Policy Choices for AIDS Education in the Public Schools

Policy problems presented by the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic are many, and decisionmakers in education face a number of issues, including admittance of children with AIDS, testing of employees for the virus, as well as issues relating to the provision of information about AIDS to students. Education about the routes of transmission and about measures for preventing the transmission of AIDS certainly constitutes the most promising type of education for curbing its spread. The problem addressed here involves the issue of local control of educational subject and content. Two alternatives, local control versus a state mandate for AIDS education, are presented. Criteria against which the alternatives may be weighed are generated, and an analysis is conducted which evaluates each alternative against the criteria for choice. A benefit-cost analysis is included.