New Jersey Assembly Bill ACR131

New Jersey 2024-2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 5/2/24
• Refer: 5/2/24

Caption

Opposes State Board of Education revised New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Comprehensive Health and Physical Education on sex education adopted on June 3, 2020.

Impact

The resolution emphasizes that the reformed standards promote age-inappropriate content that may not be suitable for all students. It raises alarms that these standards infringe upon the autonomy of parents, undermining their ability to decide when their children are ready for discussions about sex education. The proponents of ACR131 argue that educational policies should support parental roles in their children's education, especially concerning topics that parents may prefer to address at their discretion.

Summary

Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 131 (ACR131) is a legislative resolution introduced in New Jersey that opposes the revised New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Comprehensive Health and Physical Education concerning sex education, which were adopted by the State Board of Education on June 3, 2020. The resolution is spearheaded by Assemblywoman Dawn Fantasia and expresses concerns that the revised standards include controversial topics that disrupt parental rights and responsibilities in teaching sensitive subjects to their children according to their family values and beliefs.

Contention

Critics of the revised standards, as highlighted in ACR131, argue that the opt-out provision provided by the Department of Education does not adequately safeguard against accidental exposure to graphic sexual content. As such, if the resolution is adopted, it would effectively call for reconsideration or amendment of the sex education standards to better respect parents' concerns about what is taught and when. The resolution illustrates a gap between educational authorities' practices and parental expectations regarding children's education in sensitive matters.