Broward schools to teach sex ed in final days of year

Broward students will get to learn some lessons about human sexuality before they leave for summer vacation.

The Broward school district has gotten approval from the Florida Department of Education to teach sex education next week, which is the second-to-last week of the school year. It will be the same curriculum as one used in Collier County schools.

It almost didn’t happen.

John Sulllivan, the district’s chief of communications, emailed School Board members on May 12 saying the state had not yet approved a proposed reproductive health and disease education curriculum the school district had drafted, and there was not enough time to make the required revisions in time to teach it before the school year ends June 3.

But on May 13, board members suggested the district ask the state for permission to teach an already approved curriculum from another county. They argued that students were more likely to get pregnant and contract sexually transmitted diseases if they didn’t have medically accurate information.

“After consultation with the Florida Department of Education, collaboration with our dedicated staff, and careful review of available instructional hours, we have finalized our direction,” Sullivan emailed School Board members on Thursday.

“Considering the School Board’s desire for the most comprehensive and standards-aligned program, we have decided to implement Collier County Public Schools’ reproductive health and disease education curriculum (FLDOE approved),” Sullivan wrote.

The district looked at programs from several school districts and considered one from Monroe County, but it was too long to complete by the end of the school year, Sullivan said. School Board members have said they also wanted a comprehensive curriculum that included information about birth control and contraception, instead of one that only taught abstinence.

“Collier checked a couple of boxes for us by offering comprehensive sex ed, and also the number of lessons matched the time constraints we had,” Sullivan told the Sun Sentinel.

The classes will last for three days for fourth grade students, two days for grades five to eight and four days for high school students. The classes will start on May 27 and conclude by May 30.

Parents and guardians are receiving notices on Monday about the curriculum and will have until Friday to opt their children out, Sullivan said.

Retired teacher Trudy Jermanovich, who has advocated at School Board meetings to teach sex ed, said she is glad students will get this information before the school year ends.

“I only wish they had done this earlier in the year,” she told the Sun Sentinel in a text. “Teachers are not going to be happy receiving this with about two weeks left in school, but at least the students will receive some Sex Ed this year!”

According to Sullivan’s email to the School Board, grades four and five will focus on:

— Puberty

— Anatomy, structure and function

— Disease prevention (including HIV instruction in 5th grade)

— How to access valid and reliable health information, products, and services

Grades 6 to 8 will focus on:

— Human growth and development, anatomy, pregnancy, and childbirth

— Health risks associated with human growth and development, including sexually transmitted infections

— Consequences of and ways to prevent teen pregnancy, with a primary focus on abstinence, alongside information about other contraceptive methods such as condoms (barrier) and birth control pills (hormonal)

High school classes will focus on:

— Human growth and development, anatomy, menstruation, fertilization, pregnancy, and childbirth

— Abstinence, birth control and consequences of teenage pregnancy

— Sexually transmitted infections and other associated sexual health risks

— Responsible decision-making, effective communication and health skill-building.

The full curriculum is available to view at browardschools.com/reproductivehealth.