CAMARILLO : Parents Can Preview Sex Education Video

Parents of fourth- through eighth-grade Pleasant Valley students can preview a new videotape tonight and Wednesday entitled “Sexually Transmitted Diseases,” which the school board has accepted as part of the district’s Family Life Education program.

If parents do not want their children to watch the videotape, they may ask the Pleasant Valley Elementary School District to excuse their children from viewing it.

Assistant Supt. Erich C. Anders told the trustees at their meeting last week that the new videotape will be used until a better one, which covers AIDS in greater depth, can be obtained for the next school year.

Anders said the new tape “reflects the conservative nature of Camarillo” and is replacing the outdated film, “One Million Teenagers.”

The new tape talks about five or six sexually transmitted diseases, including AIDS, he said.

Education about family life and sex should take place first in the home, with schools supplementing parental advice, Anders said.

Trustee Ricardo Amador encouraged parents to view the videotape because it suggests that students can talk over their problems with people other than their parents.

“I believe that parents should know what’s going on,” Amador said.

Parents of seventh- and eighth-grade students can see the tape at 7 p.m. tonight at El Rancho School. Parents of fourth- through sixth-grade students can view the tape Wednesday at the same place and time.