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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, March 6, 2015 | 6 Curriculum needs to be updated While parents -- especially any who become incensed at the thought of anything of a sexual nature being discussed with their pre-adolescent-aged child -- have the right to be upset about Ontario's newly-unveiled sex-education curriculum, few should be surprised by its content. Essentially, what the Province's publicly-funded schools plan to teach this fall is an only slightly updated version of curriculum proposed and scrapped in 2010, due to a combination of public and political outcry. To view full details of the new curriculum, visit http://bit.ly/1Fk4fZS. While the content of the update has been hotly debated and continues to be, one thing should not be overlooked, an update is required. Shamefully our province's health and physical education curriculum hasn't been revised since Mike Harris was winding down his rst term as premier in 1999. In fact, until last week's unveiling of the new health and physical education curriculum by Ontario Education Minister Liz Sandals, our province was teaching the most outdated version of health/physical education in the country. Society has changed quite a bit since then and we support educators being equipped with accurate information that's as re ective of today's knowledge base as possible. Whether we like it or not, schools have become the dumping ground for all manner of societal issues that challenge most families in our modern age. When two-parent working households became the norm, before- and after-school programs cropped up within our education system to bridge the gap created when moms and dads are both working. This same family dynamic, combined with decades of pressure on government, led to childcare services being provided within schools in our province. According to provincial gures, there are 165,602 licensed childcare spaces in publicly-funded Ontario schools today. Other social programs to evolve out of a combination of busy lives and a growing level of poverty have included in-school nutrition programs and, more recently, weekend nutrition programs for children at-risk of going hungry at home. Those changes have moved at a snail's pace compared to the change that has occurred by leaps and bounds as we embark on the Information Age. Technology is moving our world, our information at breakneck speed. Our young people must have the tools to cope. They must also be given the best information about physical education as obesity lurks as a very real danger to younger generations. Our society has deemed the health and physical education of our children to be among our publiclyfunded school system's myriad responsibilities. We strongly believe that responsibility must include ensuring information we provide -- for health, physical education and sex education -- remains as accurate and re ective of what we know today as possible. Editorial Y O U N G "Connected to your Community" O P T I M I S T S 447 Speers Road, Oakville ON, L6K 3S4 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Editorial Department: (905) 632-0588 Classi ed Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 53 | Number 19 The Oakville Beaver is a division of Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Vice ­President and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Halton Region Editor in Chief NEIL OLIVER DAVID HARVEY JILL DAVIS The Oakville Junior Optimist Club hosted a snow sculpture contest at Nottinghill Park last weekend. Pictured, from left, are: club members Logan Reid, 11; Sam Ecclestone, 11; Hunter MacKinnon, 14; President of Junior Optimist Club Brittany Mackinnon; David Michaud, 11; and Jack Mogus, 14, beside a snow sculpture they dubbed Captain Optimist. | photo by Justin Greaves ­ Oakville Beaver (Follow on Twitter @halton_photog or facebook.com/HaltonPhotog) Advertising Director DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager SANDY PARE MARK DILLS I Action must make promises come true cus on the 20-year review of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a momentous agreement adopted at the fourth Women's World Conference. In the lead-up to this session, all countries were asked to undertake an internal assessment of their progress in the 12 critical areas identi ed in 1995, including women's poverty, health, economic and political participation, education, and human rights. The results are depressing -- no country has fully achieved the goals that were set. Indeed, across the board, progress has been slow and uneven, with some countries much further behind than others. The draft political statement for the session, which is expected to be adopted in the rst few days of the meetings, urges countries to commit to accelerate progress, and sets a new goal of 2030 to fully realize the declaration and platform for action -- 2030 may seem a very ambitious goal, knowing just how far many countries are from even granting women and girls some of the most basic human rights. see Canadian on p.9 My View Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Director of Distribution CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager nternational Women's Day (IWD) is March 8 and government representatives from around the world, including Canada, will meet in New York for the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. International Women's Day is a time for celebration, re ection, and action. Since the day was rst observed on March 8, 1909, progress and achievements toward women's economic, political, and social equality have undoubtedly been made -- this we must celebrate. However, signi cant barriers still remain in almost every country, and for that we must continue to re ect and urge our governments and communities to act. Even in wealthy countries like Canada, violence against women continues, equal pay is elusive, and women are signi cantly under-represented in positions of decision making and leadership. When you look closer at the progress of aboriginal women, women with disabilities and racialized women, the picture becomes even less rosy. Women and state of cials from around the world are gathering in New York for the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women. The Commission meets annually around International Women's Day to discuss topics of importance to the advancement of women and girls. This year is of particular signi cance given the fo- Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Proud Official Media Sponsor For: The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. Letters should be addressed to: The Editor, Oakville Beaver, 5040 Mainway, Burlington ON L7L 7G5 or via email to; ablackburn@oakvillebeaver.com. The Beaver reserves the right to refuse to publish a letter. The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite 206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. 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