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In Jon Hooten's editorial "fighting Words: The War Over Language," he argues that we relate almost everything to war subconsciously. We are unwillingly more attracted to things associated with war because they bring excitement to the topic. It if for this reason why I agree with Hooten's argument. In the article, he writes:"Our popular culture thinks nothing of invoking the language of conflict to describe most any topic. "This is relatable to almost anything on social media.
This act emphasized standardized testing a great deal and placed a lot of pressure on schools to get their students passed the proficient level. No Child Left Behind isn’t the only historical context event that affects Ravitch’s text. In the early years after the establishment of No Child Left Behind, many schools had trouble paying for materials. This is only one of the many examples that historical context is found in Ravitch's
One of the biggest concerning the need for an increase in rigor in instruction in American schools. She discusses that in Poland students must stay in academic classes for an extra year and teachers are paid bonuses to engage in professional development work. She also notes that in Finland they “rebooted their teacher-training colleges, forcing them to become much more selective and rigorous.” In an article written by Sarah Tantillio on Only Good Books, she recognizes the validity of these statements, but comments that in America “the Common Core States Standards, which most states have adopted, they are definitely rigorous, But how they are implemented (and assessed) from state to state and school to school is still a Very Big Question.” Further in her article she points out the large population differences between Finland, Poland, and the United States, and how this affects our education system.
n “The Failure of American Public Education” (February 01 1993), John Hood explains the sundry perspectives on the American education system. Hood tactfully uses cause and effect to demonstrate the viewpoints of a myriad of individuals regarding American schools and their approaches to effectively educating students; he explains how “free-market thinkers believe that applying market competition to the public schools will solve many of America’s educational problems” (Hood) ; “critics believe that public education reforms fail because they are compromised or sabotaged by the education lobbies—teacher associations, administrators, and the legislators in their pockets” (Hood) and “many conservatives believe that American public education is in
In 1998, McClintock High School in Tempe, Arizona assigned students to read The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. The book has long been regarded as a controversial novel, and each generation that comes upon it has found something that rubs against the current societal norms. The mother of a student at McClintock took serious offense to the use of the word, “nigger” throughout the book and protested that it be banned due to the racial discrimination (Source I). Huck Finn is just one of the many pieces of literature that have been labelled “challenging,” and many feel that they do not deserve a place in schools’ curriculum. However, the study of challenging literature introduces students to new ideas and lessons that they can apply
The United States of America is renowned for the endless freedoms the country offers, yet high schools are being deprived of the opportunity to include important pieces of literature in curriculum because of the controversial subjects highlighted within the books. One piece of literature that falls in this category is Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 which has been challenged prominently because of violence. Although the novel contains sophisticated themes and violent behavior, Fahrenheit 451 should be authorized for academic use in high school curricula because it promotes awareness and classroom discussion on the prevalence of violence in society. The majority of concerned citizens believe that banning books protects the youth, however, these
Gerald Graff’s argument on how educational systems are missing a great opportunity to tap into “street smarts” and focus them into a path of academic work is indeed convincing (Graff, 198). After all, anyone who’s been through the American educational system knows odds are often stacked against the “street smarts.” This is especially true in english classes, where one is often required to read boring and somewhat heartless books like, 1984, Beowulf, and the majority of Shakespeare’s classics. This is not to say these books are bad or shouldn’t be read during one’s schooling years, instead, the problem is one of apathy. For instance, in my high school years I never even remotely liked to read books Othello, but I loved to read magazines and
Night written by Elie Wiesel is a memoir about Elie’s personal experience during the Holocaust. Yes, this book is very hard to read and has violent and upsetting content, but it is the truth about the Holocaust. Banning books is wrong and limits students to things that adults find “appropriate” for students. Some students can handle for mature material, so limiting them to certain books is unjust. Banning books in school libraries takes away academic freedom, shelters students from the outside world, and does not let students form an educated opinion.
Literature, old or modern, has always been subject to criticism and judgement due to the issues that exist within classic novels. Whether the issue contains profanity, violence, or content too mature for young readers, award-winning books’ existences receive threats to be banned and forgotten. Unfortunately for Ken Kesey’s classic, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, this may be the only course of action. While the novel displays violence unsuitable for high-school curriculums, Ken Kesey’s classic should be in every library for adult readers. Although the novel teaches valuable life lessons about individuality and is mild compared to modern media, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest should be banned in all high school curriculums because it incorporates
but the book has also sparked wild discussions about its content and if it should be taught in schools across the country. Although The Catcher In The Rye presents strong sexual themes and vulgar language, these aspects showcase the characters ' deepest emotions while staying true to the human experience and the power of language. The very same issues that cause the catcher in the rye to climb the banned book list, sexual themes and vulgar language, are exactly the things that make this piece worth teaching in high school curriculums, as they show readers the truest
Reflection 50 Myths& Lies To begin, the book 50 Myths& Lies that Threaten America’s Public Schools covered a variety of topics such as why teachers are quickly blamed publicly along with their unions, how to make our schools better, equality of schools, money, and how schools make students college and career ready. With each of these topics were smaller sub-topics such as the importance of money, bullying, teachers’ abilities, and the various choices of schooling. With each topic/sub-topic the authors guided us through each subject uncovering myths and lies that surround them.
Just as Anne Frank's Book, exposes students to the situation she was in. All of these books are being censored in schools today, taking away from the reality of the past. Chen asserts that, "By exposing students to a myriad of confusing and troubling topics, teachers are guiding students into the reality of the complex adult and social world. Each text is chosen for a specific grade and age group; therefore, the books serve as a scaffold to slowly guide students to build upon more complicated ideas and realities(7). " Having students read these books allows for safe discussions on not just the literature, but also these topics.
This shows how all these students are receiving nearly the same type of teaching and information from their English teachers. These teachers are limited to what they have to teach and are forced to focus their lesson plan around required material. High school students are being given the same lesson as every other English class. No student nor teacher has the chance to go beyond the curriculum and learn something new and different. Teachers should be allowed to pick the texts they want to teach their students.
“Using profanity was against school policy and having the book in the library made newly elected school board member, Larry McDonald, feel uncomfortable.”
Her full use of strong language diminishes pieces of literature’s worth and questions their true significance. She claims this in a critical tone by stating, “Like most parents who have, against all odds, preserved a lively and still evolving passion for good books, I find myself, each September, increasingly appalled by the dismal lists of texts that my sons are doomed to waste a school year reading”(Prose, 176). She uses words like dismal to describe the book choices students would have to read according to the curriculum of the educational system. By using words like dismal, she expresses her feeling of disappointment towards the curriculum. She
