Despite previous claims that the government would roll back the province’s sex education curriculum back to 1998 standards, it appears that Premier Doug Ford and the Ontario Progressive Conservatives plan on maintaining some aspects of the province’s current curriculum.
According to a July 16th, 2018 Canadian Press report, the PC Party plans on including subjects like consent, gender identity and cyber safety in their revised curriculum.
Ontario education minister Lisa Thompson made the announcement during question period on July 16th, 2018, stating that some aspects of the current curriculum will remain in the as-of-yet unreleased PC sex ed curriculum.
“That includes consent. That includes texting — sexting” said Thompson, according to a July 16th CBC News story.
Thompson remarks come after the PC government stated last week that students would be taught the 1998 sex ed curriculum, which was written before aspects of modern life — including sexting and online safety — were taught in Ontario classrooms.
The 1998 curriculum also didn’t teach lessons about same sex marriage — something that wasn’t legalized in the province until June 2003 and wasn’t legalized in Canada until July 2005.
The current provincial sex ed curriculum was introduced in 2015 by the Ontario Liberal Party under former Premier Kathleen Wynne.
The 2015 curriculum was seen a radical overhaul of the province’s stance on sexual education, and included in-depth lessons on body hygiene, healthy relationships, consent, stereotypes and assumptions, gender identity and sexual orientation.
Repealing the 2015 curriculum was part of Doug Ford’s platform during the 2018 Ontario provincial election.
Source: Canadian Press, CBC News
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