Sex ed plan is wrong
I have lived in Taiwan for several years and love this country and her people. Recently, I have been following with concern the proposal to incorporate teaching about homosexuality in the public school system here. As a mother and educator, I oppose this plan for several reasons.
First, as an American, I am aware that in many of our school districts, such teaching has begun at the kindergarten level. Although the current proposal stipulates that it should begin at the fifth-grade level in Taiwan, the door would be open to lowering the age of the children subjected to a homosexual agenda.
Second, I believe we should differentiate between respect for others (whether they are of different races, religions, or sexual orientation, to name a few differences found among members of the human family) and total acceptance of behaviors that most people find morally wrong. To teach children to condone behavior that leads to enormous problems in any society is inappropriate to say the least.
I am totally opposed to name-calling, alienation or any cruel behavior by any individual to any other person for any reason. This includes people whose sexual orientation differs from the norm. Children can be cruel to each other for many different reasons and need to be taught respectful behavior to one another as well as to adults. However, I think that within the educational system, the less emphasis on the entire subject of sexuality, the better, at least until students reach high school.
Furthermore, emphasis on sexual diversity issues is not the business of public education. Parents are children’s most important teachers; they should be the ones to deal with their own children when questions naturally arise during childhood.
Children often struggle with their feelings and go through normal developmental stages of attraction to members of their own sex. To teach too early about homosexuality or to confirm a homosexual orientation in what for most children is merely a short phase in their development is to cause great emotional stress for young students. Life is hard enough for children without adding sexuality issues when they are too young to have to deal with them.
I hope Taiwan’s education leaders will sort through the issues carefully and teach respect, not sexuality, to our children.
CAROL NICHOLS
Jhongli
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