Parents who believe in traditional marriage are being sidelined by draft sex education guidance, Scotland for Marriage has warned.
The pro-marriage group said under the proposals, teaching about marriage will be downgraded in sex education.
Scotland for Marriage also warned that teachers who have concerns about the issue will not be protected.
Value
“The new draft sex education guidance is a real shocker, and shows where things are heading”, the group said.
The organisation also voiced concerns that the new guidance undermines parental rights. It said children could be taught certain aspects of sex education in other classes despite parents removing them from formal lessons on the topic.
The draft Government guidance on Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood (RSHP) education has been released following the Bill to redefine marriage in Scotland.
The guidance removes reference to children learning about “the value placed on marriage by religious groups and others in Scottish society”.
Respect
It does admit that “some teachers or pupils may have ethical concerns — but the document stops short of guaranteeing that their conscience will be respected”, Scotland for Marriage said.
The draft guidance also says: “Aspects of RSHP education may be discussed in many areas of the curriculum and it would not be possible for a child or young person to be withdrawn from lessons across the curriculum as this would prevent a child or young person receiving an adequate and holistic education.”
It adds that schools are “expected to meet the experiences and outcomes” of the curriculum for a child “even if that child is withdrawn from a particular lesson”.
“This underhand approach ought to have been deleted long ago,” Scotland for Marriage said.
Contempt
A spokesman for the group commented that the guidelines represent “a significant liberalising of the sex education guidance, a failure to respect those who come from a faith or otherwise traditionalist background, and shocking contempt for the rights of parents.
“The Scottish Government should go back to the drawing board, and write sex education guidance which reflects the whole of Scottish society rather than the trendy metropolitan elite”.
The Government defended its curriculum, saying it enabled schools to “ensure that pupils have an understanding of a variety of beliefs and opinions, and use this to encourage confident, capable young people who can form healthy, respectful relationships with others”.