Sex-education plea criticised

Press, 25 May 1977, Page 27

Sex-education plea criticised

The Concerned Parents’ As-; , sociation has criticised statements made in Christchurch last week by Dr Tony Johnston, a family planning expert. Dr Johnston, late of Christchurch, and now research director of family planning at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney, said that contraceptive information must be an essential part of any sex education programme. i I He blamed New Zealand’s! 'high percentage of unplanned! first pregnancies on the lack! I of sex education by families land schools. I The chairman of the Con-! cemed Parents’ Association! (Mr P. Clements) said that! children today needed protec-: tion from the exploitation!

[which surrounded them with sexual stimulation, and from adults who would not honestly say that extra-marital sex was anti-social. “One does not need to invoke religious teaching in order to demonstrate that premarital sexual abstinence is healthiest for both the indi-

vidual and society,” he said. Dr Johnston also subscribes to the popular educational [fallacy that children should be faced with all value sysi terns. and left to choose beI tween all the alternatives.

“This is a complete abdication by society of all its responsibility to pass on its moral values to the rising generation and it is to be condemned.”