Miami Herald - Thursday, April 24, 2003
Andrea Robinson, arobinson@herald.com

Confusion morphed into anger as Cynthia attempted to process unfamiliar information about human relationships. "That means he didn't really love her," she exclaimed Monday at McMillan Middle School in West Kendall.

Pallidine looked at her and said: "The only sure way to avoid AIDS is abstinence. Short of that, there are risks."

In hundreds of Miami-Dade County public schools this week, students of all ages are learning hard lessons and having frank discussions about AIDS. The district has designated this as AIDS Education Week, using a curriculum that is tailored to each grade level, from kindergarten to high school.

AIDS education is especially important in Miami-Dade. The county has the second-highest AIDS rate in the nation among metro areas. In addition, Florida ranks second in pediatric AIDS cases, many of them in Miami-Dade. The area also led the state in the number of new reported HIV cases in 2002.

Jacquelyn White, director for AIDS education for the district, said the goal is to impress on students why they should be concerned about disease.

"If they engage in risky behavior, they will be at-risk, regardless of their age, income level or location," White said.

While the AIDS curriculum is consistent across the county, the classroom conversation varies.

Students at suburban McMillan, which is about 96 percent Hispanic, scribbled lots of notes. Some giggled as Pallidine explained the difference between AIDS (the symptoms) and HIV (the virus).

"Can a person have the virus and not get affected by it?" a young man asked.

His question might seem like a no-brainer in some quarters. But A. Alvin Paulmer, a local AIDS activist who lectures in schools, said it illustrates the importance for such programs.

"We have to drive home the message of prevention," he said.

Across town at Brownsville Middle School in Miami, science instructor Kevin Ross and another classroom of eighth-graders talked about AIDS prevention in even franker terms -- condom use, blood exposure and common sense.

The school is predominantly black and in an area near the top of Miami-Dade's reported AIDS cases. Nearly every student knew the difference between HIV and AIDS.

When Ross asked them about the symptoms associated with the virus, several hands shot up. A girl near the front replied, "Sores, lots of them on your arms and face."

One male student -- full of pubescent bravado -- bragged about a tip he got from an older cousin: "If you strap twice, it won't happen," he said, referring to the practice of wearing two condoms.

That drew laughter from his classmates, but a chagrined look from Ross, who warned that method was "dangerous." Of even more concern was where his students were getting their sex education.

"Many of you learn about sex from the streets," Ross said. "You'd rather believe your friend than you would the scientists."

AIDS education in the public schools has evolved from its stormy beginning 14 years ago, when a Miami-Dade resident successfully sued to have his HIV-infected triplets attend regular classes. The girls had been taught in a private room rented by the School Board.

The district scrambled to educate concerned teachers, administrators and students on how the virus was and was not transmitted, White said. Later, more formal training was established.

State law requires HIV/AIDS education for all students. But parents who do not wish their children to participate can decline to sign a mandatory consent form.

Kindergarten and most elementary-school children get rudimentary information. Lessons focus on developing good health habits.

Students learn that AIDS is a disease and that HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

"As [students] get further along, they talk about other things," White said. "Abstinence is stressed in fifth grade," but sex is talked about as well.

"The students seem interested. They think they know more than they do," she said. "There's a lot of misinformation out there."

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