Choosing the Best

At end of page, added “Teacher Expectations” section that states the following: 

Choosing the Best curricula are medically-based, medically-accurate, abstinence-centered sexual risk avoidance (SRA) programs.  In order to ensure program fidelity, accuracy and effectiveness, teachers should present the Choosing the Best curricula per the instructions outlined in the beginning of each Leader’s Guide and continue to follow the specific instructions and script provided for each lesson. Further, teachers presenting Choosing the Best must refrain from:

1. Discussing religion or politics in any context;
   
   
2. Expressing value judgements, including on sensitive topics such as abortion;
   
   
3. Conducting “non-approved” activities, i.e., activities that are not provided in the Choosing the Best Leader Guide.

Further,  teachers should exercise caution in sharing personal stories, anecdotes, and/or opinions about the topic of relationships and/or sexual activity while presenting the curricula.

Near end of page, just before last paragraph about chlamydia, please insert the following medical update:

Medical Update:  In addition to cervical cancer in women, HPV has been found to cause other types of genital cancers in both males and females.  Further, HPV has been found to cause cancers of the back of the throat (Oropharynx).  Most of these cancers could be prevented by HPV vaccination.  Source:  CDC, “Why is HPV Vaccine So Important?” and “How Many Cancers are Linked with HPV Each Year? March 2017.  See also Everydayhealth.com, “5 things to Know about HPV-related Throat Cancer.”

In second column, after sentence in #5 that ends with word “teenagers” and endnote 9, Add the following:

Say:  It’s important to remember that a person can get a sexually transmitted disease (STD) including HIV, the first time they have sex, even if they have sex just one time.

In second column, first sentence which is #2, please revise to say “ 2.  An individual cannot know for sure whether they are infected with HIV unless they get tested.”

In the first SAY, replace the first sentence with the following:

“Currently available drugs do not cure HIV infection or AIDS.  They can suppress the virus and greatly prolong the lives of many people with HIV, and greatly lower their chance of infecting others, but they cannot eliminate HIV from the body.” [keep endnote 4] In the next sentence, delete “That’s why” and start the sentence with “It’s important for people”…etc.  In the 3^rd sentence, please replace the second half, the phrase “the medications are quite expensive….side effects” with the phrase, “a person taking HIV medications must take them the right way, every day, for the rest of their life and get regular check-ups with a doctor. [keep endnote 5]

In the second column, in parenthesis that are part of “Ask”, there is a reference made to “mental retardation”.  Please replace the word “retardation” with “disability.”

Second column, replace 750,000 with 562,000; and replace the first “one-third” following that number with “one fourth, i.e., 1 in 4”.  Note:  [As of February 2018, please further revise so that now teen pregnancy number is now 450,000, representing approximately 1 in 5 teen girls getting pregnant.] Delete the “(31%);” after the next “one-third”, add, “i.e., 1 in 3”

Second column, after last sentence, Add the following:

Say: Some of you may have heard about the withdrawal or “pull-out” method for preventing pregnancy, which is when the male completely withdraws from the female partner before he ejaculates. The problem with this method is that it’s very difficult to do it correctly, every single time, so it’s one of the least effective methods for pregnancy prevention.  And, it offers absolutely no protection against STDs.

Say:  It’s also important to remember that a person can get pregnant, or get someone pregnant, the first time they have sex, even if they have sex just one time.

Last paragraph on the page, that begins with “Please remember…” please add a “Say:” right before that statement so that the teacher knows they are to say this out loud.

At the end of page 29, after the statement directly above (the Please remember statement) Add a Teacher’s Note that says the following:

“These principles apply to all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Last column, after last sentence on the page, please add the following:

Teacher’s Note:  If desired, alternative phrasing of questions #2 and #3 at the top and bottom of page 33 can be used as follows: #2, top of page- “What qualities do you look for in someone you would date?”  #3), top of page-“What qualities do you think girls want in someone they would date?”  #2, bottom of page-“What qualities do you look for in someone you would date? #3, bottom of page, “What qualities do you think guys want in someone they would date?”

In the activity box on this page, please revise the following:  Just before the first ASK on the page, right after the sentence “The fish will probably flop around inside the net.”  Please add the following:  “Quickly return the fish to the fishbowl.” 

After the first ASK that ends with the phrase, …outside the bowl.” Add a Teacher’s Note as follows:  Teacher’s note:  The live demonstration of this activity has the most impact with students. However, as an alternative to using a live goldfish in a fishbowl for this activity, you may instead state the following: Boundaries give us freedom within our personal lives. They give us security when we operate within set boundaries.  Let me illustrate this principle with the story of George the goldfish, who lived in a fishbowl.  George wanted to explore the broader world and did not want to be confined by the limits of his goldfish bowl.  One day he convinced his owner to let him out of the bowl, so that he could be “free” and experience the “real world.”  His owner used a fishnet to lift George out of his bowl and to new freedom on the kitchen table.  Ask: What do you think was the result?  Say:  George quickly learned why the goldfish bowl was important.  Without it, he flopped around on the table and almost died.  He discovered that the goldfish bowl, rather than being a limitation, provided the boundaries to let him be truly free.

At the end of page 49 just before the last SAY on the page, Add a Teacher’s Note that says the following:

“These principles apply to all students, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.”

Please revise EN #4 and #5 in Lesson 2 to be:  CDC, About HIV/AIDS, May 30, 2017. 

Please revise EN #6 in Lesson 2 to be:  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HIV Basics: Testing. September 2016.