Sex education advocated

Wellington: The School Inspectors’ Conference discussed yesterday the question of sex instruction in public schools. The Minister of Education stated that a great deal of evil was caused by neglect to instruct the young as to the physiological facts of life. Unfortunately, because of false shame, most parents failed to do their duty in the matter. He believed the consensus of opinion was that parental instruction was fortified. He had doubts of the advisability of calling on teachers to carry out this duty, and thought parents should teach their own children. Dr Wilkins (Chief Medical Officer of Schools) declared that the statistics of venereal disease and illegitimacy, and the prevalence of selfabuse made it a vital necessary work. Sex instruction should be earnestly taken up, and any and every attempt to stamp out venereal disease was doomed to failure, unless proper sex instruction was given early in life.