DepEd chief defends "sex education" anew

CEBU, Philippines - Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Mona Valisno yesterday defended anew the controversial “sex education” against those who are not in favor of including it in the school curriculum this year.

Valisno, who was in Cebu City together with President Gloria Arroyo yesterday, said that it will be pilot tested in 159 public elementary and high schools nationwide, some of these schools are in Cebu City and other parts of the region, but she failed to name what are these schools.

“I’m sorry I did not have the figures now, it is in my office,” Valisno told reporters, while DepEd regional officials seem to be hesitant to discuss the matter to the media.

But Valisno assured the Cebu City officials that the sex education would not be implemented without proper consultation with the public, particularly with the religious sectors, members of the media and some other sectors of the society.

The Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has strongly opposed the planned inclusion of the sex education in the school curriculum.

The Cebu City Council had passed a resolution urging the DepEd officials to first conduct a nationwide public consultation whether the people are for or against including sex education in one of the subjects in elementary and secondary schools.

Councilor Arsenio Pacaña, vice chairman of the City Council’s committee on education, said some anxious parents have observed that exposing the tender minds of elementary and high school students to sex education might only lead to further experimentation that may result to unwanted pregnancies and abortions.

But Valisno reiterated that the so-called sex education that has been planned to be taught to the young students is not all about making love, but about the science of reproduction, physical care and hygiene.

The highest education official said it cannot be implemented yet in all public schools during the opening of classes without the modules.

As planned, the sex education will be integrated in science, but it was not immediately learned how many schools in Cebu City will be among the pilot schools where sex education will be taught. — THE FREEMAN