Last week, a group of middle-school teachers gathered at the Coconut Grove Sailing Club to hear physicians lecture on abstinence, safe sex and accommodating HIV-positive students as part of a training seminar for the Miami-Dade school district's HIV/AIDS curriculum.

"AIDS: Get The Facts!" is mandatory for all Miami-Dade students in grades K-12, though teaching methods vary by grade level. The core philosophy of the curriculum is abstinence, yet Miami-Dade is the only district in the state that allows condom demonstrations in the classroom, said Jackie White, supervisor of HIV/AIDS education. "We understand that some parents may be uncomfortable with the topic, but we have a responsibility to properly inform our young people on the dangers of sex," said White.

At the gathering, Dr. Bruce Lenes and other experts discussed the dangers of unprotected sex and the importance of not discriminating against HIV-positive students by ensuring they are not stigmatized by educators.

"It's been very worthwhile and I've learned a lot, it's very awkward to discuss sex in the classroom but it's important because AIDS affects our kids," said Mays Middle School teacher Phala Jordan. For Jordan and other teachers, the lecture brought about self-reflection. "It made you realize just how much you don't know and now I feel I can empathize with students who may be affected," Jordan noted.

Eduardo Sabillon, a teacher at Kinloch Park Middle School, said he does "whatever it takes" to engage his students in the AIDS lessons and tell them "that unsafe sex is deadly, even if I have to use graphic language sometimes." Sabillon said he primarily sticks to using clinic terms and shows illustrations of safe sex practices.

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