Posted on 11/27/2020 10:44:50 AM PST by Kaslin
Removing time-tested classics and assigning easy fiction with leftist themes fails in cultivating any love of reading in the students that need it most.
Burbank Unified School District in California recently made headlines with its decision to ban the classic novels “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Of Mice and Men,” “The Cay, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry,” and “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” District leaders apparently responded to several complaints from parents who took issue with the purported racism of the books as well as incidents of white students taunting their nonwhite peers with racist language from their assigned reading.
Yet, in an effort to limit the controversy, removing these books from their approved reading lists only brought even more attention to the matter. Many people, including members of PEN America, expressed outrage at rejecting well-known classics because of a few parents who were offended and a few students acted stupidly.
These are good novels that take a sympathetic view of minorities with well-developed characters and realistic stories. And, a rarity in most classic novels, they also happen to be age-appropriate in their language and subject matter. For this reason, these books serve not just as good, but ideal resources for discussing sensitive issues.
While this is all true, it misses the real reason behind removing these titles. Sure, BUSD clearly hopes to quell the complaints of angry parents and avoid a negative image, but their long-term goal is part of a much larger trend in education: eliminating the very idea of classics and turning assigned reading into a form of indoctrination.
Usually, however, such a move as this would be excused as fostering a love of reading by engaging with relevant issues and challenging norms. A good example can be seen in the Read Woke Challenge, a nationwide campaign by school librarians encouraging adolescents to read the latest titles of social justice young adult fiction.
Verily, it is this long-term goal that makes the books in question problematic. Despite the handful of slurs one finds in it, “To Kill a Mockingbird” is not a racist book; quite the contrary, it is actually an “anti-racist” book that explicitly condemns racism while preaching tolerance and fairness. The problem with the novel is the time it was written and the person who wrote it: a white person growing up in a white world that writes from a “white perspective.” By today’s standards, where even a famous actress’s identity must exactly match the identity of the characters she plays, Harper Lee’s classic has become a racist perpetuation of oppressive narratives.
The other problem with a book like “To Kill a Mockingbird,” I suspect, is the fact that it’s been, in a sense, overexposed. By now, generations of English teachers have taught it, year after year, often using the very same materials that were created decades earlier.
True, this indicates that the book has withstood the test of time and proved its merits, but this makes it a harder sell for today’s students. The book challenges them and thus doesn’t immediately appeal to their sensibilities. Instead of doing the difficult work of teaching such a book, most educators will pick another book that’s easier and more relatable. If labeling the book racist is a way to make this happen, so be it.
So what, if anything, replaces these supposedly racist and outdated classics? Usually, an underwhelming assortment of mediocre novels capitalizing on today’s identity politics. They usually feature protagonists from niche communities who struggle with realizing their identity and dealing with an unequivocally bigoted antagonist. The dialogue is “raw” and often features far more racial slurs and profanity than any banned classic. To add even more interest among today’s young readers, most of these books will pack in as many adult themes and explicit scenes as possible.
Ironically, for all their attempts at authenticity, these books are oftentimes completely artificial and utterly trite. The characters are flat; the language is unnatural; the settings and situations are exaggerated and unrealistic; the plots are predictable and boring; and the themes are preachy and annoying.
It’s obvious, even to semi-literate students in middle school and high school, that the writers of these books are pushing an agenda and pandering to a target audience. That’s why the only ones who really enjoy books like “The Hate U Give” are usually young progressive teachers wanting to “connect” with their minority students.
Fortunately, the obviousness of these texts tends to negate the strength of their propaganda. In most cases, students simply won’t read them. As with any assigned reading, they’ll watch the movie, read the summaries, or read the back cover of the book, hoping to glean the bare minimum required to barely scrape by in the coming testing.
After all, in most classes, the English teacher will hardly bother to hold them accountable for their reading. Most assessments will be done with discussions, written responses, and creative projects — all of which make it relatively easy to dodge the reading.
In truth, it’s this attitude about reading, in general, that should most concern parents and educators. If school districts updating and diversifying their assigned texts actually resulted in students reading more, it might be worth it. Instead, it most frequently does the exact opposite. Students start to associate literature and reading with insufferable political correctness and never actually acquire the necessary skills (such as logic, empathy, critical thinking) that come with reading assigned texts.
It’s worth asking, then, what exactly would help students become better readers who loved reading. In my experience, it would be assigning age-appropriate texts that are challenging yet relevant and engaging. In other words, it would mean bringing back today’s banned books that worked so well at helping young readers develop and mature.
Good books make good readers. And, as one might imagine, good readers like reading more than bad readers do. As “Tiger Mom” Amy Chua says in her brilliant article about Chinese parenting, “nothing is fun until you’re good at it.” That’s why the whole approach of removing classics and assigning easy fiction with leftist themes fails in cultivating any love of reading.
Rather, school districts should welcome the difficulty of the classics, seek to add more of them to their lists, and implement real demands on students (and teachers) in English classes. The politics and propaganda will have to wait until the students first learn to read and think for themselves.
I wonder about the fate of Henry Huggins and his dog Ribsy.
Damn those books were pretty old when I was in Grade School. lol
Perhaps the “educators”/librarians decided since it was a black Asian and not a black African, it’s not an appropriate story, so they had to make up some sort of an excuse to ban it.
A quick search yielded that Langston Hughes was against the book for being hurtful to black children.
I assign primary source reading all the time in my classes, and the kids won’t read them..... And their parents call in and complain that my econ class is too hard.
Students don’t learn. They do not study. Instead, they copy and paste off of google. The stupid iPads and chromebooks are ensuring this: a nation of idiot youth enslaved to google search instead of actual thinking. Parents complain when I count this as cheating! Everyone in my department complains of this but our Admin calls it “engagement”.
I am sure by writing this the anti-school people are going nuts, but we need to start being honest about the personal-accountability issues going on in our schools and country..... And this starts at home.
There are bad teachers and they should lose their jobs for being idiots, bullies, lazy, etc. But replacing every one of these people with a computer program, droid, or top notch teacher won’t change the factors of personal responsibility. If parents don’t make their kids behave, if kids refuse to learn, if society keeps dumbing everything down for self esteem and equity/equality, our schools will remain the same as they are now: shitty leftist robot factories.
It would be nice if every once in a while, as people on the right, we would acknowledge that maybe all the CRAPPY PARENTING has a little bit to do with the academic, social, psychological problems of youth and our schools. Maybe all the babying, excusing and not holding kids accountable has something to do with young people being morons and turning into leftists.
My husband took me to the movie to see To Kill a Mockingbird. I remember I didn't care for it.
Thanks, I appreciate that.
One of my most favorite books is The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas
God Bless you in your efforts.
A Catcher in the Rye, mandatory. And I, hardly a saint found it too much. I was also a vociferous reader... went to the library researched the book without having to put myself through reading that drivel.
That said, I have yet to finish James Joyce, Ulysses. I get about 25% through and get sidetracked.
I homeschooling 4 children and worked 32 hours a week to support them. It can be done with some help. All parents need to take over their child’s education.
Know that the ed establishment and librarians are not your friends. Use them but never expect anything but leftist tripe from them all.
Thanks. :)
I think we all appreciate your posts. Seriously.
Take care,
Julie
I taught at a community college in Denver and was absolutely appalled at the writing and communication skills of my students.
I tried to tutor them one on one. I taught them the basic essay composition, etc.
I assigned their term papers. I said, “Everything you want to talk about is fair game. Except I do NOT want anything about abortion or gun control. People are just too passionate about it one way or another.”
One of my students turned in a paper about abortion. I said, “Tracy, I’m going to have to fail you. I specifically said to not write about that. Is there some other topic you can think of? I’ll give you another chance.” She did, and she did a good job.
Another young man wrote a spectacular essay on Ozzy Osbourne’s “No More Tears.” I asked him to see me; I said, this is awesome! I gave him an A.
Young people, of all races, have such potential. We can never forget that.
Reading the classics is absolutely essential.
Just one example: I love the show “Friends.” At one point, Joey is holding a baby chick and stroking it, and Chandler says, “Easy, Lenny.”
How many young adults of today would even get that reference? Not many, I would bet. Very, very sad.
But, by all means, let’s turn to lesbian/black/gay/transgender books to have our children read.
They don’t need Shakespeare.
“To be or not to be.” I had to memorize Hamlet’s soliloquy in high school! Today? The kids have no idea who Shakespeare was.
Not all teachers are leftists idiots. I operated Nuclear Reactors in the Navy, have a Master’s degree in American History and Government from Ashland (Ashbrook program), and am a Law Student.
I write the curriculum, all lessons, worksheets and tests for my classes. I dont use propaganda materials from a RINO think tanks like much of the homeschooling material available that parents use.
How is homeschool college going or Homeschool military training? And why do homeschool parents forget to mention that they get their special ed services with public schools on public tax dollars? Why don’t they do this at home?
Penrod
Penrod and Sam
(and a third I have not read)
You participate in an evil and sick system.
looks like I still have some memory left in the old noggin!
I must have hit a nerve with the truth then, if that is your response.
“To Kill a Mockingbird” should be removed - for being a hokey simplistic pile of white liberal merde.
No actually you didn’t hit a nerve. You conflate non homeschooling issues with homeschooling.
The public system is sick. Private education with vouchers is the best choice. Schools should not be providing services. Health or food. Parents have that responsibility and if finances are an issue vouchers to private practitioners.
The current system rewards unthinking fecundity without responsibility. And supports keeping children in toxic home as well as school environments.
Instead start your own school and make it independent and interesting.
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