I have decided to use one of my favorite books for my unit project, Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. I started a discussion on the English Companion Ning to gather some advice from teachers who have taught this book, and received quite a few responses. However, I noticed yesterday that I am not the only person to start a discussion asking for advice about this book, and reading through the other discussion was very thought provoking for me. The discussion started as a question about the rationale for teaching OFOTCN and quickly became a heated debate about the book’s appropriateness for a high school classroom, due to foul language as well as sexual and drug-related themes. I read this book as a senior in high school, and while I don’t think it would be good for freshmen or maybe sophomores, I do not think the book was inappropriate for my seventeen-year-old self. However, this conversation did get me thinking about how ethics relate to my teaching career…
Personally, I believe that controversy is a part of life and I think that addressing controversial themes in the classroom provides an opportunity for students to practice thinking critically about these issues, as they will eventually have to face controversies int their own lives, occurring outside of literature. While there is obviously a line to be drawn at some point, I don’t believe in sugar-coating issues, and I think that mature thinking and discussion about tough issues is important for students’ intellectual growth. I don’t want to be the kind of teacher who shies away from “questionable” material simply because its easier to keep things g-rated. My thought about this was further spurred by reading Diane’s blog, where she discussed the challenges of teaching students who have experienced things in their own lives that she can’t even imagine. I think that many students, particularly high-school students, are probably already far more well-versed in the controversial aspects of the world than many teachers would like to believe. Perhaps the best way to help these students is to address these issues, such as sex, drugs, and violence, head-on rather than shying away. Literature can be a great way to tackle such topics.
That being said, I also believe that everyone is entitled to their own moral and ethical beliefs, and I would never want to force my own opinons on someone else. That, by definition, includes anyone whose beliefs are more conservative than mine. I certainly would never want to make a student uncomfortable in my class, and I know that sometimes there might even be a topic which to me seems fairly tame, but is very difficult for someone with different beliefs or experiences. I guess the question I am left with is what is more important, creating an environment in which students are encouraged to think critically and share ideas about real, tough issues that may affect them in real life, or creating an environment in which students always feel comfortable? Is there a happy medium?
That’s honestly a great point, Amber! If we can find more relatable literature for students to read and reference, it would be an easy means to talk about the difficult and more sensitive topics that they sometimes are enduring in their own lives. I think as long as we provide an appropriate disclaimer, i.e. some kind of warning to the students and parents that the covered material is sensitive and they hold a right to object to learning about it, we can really teach these kids and help them relate this literature to their own lives. I’m selecting Go Ask Alice as the novel I want to cover in this class, and I’ve had some of the same thoughts as you, because the novel has very strong drug and sexual references. But, I totally agree with you in that many students deserve more credit than we give them, as they may have a better understanding and knowledge of this material in application to life situations than we actually do. Who knows, reading a controversial book could actually inspire them to do better with their own difficult life situations. Great post.
I know that you mentioned earlier that you read your book as an out of class reading, and I think this is a great way to introduce controversial literature into the class. It’s sort of like what Elsie said about the last teaching exercise. Their topic was race–and really, as much as educators reference the racial percentages in their class, people are sort of “scared” to talk about race. This goes for a lot of the controversial topics found in literature. Not only is it a good way for students who have experienced “a lot” to think critically about these topics, but it’s also a way for inexperienced students to open their eyes to the real world. Personally, I don’t think shielding students from controversial issues in literature is going to save them from it in the real world.
I actually took an entire class based around banned books last semester and it was one of the most informational and fascinating classes I’ve taken. I am with Diane that students deserve more credit. The power of saying something along the lines of “I’m considering everyone in this classroom adults so….” is quite amazing. The problem with controversial books doesn’t usually lie in the students (they get excited as soon as a book has a bit of the “real world”) but with the parents who don’t feel their little babies are ready for the real world yet. Problems between parents and schools (and parents and teachers) are always an issue to consider. I also agree with Caitlin that such books can offer students who don’t know much about say, race, to better understand what it’s like to experience racism. The book I chose, Like Water for Chocolate, is one I read in 10th grade and has a lot of sexual themes– one of the characters runs off with a soldier (while having sex on his horse) and they find her later working in a brothel! But the way it was taught didn’t concentrate on that but on the magical realism aspects of it– the way you teach a book can really distract from the questionable content.
ps. I finally found you!
Thanks for the comments, ladies! I totally agree with everything your saying! And its not that a book can only be good if it throws around some swear words and sex, but that by avoiding anything that might cause a stir, educators are missing some really teachable stuff.
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