The Carroll County School Board decided Wednesday to make some sixth-grade sex education classes in its Family Life curriculum coed, with the exception of some anatomy classes.
The 4-1 vote gave teachers and administrators this option.
Students at that level should be mature enough for coed discussions, said Linda Kephart, county supervisor of health and elementary physical education.
This proposal was voted down 3-2 last month when it was combined with a change that would teach eighth-graders about HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
The board decided against that version because it wanted more evidence that the subject would be age-appropriate and confirmation of claims that middle school students are at risk of STDs.
“It?s not scientific. It?s an opinion about what I believe is age-appropriate,” said Board President Thomas Hiltz.
“Other than the broad statements, I see no compelling reason to change.”
Kephart said anecdotal evidence suggests sexual activity was increasing among middle school students, and AIDS cases were growing rapidly among patients younger than 24.
More than 100 cases of chlamydia were reported in Carroll County in 2004, and 77 percent of the reported cases were among 15- to 24-year-olds, making it the most-reported sexually transmitted disease in the county, she said.
As part of the county?s abstinence-based sex education curriculum, the unit would discuss different methods of contraception and how effective ? or ineffective ? they were at preventing diseases.
Even on the committee of health teachers and parents that made the recommendation, there were concerns that the material should wait until ninth grade, Kephart said.
Meeting scheduled
The Carroll County Board of Education will begin at 2 p.m. April 22 at Room 007 of the Board of Education offices, 125 N. Court St.
