5-year-olds forced to learn about AIDS

Starting Monday (March 20th), kindergartners in New York City public schools will learn about HIV and AIDS. According to New York's Daily News, students will be taught that HIV is a "germ" and "not easy to get." Teachers will also be required to inform kids that the virus could lead to AIDS, which is hard to "get well" from. But schools won't mention that HIV is transmitted through sexual contact until students reach the fourth grade. It's all part of New York's new mandatory HIV/AIDS curriculum that's stirring up some controversy among teachers and parents.

Education Department spokeswoman Kelly Devers thinks that it's important to teach young children about the disease, saying, "The curriculum is absolutely developmentally appropriate and contains positive messages about staying healthy." But some parents and teachers don't agree, arguing that kindergartners are too young to talk about HIV and AIDS. Some elementary school teachers said they don't think students younger than eight will understand what they are being told about the fatal virus.

What do you think about AIDS education in kindergarten?

Why are we targeting a group that's not at risk? They don't use IV drugs they're not sexually active. If knowledge is power as some callers said why aren't we teaching kids about other STDs not just HIV/AIDS? My beef is we're robbing kids of their innocence.