For Boys And Girls 1991l Exclusive — Puberty Sexual Education

Puberty is the period of time when a child's body begins to develop into an adult body. This process is triggered by hormones, which are chemical messengers that regulate growth and development. For boys and girls, puberty typically begins between the ages of 9 and 14.

Then came the graphics.

Looking back, 1991 was a year of extremes. It gave us the explicit, no-nonsense honesty of the Belgian documentary Puberty: Sexual Education for Boys and Girls , representing the ideal of "comprehensive" education. It gave us the national, standardized vision of the SIECUS guidelines, which continue to influence policy debates today. And it gave us the rise of politically funded, abstinence-only curricula like "Sex Respect," which set the stage for the "culture wars" that have yet to end. puberty sexual education for boys and girls 1991l exclusive

Nowhere was this rift more visible than in New York City. In a historic and controversial move, the New York City Board of Education voted in February 1991 to become the first major school district in the country to distribute condoms in its 120 high schools, available to students without parental consent. Education officials stressed that this distribution was not a standalone solution but part of a broader AIDS-prevention curriculum. Yet, the decision ignited a firestorm. Dr. Irene Impellizzeri, a staunch board opponent, argued that an AIDS-prevention videotape used in schools failed to emphasize abstinence enough. She claimed its message was that “casual, promiscuous sex is just as good as abstention," a statement that captured the essence of the national divide. Puberty is the period of time when a