Comprehensive does mean that literally every sexual act is mentioned during sexual education. It does mean that more than one sexual act (or lack thereof) is mentioned.Most sexual education curricula talk about abstienance, female arousal, male arousal, male ejaculation and nocturnal emissions, menstruation, pregnancy, and male-on-female coitus.

So, what's missing? Homosexuality, manual sex, oral sex, masturbation and petting. Infusing these topics into subjects spoken about during sexual education courses will aid in tolerance of people who have sex in various ways and allow students to understand that there are other ways to have sex that can reduce the chances of unwanted pregnancy and disease transmission.

Since about 5% of the United States population is homosexual, it's a fairly safe to figure that 2.5% of our schools have youngsters in them who are currently uncertain about their sexuality and will eventually come to self-identify as homosexuals. If a child is beginning to feel that they are not attracted to members of the opposite sex, hearing only about the methods and safe sex of male-female copulation can lead to (sub)conscious feelings of ostracism, loneliness, and sadness as they realize that, besides not being able to relate to their same-sex peers sexually, they are not even mentioned when it comes to sex education. With the inclusion of more neutral language when discussing sex and sex acts, the bitter depressing emotions a homosexual would experience at not being noted are eradicated. They don't get the impression that having feelings for persons of the same sex is completely unheard of. Second, they come to understand that they too have a responsibility to have safe sex, no matter who they practice it with. This way, even though they are recognized as a sub-culture with its own practices, they are still classified as part of the broader, general population in the aspect of making an effort to prevent the spread of disease. Third, they are actually being educated on how to have safe-sex “their way”. This can help cut down on sexual violence and the spreading of diseases since, because of the stigma attached to their sexual orientation, the child may try to find someone older than them that they don’t know or with as little experience as them to experiment with. The point is that this person that the child has chosen could either not care about the younger person’s safety, or not know any better how to go about having sex safely.

But, the heterosexual young people of the class can benefit also. First, they should leave the sexual education course understanding that homosexuals are everywhere throughout society which has the potential to make them more careful about things that they say or do that may inadvertantly offend someone who merely hasn't come out to them yet once they enter the worlds of work or higher education. Now that these children have a foundation understanding of what homosexuals and homosexuality is all about, the hope is that they will be less apt to committ hate crimes against homosexuals and other people that are different from them. Also, if this seed of tolerance is implanted within them, they can pass the attitude on to their children and begin a cycle of a more peaceful, open state of mind.

No one is asking for there to be promotion of a homosexual lifestyle, merely that there not be exclusion. This is done easily by using neutral terms such as "partner" instead of restrictive terms such as "girlfriend" or "husband".  

Discussing non-traditional sex acts during sexual education opens doors for adolescents who are feeling the urge to express themselves sexually, but don't want to be involved with a pregnancy or to transmit or contract any diseases or infections. They can experience sexual release, express their feelings for someone, and explore their sexual desires while limiting (or in some cases eliminating) their chances of bearing children or catching something.

Though not all non-traditional (traditional meaning 'man inserts penis into woman beneath him') sex acts offer an incident-proof way of having a physical relationship with someone, if only the traditional act is taught, young people will have the tendency not to consider themselves having had sex if they have not performed the traditional sex act with anyone. There are quite a few teens who believe that oral sex, for instance, isn't sex at all, and if they have given or recieved oral sex, they are still a virgin. [Check out this article http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2005-10-19-teens-technical-virginity_x.htm]. This sort of discrepency happens for two reasons. First, people's definitions of the word 'virgin' vary greatly. If you believe you must be penetrated to no longer be a virgin, you would agree with these children. Secondly, as is part of the point of this piece, schools don't teach about it when it's time for sex ed. In a very simplistic, logical manner, one could easily define sex as whatever acts are discussed in a sexual education curriculum. If oral sex, manual sex, masturbation, and other sex acts are never mentioned, they 'don't count'.  

In a classroom focusing on comprehensive sexual education, the following should happen. Young people should be:

• Introduced to safe sex practices
• Introduced to non-traditional methods of sexual pleasure
• Introduced to variant sexual lifestyles
• Accurately informed about controceptives (including usage)
• Accurately informed about what it takes to raise a child
• Accurately informed about what it's like to live with AIDS and other STDs/STIs

CSE is all about safety. In fact, all sexual education is about safety. The only reason there are different programs with different methods is because people have different ideas of what 'safe' means and how to go about being safe.

For example, some people believe that sexual safety means never getting pregnant. You can get all the STDs you like, and even screw up a few relationships due to sexual infidelity, but getting pregnant is crossing the line. People like this will support/develop sexual education programs that focus on contraceptives. Most likely those that can be used simutaneously, such as the classic latex condom + birth control pill combination. These people would have no need for a program that exhibited, for instance, sanitary masturbation practices. 

So, when reading through the rest of the ideal CSE components, always understand that safety is the foundation of the curriculum.  

Being introduced to sexual practices besides penile-vaginal intercourse leads some parents and teachers to think that introducing these acts to students will merely give them a wider variety of dangerous sexual activities to engage in. While this may be seen as a negative aspect of CSE, it's also one of the best components of it.

Allow me to explain.

When students are not introduced to alternative sex acts formally, as I've stated above, they seem to believe that these acts do not count as "sex" and therefore cannot cause social friction nor health problems due to contracting STIs. They don't believe that oral sex can transmit diseases, or that giving your best friend's significant other a 'hand job' is truly "cheating". Even when students are taught and told to use protection when having sex, they fail to use protection when committing an act that they don't consider "sex" (example: no condoms during fellatio).  

On the other hand, understanding that you don't have to have penile-vaginal intercourse in order to achieve orgasm or explore sexual feelings with someone allows a win-win situation between adults and adolescents: the young people are allowed a release for their raging hormones and sexual energy, and the parents can rest easier knowing that their child is not likely to contract an STI or be involved in a teenage pregnancy.

It's important to remember that all of these topics are combined with a program that's all about safety. Students aren't JUST learning about safety, nor are they JUST learning alternative ways to channel their sexual energy, they are learning different ways to safely channel their sexual energy.

Let me also note that CSE is not about teaching how to masturbate or perform cunnilingus, merely that these are options, and the "no-no"s related to these acts.