I support the proposed amendments to the existing regulations. The proposed amendments seek only to ensure that parents are informed about: i) the materials being used to educate their child in a public school; and, ii) the options available to the parent if, in their judgment, certain material is inappropriate for their child. I don't know how anyone can object to affording this notice to parents. Parents do not abdicate their role as parents, charged with being actively engaged in the growth and development of their high school aged children, simply because the child is enrolled in a public school. I am quite confident that the overwhelming majority of teachers have a genuine interest in my child's intellectual development and seek what they consider to be in my child's best interest in furthering that development. However, when all is said and done, it is MY decision that must carry the day in matters affecting my child. Thus, it is my decision as to what material is appropriate for my particular child, a decision that can only properly be made by taking in to account the unique characteristics of my child. A teacher, despite being motivated by nothing but good intentions, simply doesn't have the knowledge necessary to make decisions about what is, and what is not, appropriate for my child.

The proposed amendments facilitate a parent's ability to make informed decisions about materials to which their child may be exposed in the classroom setting, and provide information about available alternatives in those situations where the decision is made by the parent that certian material is not appropriate for their child. Accordingly, I support the proposed amendments to the existing regulations.