Carson High School - Carneta Yearbook (Carson City, NV)

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SEX ED: Its subject was one of the most common and controver- sial. Sex education — should it be part of the curriculum of America ' s students? Yes, because sex was a part of human life and young people needed to be informed. No, because sex education was the responsibility of the parents. In a telephone poll of 1015 people, ages 18 and over, con- ducted by Yankelovich, Clancy, Shulman, 69% of the people agreed that parents weren ' t educating as much as they should. Maria Rajs worked at the Public Health Clinic and served on the Family Life Education Curriculum Committee in Car- son City. She felt strongly that sex education should be a part of what was learned in school from kindergarten through the twelfth grades. She said that the courses should deal with decision- making in all aspects of life in the early years and move to relationships and contraception in junior high and high school. Ruth Click, Ph.D., from West End Women ' s Medical Group of Reno, also supported sex education in the schools, but she predicted that it would not cause a decrease in teenage pregnancies. She felt that parents were ultimately responsible for the education of their children because that education began at the moment of birth. One of the largest questions surrounding sex education in the schools lay with the values and morals that were taught. According to Harvey Fineberg, dean of Harvard School of Public Health, We are at a point where sex educa- tion is no longer a matter of morals — it ' s a matter of life and death. On the other hand, there were people who felt that sex education was the sole respon- sibility of the parents. A study of 3600 students in Indiana, Texas, and Mississippi found that sex education taught in schools had no effect on students ' actions and values; it only helped them to be more tolerant of others ' actions. Phyllis Schlafly strongly op- posed sex education in the schools. She said, The way sex education is taught in the schools encourages experimen- tation. Many religious leaders preached that the only way of teaching sex education was teaching abstinence. Dr. James Dobson, psychologist and presi- dent of Focus on the Family, a Christian organization, wrote, Teach sexual abstinence to teenagers . . . irresponsible sex leads to disease, unwanted pregnancy, rejection, etc. In many cases today, no one is sharing this truth with teenagers. In fact, a survey done at Atlanta ' s Grady Memorial Hospital found that out of 1000 girls under the age of 16, 87% wanted to have a painless way of saying no to sex. Because of the separate views of people in this country, the debate of requiring sex educa- tion, let alone having it in the schools at all, may never be set- tled. No matter now this issue ends up, the decision to abstain, to be conscious of protection, or to remain apathetic lay ultimately with the individual. by Amy Lynn Senior Debbie Marshall hits the books in Mrs. Maestretti ' s health class. 38

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Creakina Traditicns Diane Vo is wearing a blouse and trousers, both designed by French Connection, a knit car- digan sweater by Christian Dior, and flats by Baskins. Blouse ...$40 Trousers . . . $52 ..$80 $36 Derrick Sharkey is wearing a Visage man ' s shirt, Matinique trousers and blazer, and Doc Marten shoes. Shirt ...$36 Trousers . Blazer . . . $Q Shoes . . . ap99x. $85 4«» : ' ' ■ i .A 4 ' it • V if ' J I A Vim- . . , , ' « «J- ' 1 : -J k(? Ml ( ' ■■ Vi

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; ' ■f,J ' J. A Ereakina Traditicns the controversy Do you think sex education should be taught earlier in the schools? If so, how early? Out of 64 responses, the majority (55) favored teaching sex education earlier. Out of those, most suggested It be taught in about fourth grade, and others said it should be introduced in junior high. Of those who said no, a common response was, It is irrelevant to young kids, but it should be taught before twelfth — by then it ' s too late. Should sex education be required? Out of 76 responses, 52 said yes and 23 said no. One did not have an opinion. It Is up to the government and parents. I don ' t think It should be required, but it should be recommended and offered at schools. Yes, but only to a certain point . . . don ' t de- mand or push. The final decision is the student ' s. How uninformed (or informed) do you think students are about sex? Out of 71 responses, 30 said that students were uninformed. Uninformed badly. If we were In- formed, would there be so many teenage pregnancies and abortions? Twenty-four said students were informed. Fairly well informed. Most know about protec- tion, although they may not be prepared. Nine said students were Informed about some things but not other things. High school students understand sex physically, but I don ' t believe that they understand tne emotions involved. Eight said some students were informed and some weren ' t. Some are very informed, yet there are some students who hardly know anything. Do you think sex ed is the responsibility of the schools or of the parents? Of 77 responses, 51 said the responsibility of sex ed lies with both the schools and the parents; 23 said parents alone were responsible; and only 3 said tne schools alone were responsi- ble. Answers varied. Including the following: Many parents may feel uncomfortable In educating their kids, but . . . they should Inform their children themselves. ... the schools may throw the concept of sex out of proportion. Both, but parents can ' t be relied on. Both. The parents should begin talking to their kids . . . and the schools should . . . carry the learning process along. I Health teacher Mrs. Maestretii believes that sex education should be required in schools. Senior leii LoHin points out an interesting subject to Senior Todd Martin m Mr. Grange ' s sixth period health class.