Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1118959
7 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 19 MAY 2019 But initial objections to the use of this book during PSCD lessons for Year 6 students, were raised in a Facebook vid- eo by two parents with deep religious convictions, leading to questions about what the book actually entailed. Indeed, many others scan- dalised by what these parents said, cried foul without actu- ally seeing the book, some lamenting that the book was "forcing children to lose their innocence at such a young age". I took these concerns to Ste- phen Camilleri, education of- ficer for PSCD learning at the Education Department, and Stephen Cachia, director gen- eral for curriculum. They smiled when I put the question to them. "Children lose their inno- cence when they access on- line porn and play sexualizsed video games not when they are exposed to a workbook on re- lationships and sexuality… we do not protect children by not talking to them about sexual- ity," Cachia said. This book is just a drop in the ocean of the vast information, some of it warped, that chil- dren are exposed to in today's world, he added. "The book makes a little contribution in teaching children about rela- tionships, sexuality and sexual abuse in a positive way and it would be unfair to deny chil- dren this information when they are exposed to so much negative messages." The workbook is used as part of PSCD lessons held in the last term of Year 6, when chil- dren and teachers would have grown more comfortable with each other. Its content is "very mild" when compared to simi- lar workbooks used abroad, Camilleri told me. "The workbook was drawn up by experts in child psy- chology and discussed with teachers, and relays the infor- mation in an age-appropriate manner… it is used within the context of a class discussion during PSCD lessons and chil- dren do take the book home at the end of the year," Camilleri said. And meetings are held prior to the start of the lessons with parents to inform them of the course material. "We do hold meetings with parents where PSCD teachers explain what will be taught. On occasions, we have had parents appreciating the work being done by the schools be- cause they find sexuality an embarrassing topic to pick up with their children," Camilleri said. The gay factor One of the complaints was that the book portrayed peo- ple introducing themselves as "gay superheroes". Why this should be a problem is unclear but the book does not do this. Flipping through the book one finds a single exchange mentioning superheroes, however, rather than having people introducing themselves as gay superheroes (not that there's anything wrong with that), the book passage simply points out that some comic book superheroes are gay. In another section on family, the book includes photos of different family units, intro- ducing children to the differ- ent realities that exist around them. "We may have children who are gay – studies show that children can already start identifying themselves as gay at age nine – or students who have relatives who are gay, or school friends who have two mothers or two fathers… these are realities that exist," Camilleri said, adding the idea was to foster respect. He did acknowledge that part of the apprehension was the fear, borne out of ignorance, that children would become gay if they are exposed to the gay reality. Underwear and abuse As for the photo of a young man in underwear, this is ac- tually a picture next to an ex- ercise in which kids are asked to discuss various situations they might find themselves in. The scenario in question was one asking students to inter- pret a situation where "Ivan sent a photo of himself in his underwear to Sophia". The students are asked to de- scribe how this makes Sophia feel and why, and what she can do about it. The scenario forms part of a section on sexual abuse that some parents may have found too explicit. Camilleri said court records and research show that child abuse is very often perpetrated by a family member, a relative or someone close to the fam- ily. He said the scenarios pre- sented in the book were in- tended to make children aware of abuse and empower them to act on it. "It is natural for parents to live in denial, believing that their children will never ex- perience abuse but this is not reality and children should be empowered to recognise abuse and act against it. I once attended one of the par- ent meetings and when the topic of abuse was broached, a mother asked whether there was anything wrong with her 12-year-old daughter being given a bath by her father. We have had instances when chil- dren opened up about sexual abuse after the PSCD lesson," Camilleri said. Cachia insisted the workbook provided the right informa- tion, at the right time, at the right age. "The book is age- appropriate in today's world, not some idealised world of the past." But should parents be able to request their children stay out of the PSCD lessons? The law only allows such an exemption in the case of reli- gious studies, Cachia said. "I understand that sexuality is a sensitive subject and could be embarrassing for some peo- ple. But PSCD is part of the national curriculum and it is an important aspect to help children throughout their de- velopment. All children have a right to know," Cachia said. ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt The photo of a young man in underwear is actually a picture next to an exercise in which kids are asked to discuss various situations they might find themselves in. The scenario in question was one asking students to interpret a situation where "Ivan sent a photo of himself in his underwear to Sophia" "Children lose their innocence when they access online porn and play sexualized video games not when they are exposed to a workbook on relationships and sexuality"