TRENTON – New Jersey Senate Republicans livestreamed an independent hearing on sex education, the new health and physical education standards and parental rights Aug. 23.
The 13-member New Jersey Board of Education approved the changes in June 2020. Despite many requests, they have not altered or delayed implementation of the standards.
Every district must update and implement health and PE curriculum guides ahead of this school year. By law, parents have the right to take their child out of any lesson.
The GOP panel included four state senators, a pediatrician, a child development researcher, a board member, a retired teacher and parents.
State Sen. Michael Testa (R-1) participated in the two-hour discussion.
“When I went to public school, it was encouraged for all of the parents to be involved with their children’s education. And I’m so thrilled to have such an astute panel of representatives to say that parents have had enough. Parents are not okay with co-parenting with the government,” said Testa.
The host, Sen. Joe Pennacchio (R-26) also made his position clear.
“We have seen, in my view, an indoctrination of the sexual education of our children. New Jersey Senate Republicans have introduced a number of bills to directly address parental concerns. We have proposed the ‘Three Rs’ plan. Repeal, replace and restore, to fix New Jersey’s controversial sex education requirements,” he said.
Everyone on the panel agreed that introducing sex education to young children can confuse them and cause damage to their mental health.
Districts across the state have approved and adopted lessons and resources to meet the new state requirements. Some school boards have discussed resolutions not to teach the new sexual health, personal growth and development expectations.
Some have worried that if a district is not meeting an instructional or program indicator, it will lose funding or receive a lower score on the Quality Single Accountability Continuum (QSAC) rubric. The New Jersey Department of Education has not made any official announcement on the matter.
Local Districts Adopt and Approve New Curricula
At the Lower Township Elementary School Board of Education’s Aug. 23 meeting, Curriculum and Instruction Supervisor Sabina Muller, gave a PowerPoint presentation to explain how the K-6 district Health and Physical Education curriculum would address the new standards.
“I worked with our physical education teachers to develop our new Comprehensive Health and PE curriculum aligned to the 2020 standards. We spent a significant amount of time combing through all of the available resources. The Great Body Shop resource was purchased to supplement curriculum and not all lessons are utilized,” said Muller.
“We focused on the broad intentions of the standards. Our team worked together to incorporate resources that we know are appropriate for the age of students and do not teach beyond that intention of the standards,” she said.
The curriculum will be posted on the district’s website and presentations will be made to parents at Back-to-School Nights.
Middle Township School Board also approved and adopted a new health and physical education (PE) curriculum, along with the purchase of The Great Body Shop Aug. 18.
Board member Kathleen Orlando read a statement indicating serious concerns about the new state standards in general.
“I believe there isn’t enough research done that would convince me that early exposure to sexual material or content will not have a detrimental effect on our children,” Orlando said.
Board president Dennis Roberts noted that the board previously passed a resolution against the state standards.
“We were all concerned with what was in the standards. And I think that Dr. Lehman and Dr. Salvo have done an excellent job of walking a fine line so some of the things discussed would not be introduced to our children,” said Roberts.
Their curriculum will be posted on the district’s website within the next two weeks.
The Avalon and Stone Harbor school district also gave a presentation, virtually, to parents Aug. 9. They said they aimed to review what is required by the New Jersey Department of Education and introduce the new health standards. They hope to communicate with stakeholders about the purpose of the changes, clear up misleading information and explain the opt-out program for the district.
Trenton Defends the New Standards
Acting Commissioner Angelica Allen-McMillan has said that the standards are necessary for the health and safety of New Jersey’s students.
She cited preparation for students’ adolescent years.
“Providing knowledge is necessary for students to make safe, informed decisions at the high school level. Students need to be able to communicate clearly when their trust and privacy has been violated,” Allen-McMillan said.
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