Quote:
Alberta passes law allowing parents to pull kids out of class
Written notice required when sex, sexual orientation, religion are covered
Last Updated: Tuesday, June 2, 2009 | 5:26 AM ET
CBC News
Alberta legislators passed legislation early Tuesday that will give parents the option of pulling their children out of class when lessons on sex, religion or sexual orientation are being taught.
The Alberta legislature held a seven-hour debate on Bill 44 Monday night before it passed third and final reading about 1:30 a.m. MT (3:30 a.m. ET) Tuesday.
A clause in the bill, which is an amendment to the province's human rights legislation, requires that school boards give parents written notice when controversial topics are going to be covered in the curriculum. Parents can then ask for their child to be excluded from the discussion.
There will be no restrictions placed on casual classroom discussions that might arise about the topics.
The parental rights clause is included in a bill intended to enshrine gay rights in Alberta's human rights code.
But the buried clause had drawn objections from teachers, schools boards and human rights groups, who argued Bill 44 makes it possible for parents to file human rights complaints against teachers and school districts, creating a chill with regard to what is taught in the classroom.
Critics had argued the clause should be scrapped and the issue should be dealt with under the Schools Act rather than being enshrined as a human right.
A small group of gay rights activists held a rally outside the legislature in Edmonton to oppose the bill on Monday.
The government has said the effects of the legislation on the education system will be minimal and is meant to allow parents to be more involved in their children's schooling.
Attention must now shift to making sure the legislation is implemented in the best possible way for teachers and schools, said Alberta School Boards Association President Heather Welwood.
"We want to nail down exactly what's required for notification — when it's required, exactly on what topics it's required, how often, and we'll be seeking our own legal advice … on that," Welwood said.
Frank Bruseker, president of the Alberta Teachers' Association, said he's advised the group's lawyers to prepare to defend any teachers who are brought before the human rights tribunal.
"We'll need to review curricula right across all subjects and all grades to see where there might be a minefield, if you will, that a teacher might step in and suddenly find themselves in deep trouble," Bruseker said.
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Alberta passes law allowing parents to pull kids out of class
Ironically, a bill meant to enshrine gay rights has included a clause forcing educators to notify parents when their children's curriculum includes such controversial topics including sex, religion, and sexual orientation.
The problem here is that now teachers need to be careful when planning their lessons. They aren't held from holding casual conversations when they come up, but if any aspect of a lesson is interpreted as controversial, the teacher could land themselves into trouble.
Furthermore, this basically creates an opting-out for kids whose parents don't want them to learn about relevant social issues related to sex and sexual orientation. Teachers will need to use the permission-form format for teaching these topics, which I think makes it all too easy to yank kids out of it. Religion has a much longer history of problems in the education system, so to me the sexual orientation bit stands out to me.
- Do you feel this law is fair?
- Should parents have this much power in determining what lessons their kids get in the public school system?
- Do you feel the public school system should teach formal lessons on sex, religion, and sexual orientation? Why or why not?
- Is this a case of an advance or regression in human rights issues?
I think this is a regression, personally. It gives parents the power to essentially shelter their children from education about important matters. Sex is real; homosexuality is real. There is a certain age when children should start learning about these matters formally. Children aren't as ignorant as some may believe. They have curiosity; they have questions; they have misconceptions that need to be cleared. This is what education is for.
The religion thing...I don't know. There are problems in that religion is a complex issue when it comes to followers of different faiths, and then you have non-believers. I don't see much room for religion in a public school system, unless it was a kind of survey course to learn about world religions and their role/influence in society.
What do you think overall?