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DepEd chief defends sex education in schools


Amid criticisms by the Catholic church, Education Secretary Mona Valisno on Thursday clarified that sex education would be part of Science subjects in elementary schools. Quelling impressions of malice, Valisno said the Department of Education (DepEd) is prepared to defend its pilot program on sex education before a public forum to enlighten critics like the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP). “This is just a part of teaching science. It’s not a separate subject, it is integrated among subjects like Science," she said in an interview on dwIZ radio. Earlier, the DepEd said it is determined to include sex education in the basic teaching curriculum. While Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral earlier said sex education should be taught as early as kindergarten, Valisno said the DepEd is inclined to offer the program in grades 5 and 6 students.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV A GMA News report on Wednesday night quoted Cabral as saying that the program would be age-appropriate. "Yung kindergarten, dapat binibigyan ng kaunting information tungkol diyan. Hindi yung pagka-nabuntis na at tsaka nakaka-alam kung paano siya nabuntis," she said at an ambush interview in Malacañang. DepEd's program The DepEd implemented its sex-education program in school-year 2009-2010. The department is expected to hold consultations and disclose its findings with stakeholders before June 15 when the new school year opens. Valisno said the program does not tackle artificial contraception, which Catholic bishops strongly oppose. Leaders of the Catholic Church claim that sex education in public elementary and high schools may encourage promiscuity and early sexuality outside the sacrament of matrimony. Citing the sensitivity of the topic, the CBCP said sex education must begin in college. “That is the time [when] we could say that the children are more mature to handle such topic," Fr. Conegundo Garganta, CBPC Commission on Youth executive secretary, said in an article posted Thursday on the CBCP's website. On the other hand, teachers in Central Visayas said they are not ready to teach the subject at this time. A report by dzBB’s Cebu affiliate also said Catholic schools in the province are not in favor of teaching sex education in elementary schools. Schools prefer that the subject first be taught in high school, while many parents want the course name changed to avoid a malicious interpretation of "sex education," the report added. — LBG/VS, GMANews.TV

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