Do you incorporate any frequently banned books in your classroom? If so, how do you handle the challenging material at hand?
Sunday, November 3, 2013
Banned Books
Our weekly readings really got me thinking about banned books. I am appalled by how many books are deemed inappropriate for school. I googled "banned books" and the results are endless. Some of the justifications are ridiculous. Additionally, it is discouraging to see how many people are okay with ignoring so many social issues that are displayed in these texts. I found an article posted by the New York Public Library which details several books that are currently banned in a variety of locations. The explanations are interesting. It appears as though some people want children to believe we live in a society where nothing can go wrong. We cannot discuss past failures or anything that can cause others to feel uncomfortable. I think it is sad that the solution being presented is to shelter students from this material. What happens when they discover that society has its ups and downs? That the world is not always perfect? That people experience hate and discrimination? Though these are not things we must dwell on constantly, shouldn't they be aware that these things exist? Are we properly preparing them for "the real world" if we are safeguarding their every move? I do think there needs to be a common ground that is met and that many curriculum building decisions should be based on age, location, and "appropriateness," however I also think we can be shortchanging our students by pretending certain elements of our society don't exist.
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I think it helps to explain to students why some people find the book to be objectionable, and why it is important to read it. I also stress that this book is meant for adults and so they will have to be very mature in order to read it, and if not, we can find "kid books" for them to read. This usually does the trick!
ReplyDeleteBanning books to me is like banning knowledge from our students! Students need to be exposed to all issues of the world. In doing so students learn multiple perspectives, tolerance, empathy, etc. I also think it's perfectly acceptable, like Cory suggests, to have students intelligently discuss why the content is objectionable and what purpose it serves to the piece as a whole.
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