Sex education will also be possible in middle schools. As with high schools, parents must sign a consent form after being informed of the topics covered and the teaching materials used.
After numerous meetings of the Culture-Education Committee, which has long been examining the Valditara bill on informed consent and which approved a text that banned sex education in middle school classes, this appears to be the majority's new stance. The correction comes with an amendment tabled by the League, which effectively repeals the ban for middle school, while maintaining the ban for preschool and elementary school.
" We're not the ones who want to ban the discussion of affection and respect in the classroom," rapporteur Rossano Sasso emphasized, referring to "ongoing exploitation." He was referring to the opposition's criticisms, which slammed the bill as "unacceptable" during a conference dedicated specifically to sexual and emotional education in primary schools, meaning middle schools.
For AVS MP Elisabetta Piccolotti, the bill "is an obscurantist and purely ideological measure." M5S MP Stefania Ascari, however, believes the bill "was written for students," but without addressing them. Democratic Party group leader in the Culture Committee, Irene Manzi, cites "many critical points." The bill's arrival in the Chamber has seen a flurry of opposing initiatives.
Pro Vita & Famiglia has submitted 50,000 signatures to the Chamber of Deputies on a petition calling for "urgent" approval of the bill and "maximum unity" with the center-right on this "liberal and democratic" law. The Una Nessuna Centomila Foundation, on the other hand, believes it is necessary to introduce "systematic and inclusive sexual and emotional education in schools, in line with international standards defined by UNESCO and the WHO."
And the Foundation, to fill what it sees as an educational and cultural gap, has sponsored the first study on the topic: "Educating about Affectivity." The results are also practical: the first is a higher education course starting in January at the University of Milan-Bicocca on education about affectivity and sexuality for teachers, principals, and educators at schools "of all levels," explaining that this is not just a scientific study but "a political and cultural gesture."
