Should adoption information be kept from children?
adopt | ensure | tension | consent | duration
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Think Scientifically
Think Scientifically
Mr. Seemy’s class is discussing closed and open adoptions. Imani thinks that adoption records should not be opened without the consent of the birth parents. “We should ensure privacy for birth parents who don’t want to be contacted,” she says.
Raul disagrees. “Maybe in the past keeping records closed for the duration of an adopted person’s life would ensure secrecy. Now with DNA testing, it’s much easier to find out about relatives.”
Mr. Seemy comments, “It’s true that many people are taking advantage of DNA testing services like 23andMe and Ancestry. But consider this: Would a person trying to keep an adoption secret allow their genetic information to be added to a public database?”
Imani shared about a TV show where a young woman named Yolanda figured out who her birth father was after a testing company’s database matched her DNA to the DNA of her genetic first cousin.
Imani and Raul did some research to see if that was really possible or if it was just TV drama.
To the right is Imani and Raul’s partially completed chart. They put pseudonyms (false names) in each box to help them discuss the potential relationships. Here is what they know so far:
Xavier is Yolanda’s first cousin.
Wilson and Teresa are Xavier’s parents.
Umberto and Violeta are Wilson’s parents.
Zeke and Wilson are brothers.
Mark up the chart with lines as you think through what the biological relationships might be.
Note the percentage of DNA each person might share with Yolanda.
If Zeke is Wilson’s only sibling, and Teresa has no siblings, what might that reveal?
Imagine you are Xavier, and you received an email from Yolanda saying that DNA testing showed they were first cousins. How would you go about discussing this news with your family? Do you think it’s possible that bringing this up might cause tension? Why or why not?
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