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Teaching children about homosexuality

The Todd Feinburg Show - Thursday night 9 pm – 680 AM, Listen Live: http://www.toddradio.com. Sponsored by the Center for Naturalism.

Should teachers be banned from teaching about the existence of homosexuality in elementary and/or high school?

A father in Lexington, MA stirred a controversy when he asked that his son be removed from class if homosexuality was covered.  See In Lexington, fear surrounds players in flap over gay teachings. 

Practical issues:

• What if your child had a classmate with two Mommies? 
• Should the teacher be banned from mentioning it?
• what if they help out in the classroom?
• What if your child is invited to their home to play?

Larger issues:

• How do we as a society deal with issues we are uncomfortable  with? 
• Is tolerance a skill or a value?  
• If tolerance is a value, then what other values are taught in school - freedom, life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness?
• If it is a skill, then is it important to teach so that the USA can be competitive in a  complex world?
• As we operate in an increasingly global world and regularly encounter people who live lives quite different from our norms, how do we develop skills to cope with these differences?