I grew up in Nevada and because we had to have permission slips for sex-ed class, I thought it was like that everywhere. I honestly never thought much about it.
As a teen, it didn't bother or embarrass me to have to get permission for sex ed. I do think the ones who didn't get permission were embarrassed, though, because it seemed their parents didn't think the kids were mature enough to learn about sex. I remember those sessions being quite informative.