Montgomery County plans to revise its sex-ed curriculum after seeing the results of the pilot project this past semester:
Montgomery County sex education teachers would be allowed to tell students who ask that homosexuality is not a mental illness under a last-minute change to new lessons that go to the school board today for a politically charged vote.
Superintendent Jerry D. Weast informed school board members in a memo yesterday of a one-sentence addition to the lessons, which are proposed for all eighth- and 10th-grade health classes in the fall. The lessons were field-tested at six schools this spring.
The extra sentence could be key to preserving the support of the board. Board members have faced mounting pressure from an advisory committee -- made up of parents, educators and representatives of various constituencies -- to bolster the lessons with statements that counter misconceptions about homosexuality. A closely divided board rejected adding such language to the teaching materials in January, when they were approved as a pilot.
"If students ask the question, they're entitled to an answer," said board member Patricia O'Neill, who had planned today to propose adding similar language.
One day, people will wonder how we could spend so much time debating something so obvious.
