
Comments can’t be added until Oct. 31. |
Anonymous
Dear Teacher - Thank you very much for your input. Also, thank you for the work you do with our kids. If I were a teacher and had to teach this ever-expanding content to YOUNG boys and girls together and in the same room, I’m not sure I would be able to handle it. When I have talked to my daughters about biology, dating, STD’s, and sexual reproduction in a manner that is developmentally appropriate, it is always a unique experience, and if I had sons, I am sure I would address them separately on these topics, or better yet, have my husband help. And if I didn’t have a husband, I would ask my brother or another male I trust and with whom I share values to step in. I certainly hope that teachers, who are the true boots on the ground, have been consulted on these proposed changes, and if they did, that their input is strongly considered as it’s a shame that parents’ voices about this type of changes haven’t been heard by the current School Board who unanimously has approved the escalation of radical sex Ed in FCPS. At least with the previous board, there were a couple of members who fiercely opposed such changes even when they knew they were outnumbered. They never gave up on their sense of duty. |
Anonymous
RIP, America. Too many bigots for this democracy to survive. |
Anonymous
Assuming the two-and-only-two sexes you consider to be "fact" are male or female, which of the six most commonly occurring karyotypes do you assign to each sex? |
Anonymous
There are two gametes, large and small. Males have bodies organized around producing small gametes, which are called sperm in humans, and females have bodies organized around producing large gametes, called eggs in humans. That’s it, two gametes so two sex classes in humans, male and female. There are genetic mutations that a very small number of people suffer from, but none produce a situation where someone can create both gametes or a third gamete. Much like a person born without a leg does not change the fact that humans are bipedal, neither does the fact that disorders of sexual development exist change the fact that humans reproduce sexually and people are either born male or female as defined above. |
Anonymous
+1 Males are XY and females are XX |
Anonymous
Yes, you have sex covered. There are physical differences between XX and XY. Gender is something else. Sex <> gender |
Anonymous
FLE is about anatomical, physical and biological changes that occur to XY and XX bodies during puberty. If gender does not equal sex as you say, and gender is a social construct, then these gender debates have no place in FLE which is supposed to be based on science and biology, not social science and feelings. |
Anonymous
FLE talks about A LOT more than anatomy. The physical stuff is actually just a small part of it. Which you would know if you had a kid in FCPS... https://doe.virginia.gov/instruction/family_life_education/index.shtml "Virginia's standards for family life education provide a comprehensive, sequential K-12 curriculum. They include age-appropriate instruction in family living and community relationships, abstinence education, the value of postponing sexual activity, the benefits of adoption as a positive choice in the event of an unwanted pregnancy, human sexuality and human reproduction. Instruction is designed to promote parental involvement, foster positive self concepts and provide mechanisms for coping with peer pressure and the stresses of modern living according to the students' developmental stages and abilities. Parents have the right to review the complete family life curricula, including all supplemental materials used in any family life education program." There is no "debate" in FLE. Transgender people exist. Acknowledging that will only help people, not hurt them. |
Anonymous
Obviously these changes go against the state standards as it is not age appropriate to have boys and girls together for elementary school sex ed. |
Anonymous
I feel bad for the teachers. They probably feel like they are walking on eggshells to describe boy and girl parts because they can’t even make reference to the gender. Since it has become this weird, I think they should just drop the program altogether. |
Anonymous
You think they should offer any sex ed at all? WTH? |
Anonymous
Oh come on. Don’t act like there’s isn’t a HUGE drop off in prevalence rate for karyotypes other than XX and XY. Even the more common atypical karyotypes are not “common” at all. I would also bet a ton of money that most transgender people have a typical karyotype. You are conflating sex chromosome differences with gender identity when there is no solid evidence linking the two. Most people who identify as transgender have a normal karyotype, and there is no evidence that having a sex chromosome difference makes a person more likely to identify as transgender. Claiming that there are multiple sexes is a losing talking point. It’s male or female, with the rare possibility of being born intersex. Even someone with Turner’s syndrome (1 X chromosome, no Y) is still considered female, for example. Sex education should relate to the process and changes that occur due to one’s biological sex. Period. Bringing gender identity into it is just messy and confusing because so many factors go into that and we don’t yet understand them. If someone has a gender identity that doesn’t match with their sex, they still need to know about what will happen to THEIR body during puberty and beyond. I understand the push to have combined instruction is so transgender kids don’t have to go to the class that matches their biological sex but not their gender identity. But making those students more comfortable runs the risk of making other students uncomfortable. Not sure what to do about that. I say FCPS just makes these a series of online modules that kids can watch on their computers with headphones, with the ability to submit questions to someone they know and trust at their school. That would get around all of this arguing about who should sit with whom while learning content that is generally uncomfortable for all of them. |
Anonymous
That's not true. We had combined classes back in the 80s before the religious nutters got involved. Also... "The National Association of School Psychologists (2021) position statement of Comprehensive and Inclusive Sexuality Education “supports that all children, including those representing all racial/ethnic backgrounds, genders, gender identities, sexual orientations, abilities, and disabilities should have access to evidence supported, comprehensive, developmentally appropriate, accurate, and inclusive sexuality education.” Separation of students by boys and girls does not create an inclusive environment for instruction to occur. Dividing students into boys and girls classes sends a message that bodies different than their own should not be talked about and are mysterious. When students are separated by boys and girls, it affirms a rigid binary based on anatomy. (Gender Spectrum, 2019) The practice of segregating students by gender is not inclusive of lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, intersex, and gender diverse students. (NASP, 2021) The benefits for gender inclusive instruction include recognizing and affirming all students (Gender Spectrum, 2019), students gaining understanding of their own development, receiving accurate information about the prevention of STIs and pregnancy, and understanding how to access treatment and resources if needed. (NASP, 2021) In a gender combined class students also have opportunity to learn about individuals who are different from themselves and practice communicating about sensitive topics building skills that will be important to healthy relationships. (Gender Spectrum, 2019) Currently, there is no available research to support the practice of gender-segregated instruction. It is plausible that some students would be more comfortable in a gender segregated class. However, even in a gender segregated class, some students may be uncomfortable based on the content or with other students present in the room. (Gender Spectrum, 2019)" And they list many other school districts, including local, that do have combined classes. People get periods, erections, masturbate, etc. There is no reason why discussing any of that should be taboo. |