Montgomery County Could Be Isolated in Teaching on Homosexuality

That's the well-supported conclusion reached in this article in the New York Times.


Montgomery is a mostly well-educated, politically liberal enclave. But opponents of the new curriculum, portrayed as a vocal minority by school officials, may be more in sync with the mood of parents nationally.

According to a 2004 national poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and National Public Radio, roughly three out of four parents say it is appropriate for high schools to teach about homosexuality, but about half say it is appropriate in middle school.


When asked about the issue in greater detail, more than 50 percent of high school and middle school parents supported teaching what homosexuality is about “without discussing whether it is wrong or acceptable.” Only 8 percent of high school parents and 4 percent of middle school parents said schools should teach “that homosexuality is acceptable.” The survey had a margin of error of 6 percentage points.

Montgomery County may be ahead of the country on sex education, but it may also just be out there, stranded on its own.


I've written about this before, but for those of you who don't know, the Montgomery County I'm referring to is in Washington, DC suburbs of Maryland, and I also happen to live there. If you want some background on the limited cirriculum that is scheduled to be taught this coming school year, check out the NY Times article.


Thanks to Teach The Facts, the advocacy organization that helped get this cirriculum put in place, for the link.