Dive Brief:

• Gift cards worth as much as $20 are being given to Hawaiian middle school students who participate in Pono Choices, a sex ed curriculum developed by the University of Hawaii Center on Disability Studies. 
• The controversial curriculum drew fire last year as some parents and legislators felt it was "inaccurate and inappropriate," teaching mature topics  like anal and homosexual sex to students as young as 11 years old.  
• While the curriculum has been pulled from public schools, the University of Hawaii's Center on Disability Studies used about $52,200 of a $5 million U.S. Office of Adolescent Health grant to purchase the gift cards to provide students an incentive for taking the classes and providing feedback.  

Dive Insight:

Trouble striking a balance in sex ed classes — making them educational while withholding content deemed too mature — is common across the United States. Last month in Las Vegas, parents fought an alleged proposal for Clark County School District to teach students as young as kindergarten about masturbation and sexuality. Ideally, by having the focus group, the program's curriculum can be improved and placed back in schools.