Critics alarmed as Sask. government scales back sexual health education

Experts andother critics say the Saskatchewan government's decision to limit comprehensive sexual health education in schoolsis concerning.

On Tuesday morning, Ministerof Education Dustin Duncansaid teachersareno longer allowed to invite third-partyeducators into their classrooms for lessons onsexual health education.

As an example inthe ministry citedthe ARC Foundation and its SOGI 123 program, which offers resources to educatorspromotingan inclusive approach to sexual orientation and gender identity, but does not specifically include sex education in its lesson modules.

Parents will also have the opportunity to opt their kids out of "all or part" of the Human Sexuality unit taught in the province's schools, according toDuncan's lettersent to all chairs of boards of education in the province.

Duncan has said these policy changes were made so "students can be successful and that parents are more involved in their children's education."

However, experts worry the changes will actually put students at risk.

"To provide comprehensive sexual education can be very difficult, especially spanning multiple grades, and that is very often why educators seek out our assistance," said Caitlin Cottrell, who is the executive director of Saskatoon Sexual Health one of the organizations that is now banned from working with students in classrooms.

Cottrell said there seems to be a misunderstanding about what Saskatoon Sexual Health teaches.

"We are not teaching children how to have sex. We are not teaching children or youth about promiscuity. We are teaching safety," she said.

"What we spend a lot of time discussing is consent and boundaries, relationship dynamics."

She said they also focus on age-appropriate lessons about sexually-transmitted infections and contraception, which is especially important in a province that consistently hashigh rates of teen pregnancy, Hepatitis C, HIV, syphilisand chlamydia.

"Our purpose is to provide education to youth so they can avoid the negative outcomes," she said, adding they can offer students support and advice in a non-judgmental, evidence-based manner.

Cottrell said it's also often easier for students to speak withoutside educators abouttopics or situations they might perceive as "embarrassing,"rather thanwithteachers they have to interact with every day, Cottrell said.

"It can often be easier to ask someone who, for lack of a better term, doesn't necessarily have a stake in their game. We are here for a specific thing, and then you don't necessarily need to see us ever again."

Child psychiatrist troubled by policy change

Saskatoon child psychiatrist Tamara Hinz said she found the province's announcement troubling.

"I was very surprised and very disappointed," Hinz said. "I think there's real harm in othering education around reproductive health and consent compared to other parts of the curriculum."

Hinz said there are many studies that show strong correlations between the lack of sex education or poor quality sex education and rates of sexually transmitted infections and unwanted or teen pregnancies.

"It's just really astonishing to me that we would be taking a step back in that kind of really important education."

WATCH|Child psychiatrist says she is disappointed about government's decision:

Child psychiatrist says she is disappointed about government's decision on parental permission and banning outside sex-ed presentations

1 year ago

Duration 5:23

Education Minister Dustin Duncan says that going forward, schools must now seek the permission of parents or guardians before allowing students under the age of 16 to change what the province refers to as their "preferred" name and pronouns. The province is also banning outside groups from giving sex-ed presentations in schools. A Saskatoon psychiatrist who works with youth says these decisions were made without consulting those who will be most affected by the changes and is concerned about the harm that will be done.

In its new policy, the government has also mandated that Saskatchewan schools must now inform parents about the sexual health education curriculum, and let them opt out of it on behalf of their children.

Julian Wotherspoon, executive director of Planned Parenthood Regina, said Saskatchewan's high STI, teen pregnancy and domestic abuse numbers are not going to be helped by allowing people to pick and choose what information children get.

"Ithink this is an overstepby the government, and then also perhaps just a misunderstanding of our role as parents," said Wotherspoon, who is a mother.

"When my children come home to me with material that they've heard in the classroom that they have questions about, that's a gift. Schools are a place for our children to go out and get that wider view of what is out there in the world. And it's our job as parents tobring them home and to haveconversations with them."

The policy shift comes after an incident at Lumsden High School in June, in whicha studentpicked up sex. ed. material with graphic content that had been brought to the school by a Planned Parenthood sexual health presenter. That led to Duncan directing school boards to suspend any upcoming presentations with Planned Parenthood Regina.

Wotherspoon, of Planned Parenthood, said teachers should be teaching more sex education, but that theyaren't equipped to do that right now.

"They don't have readily available tools," Wotherspoon said."We would much rather support educators so that they have the tools that they need to do that effectively."

When asked about iton Tuesday,Duncan saidthat theLumsden incident "partly" led to the policy shift, but that there were other factors as well, such as feedback from teachers and parents about thesex ed. curriculum.

Regina Civic Awareness and Action Network is an advocacy group that has been raisingconcerns about lessons on gender and sexuality being taught in classrooms.Wayne Bernakevitch, a member of the group,welcomed the move from the Saskatchewan government, saying that children's best interests lie in the inclusion of parents in education.

"Parents do care and they love the child and they need to be part of the decision making process," he said, noting this includes conversations about pronouns, as well as sex education."Sex education at a young age, I think, has no place in the school system, and so I think all those things are addressed and I'm really quite happy with what the government has come down with."

Education can inform students to make decisions

Jasmin Ogren wants educators grappling with these policy changes to know that there areresources for teacherson the Saskatchewan Prevention Institute's website.

The institute is a provincial non-profit that advocates for children's health, andprovides evidence-based resources and information for educators on a variety of subjects, including sexual health education.

Ogren, who is the sexual and reproductive health program co-ordinator for the institute,echoed others' concerns about Saskatchewan's high rates of STIs and teen pregnancy. She added that the province's rates of sexualviolence are also among the highest in the country.

"This really indicates unsafe and non-consensual behaviours, so effective, comprehensive sexual health education is important to address potential gaps in knowledge and to help ensure that youth have information and skills that they need to make informed decisions."

Ogren said schools are a well-positioned setting for studentsto learn about these topics, because "they're the only formal education institution that has meaningful interactions that are mandatory with nearly every young person."

'Not responsible leadership': NDP

Saskatchewan NDP Leader Carla Beckcalled the new sexual education policy "harmful."

"Disappointed isn't the right word for it. But it's a new low," she said.

Parents have always had the ability to know what their childrenare learning about in school, she said.

"They've always had the ability to go to the school or pick up the phone and talk to the teacher to exclude their children from particular lessons if that was their choice."

The Opposition advocates for age appropriate, evidence-based sex education,Beck said.

"The government has seen fit tosuggest that more information is the problem here. It's not responsible leadership," she said.