Children's Books discussion
Banned Books: discussions, lists
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Discussion of censorship, equity, and other concerns.
Very bad news in IowaThe Alta-Aurelia School District [IA] relocated all books for ninth through twelfth grade into classrooms to comply with the legislature’s restrictions on reading materials in schools. No high school students go into the shared library with the city of Alta. The district and the Alta Library have separated the two entities collection preventing elementary students from accessing banned content. Pre-K through fourth grade materials are still in the library and are accessible to students. The city’s collection is partitioned off to the school but open to the public."
Alta-Aurelia Supt. Denny Olhausen met with Alta Library Director Gigi Nelson to discuss SF496, which bans materials that mention sexual content and gender identity for students up to the sixth grade.
“She relayed to us at that point the Alta Public Library had changed kind of their tone on what they wanted to do with the books over there,”
Olhausen said. “They did not want to pull any books.”
The district has pulled some books from its collections due to the state restrictions.
“They’re still in the process of doing some circulation stuff,” Olhausen said. “Pulling some books that way, and looking at some books that still need to maybe be pulled just because of the legislation. There’s not a ton but there have been some books that have been pulled.”
The district is in the process of providing a list of removed books.
Olhausen said this will be the situation until July of 2025 when the 28E expires. The city and district will likely not pursue another shared agreement because of the legislation.
The Alta-Aurelia Principal Ben Schekirke said the arrangement to have books in the high school classrooms is working well. The classrooms have a scanning system so books can still be checked out to high school students.
“Is it the best situation? No.” Olhausen said. “But is it the situation that we are in and is it going to work? I think it is going to work.”
https://www.stormlake.com/articles/al...
https://www.stormlake.com/articles/al...
Texas:A transgender student, her crusading mom — and an English teacher caught in the middle
A mother said an educator “infected” her teenager with lies about gender. “I lost my son,” she told the school board. Her child tells a different story.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...
I also have a report from the Banned Books Panel discussion in Rhode Island. Shannon Hale rocks! She was in tears over young people losing their lives from mental health struggles because they aren't allowed access to books that can help them feel represented. Her daughter's HS has a very high number of kids who died by suicide and it's not made public for fear of copycats! Shannon Hale is a rock star. I hope to meet her.
Grace Lin also got a bit choked up about representation matters. She never saw books about kids who looked like her when she was growing up. She's a rock star too.
I have notes from the school librarians here in the state and state library association. I'll report on that situation later.
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The answer is... it depends.
First Amendment free speech? Hate speech? How "woke..."
I just find it weird to have all these increasingly strict book bans in the USA but that massive ranting protests celebrating terrorism seem to be acceptable.
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So just have the RCMP arrest every single cult member and lock them up. I mean, calling for public executions of elected officials really (and worse if you read the Wikipedia article I also posted) should be enough a legitimate threat to get these weirdos arrested and silenced.
Romana Didulo is dangerous and unstable and needs to be stopped. And as an immigrant herself (from the Philippines) and I say that as another immigrant, how dare she in any way claim to be some ultra Canadian monarch, YUCK. Frankly, and in my opinion, considering how dangerous Romana Didulo is and the violent rhetoric she uses, she should be stripped of her Canadian citizenship and deported back to the Philippines (Canada has done this in the past with Nazi war criminals, and Romana Didulo is in my opinion just as vile and actually more of an active threat to Canada and to all Canadians than Nazi war criminals)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romana_...
Video from MoveOn's Banned Books Mobile tourhttps://vimeo.com/874259703
You will hear from
• Katie Rinderle, the Georgia teacher who was fired for reading "My Shadow Is Purple," a book she purchased at her school's book fair, and whose class voted for her to read it.
• Becky Albertalli author of "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda," which was adapted into the film "Love, Simon," who showed up with high school students fighting local school bans.
• Lindsey Patrick-Wright, an activist and mother who advocated against book bans and for her child who was bullied at school for being gay.
• Tennessee State Representative Aftyn Behn, who addressed MoveOn members mere hours after she took her oath of office!
• Ravanna-Michelle Menendez, a trans rights activist and powerhouse advocate based in Nashville.
• Shivi, a high school student who fought against book bans in Forsyth County, Georgia and leads with the Georgia Youth Justice Coalition.
• Ms. Georgia, niece of American Nobel Prize laureate and frequently banned author Toni Morrison.
Press hits about our Banned Bookmobile, and our broader defense of the freedom to read.
• GQ's feature on MoveOn's partnership with LeVar Burton during Banned Books Week
https://act.moveon.org/go/184594?t=3&...
• Atlanta Journal Constitution article about the event featuring Katie Rinderle in Atlanta
https://www.ajc.com/education/fired-c...
Now the only news I have saved right now before I give you a report and reviews on all I saw and heard the last two days. Education superintendent mandates book challenge policies at Alabama school libraries
State education superintendent Dr. Eric Mackey sent a memo last week to local Alabama school superintendents to ensure they have a book reconsideration policy in place at their libraries.
“Every local board of education should have an approved written policy that guides the selection, deselection, and reconsideration of library resources,” Mackey said. “This policy should be reviewed and revised on a regular basis (and) be familiar to all school administrators and school library staff.”
While public libraries have been the center of debate about appropriate books for children, Alabama’s school libraries have mainly remained unchallenged.
Mackey said there should be a straightforward procedure “for handling complaints and for reconsidering challenged materials (that) should be clearly defined and communicated in the policy and be applicable to anyone.” He added there should be an appeal process to the local board of education if a book is challenged or someone wants to retain a book.
At Thursday’s state board of education work session, Dr. Mackey brought up the memo, and he said he’d “talked to superintendents about the importance of having a challenge policy in place.”
Belinda McRae, a Republican representing District 7, spoke up during the meeting and said she’d spoken with an elementary school librarian in her district who received books considered inappropriate as samples from book companies. The librarian had to change her method of handling the books.
“Now I sit down and I read every book before I put it out, and I make the determination whether or not this would be accepted in this community,” the librarian told McRae.
https://www.al.com/news/2023/10/educa...
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Why are American Jewish groups not focussing their wrath on Ron DeSantis regarding banning books on the Holocaust and the like? These groups should really collectively photoshop and distribute en masse pictures of Ron DeSantis made to look like Adolf Hitler (and frankly, these types of images would also in no way be off the mark either).
There's always some GOOD news sprinkled among the BAD. Moms for Liberty’s Extreme Agenda Gets Pushback From Pennsylvania Community
Community members and parents in Pennsylvania’s Bucks County, which is north of Philadelphia, are mobilizing to defend diversity, equity, and inclusion in schools from the conservative group Moms for Liberty.
The Ridge Network, a collective of parents and community members in the Pennridge school district, has emerged as a formidable force against attempts by conservative factions to censor certain books and alter the school curriculum to reflect a more conservative viewpoint. They have continually filed right-to-know requests to unearth the details surrounding the censorship of books and to shed light on the school board’s opaque operations.
Concerned parent Darren Laustsen, in particular, has sought legal avenues to challenge the school district’s actions. He described the board’s use of lawyers against public inquiries as a tactic to create roadblocks, saying to Salon, “The more they did that, the more I was just like, f**k this. It just pissed me off, so I’ve spent, like, so much [g-d] money trying to beat this.”
Ridge Network members and local journalists have filed numerous right-to-know requests to unveil the links between the conservative board and right-wing networks, shedding light on an alleged clandestine agenda.
Groups like Stop Moms for Liberty and the Ridge Network are galvanizing community members to challenge the conservative wave, advocating for an inclusive educational environment that reflects a diverse society.
In reflecting on the battle for inclusivity in education, Pennridge board member Ron Wurz, who transitioned from Republican to Democrat due to the GOP’s approach to education, shared his insights with Salon.
“The way they’re going about running schools, too political and not really focused on the kids,” Wurz said.
https://news.yahoo.com/moms-liberty-e...
Different story in Texas.Expert sounds alarm as Texas book bans grow: These efforts are “well-organized and well-funded”
“The majority of the books being censored right now are books focused on diversity/BIPOC and LGBTQ+ books—in other words, books about those who are already marginalized, vulnerable and whose stories have been silenced for far too long,” Michelle Martin, a youth and children’s services professor at the University of Washington, told Salon. “When white supremacy wins these fights, all of our children lose.”
Martin pointed to teacher turnover being “exceedingly high right now,” and noted that the pandemic has played a significant role in contributing to this issue. However, when teachers are being fired because of content in a book, “it sows fear in other teachers that makes it harder to teach,” she added.
“Those states that are exacting retribution on teachers and librarians for book content will soon find homeschooling necessary because no one will dare to go into a teacher education program, knowing that on the other end of that degree will be hostility,” Martin said. “Teachers are hired for the expertise they bring to classrooms; parents should let them do their jobs.”
In 2021, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed legislation that significantly restricts how educators can address topics concerning race and gender. Texas has taken the lead in book bans, surpassing all other states, having banned 438 books in its schools last year.
“Limiting access to books that give children both mirrors that reflect their own background and windows that help them understand the lives of people who don’t look or live like them narrows their thinking and stunts their ability to empathize with other people,” Martin said. “Also, the literacy statistics across the country show that too many American children are not learning to read efficiently; taking books out of libraries or off of classroom reading lists that could appeal to particular readers (as graphic novels often do) also means that some children won’t learn the content of important histories, as Anne Frank’s story is.”
These efforts are making American children “dumber”, she added, suggesting that education should teach children critical thinking skills and also expose them to people, histories and cultures that are different from their own.
“Given where we are educationally in comparison to other developed nations, that is a backward direction we cannot afford,” Martin said.
“These efforts to ban books are well organized and well funded,” Martin said. “Community members who value intellectual freedom and want students to be able to read widely need to organize, learn all they can about what intellectual freedom means in a democratic society, such as understanding the Library Bill of Rights and fight with the same fervor that the censors are fighting.
https://www.salon.com/2023/10/14/expe...
See also Maryland.Carroll officially bans 3 books from school shelves; parental permission required for 4 others
Carroll County public schools officials have made final decisions on 10 of the 58 books that Superintendent Cynthia McCabe ordered removed from library shelves last month amid challenges from the Carroll County chapter of Moms for Liberty.
“A Court of Thorns and Roses,” by Sarah Maas, and “Water for Elephants,” by Sara Gruen, were both banned from school shelves by the decision of the superintendent-appointed Reconsideration Committee on Sept. 15.
The committee decided to retain “Sex is a Funny Word,” by Cory Silverburg, however, the book was banned on Oct. 2 after an appeal to the superintendent’s office. Assistant Superintendent of Instruction Nicholas Shockney said he made that decision as the superintendent’s designee.
The committee’s decision to retain “Tilt,” by Ellen Hopkins; “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky; “The Sun and her Flowers,” by Rupi Kaur; and “Not that Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture,” by Roxane Gay, was also reversed by Shockney following an appeal.
Shockney said high school students may still check out these four titles, with parental permission.
“I disagreed with the decision that the committee made to retain,” Shockney said. “However, in light of the fact that the books are already in circulation, my decision was that the books can stay, but with prior parent permission before checking the book out.”
The committee’s decision to retain “Damsel,” by Elana Arnold, and “Perfect,” by Ellen Hopkins, was not appealed. Shockney said he upheld the committee’s decision to retain “Slaughterhouse-Five,” by Kurt Vonnegut in high schools, but remove the book from middle schools when an appeal was filed.
A motion to direct staff to update the school system’s policy on selecting books and instructional materials for students — adding language that would ban books defined as sexually explicit — was passed unanimously by the Carroll County Board of Education Wednesday night.
The board will discuss the policy update at its Nov. 8 meeting. School board member Steve Whisler proposed the policy changes Wednesday.
McCabe will direct which staff members draft the policy update, but Shockney said he expects to have a significant role as assistant superintendent of instruction.
“It will be multiple staff at central office who will be engaged in revising the policy,” Shockney said. “The policy is owned by curriculum and instruction, which is in my division.”
Whisler said at Wednesday’s meeting that an update to the instructional materials policy would ensure, “a backstop so we can make sure instructional materials and supplemental materials do not include explicit sexual activity or explicit sexual content. It doesn’t necessarily have to relate to state requirements or state curriculum, I just wanted to see if the staff could come to us with a recommendation.”
In response to the proposal, Maryland Association of School Librarians President Donna Mignardi said library books are not curriculum, so they should not be included with policies that govern curriculum.
“If Carroll County sees fit to review their library selection policy, they should do so with school librarians included as they are experts. A school system wouldn’t implement a fire safety plan without consulting the fire marshal, so a library selection policy shouldn’t be revised without a certified school librarian,” Mignardi said. “This is more than an attempt to defund libraries, Mr. Whisler is attempting to silence voices that he doesn’t agree with. Most of the titles are written by women and/or feature LGBTQ characters.”
During the public comment portion of Wednesday’s meeting, seven people, including five students, spoke in opposition to banning or removing books from school libraries.
The mother of a CCPS student, Shaun Maidens, said during her comments that the Carroll County chapter of Moms for Liberty is a hate group trying to suppress the LGBTQ community.
School board vice president Tara Battaglia told Maidens that she was not allowed to discuss Moms for Liberty by name, or allowed to talk about the harassment Maidens said her child endures at school.
“It has to pertain to board items,” Battaglia said. “You cannot bring other people into your speaking.”
Student Jack Schurtz was also interrupted during his comments and told he could not talk about Moms for Liberty or the group’s chair Kit Hart during the public participation portion of the meeting.
Mentions of the group Moms for Liberty by name and grievances regarding a speaker’s child experiencing bullying have been permitted during school board meeting public participation in the past.
https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland...
At least in this case high school students are on the review committee.
And Florida (and any other Confederate state)Nearly 80 book titles pulled from Charlotte County public school libraries for district review
https://www.wusf.org/education/2023-1...
In Charlotte County, seventy-eight book titles have been removed at least temporarily from the district while they’re being reviewed by a committee.
District spokesperson Claudette Smith said in most cases they’re being reviewed for “sexual content.”
One book — the district said it was the 1936 debut novel “We the Living” by Russian-born American writer Ayn Rand — has been permanently taken off shelves. The removal of books in the district has produced news headlines and frustration.
Frances Vitali of Punta Gorda showed up to the county’s school board meeting to voice her frustration with the removal of books that she believed would hurt LGBTQ students.
What you are proposing in the name of education is not only censorship, but micro aggressions, micro assaults and discriminatory practices against the very students that we profess to educate with equity and equality,” Vitali said.
Before parents or concerned citizens like Vitali spoke, pro or con, about Charlotte County’s move to remove books, School Superintendent Mark Vianello said he needed to set the record straight.
“Recently, information has circulated misstating district training documents and inaccurately portrayed the actions of our school district, I would like to clarify and address a few very important points," Vianello said. "As your superintendent, I want to express my unwavering commitment to every student. I firmly believe that all means all."
Vianello’s comment about being inaccurately portrayed is a reference to a school district document obtained thru a public records request and shared with news media.
The document appeared to show that Vianello and school board attorney Michael McKinley directed district staff to remove all books containing LGBTQ+ characters and themes from school libraries. A district spokesperson said that the document wasn’t a direct quote from Vianello or McKinley but were someone’s notes -- taken by district staff during training about what could be allowed in school libraries.
Still, at the board meeting McKinley acknowledged he is advising the district to cautiously review books and materials based on required compliance with the new state law dubbed by some as “Don’t Say Gay." He is also apprising them of the severity of penalties for violating it.
“In light of the Florida Department of Education’s required 'Library Media and Instructional Materials Training' for media specialists, and other personnel involved in the selection and maintenance of school district library materials. We have advised the district to err on the side of caution,” said McKinley.
That stance led to a school board meeting full of people who were largely upset.
Michael Hirsch, identified as a Vietnam War veteran, called the district’s actions cowardly and fascist.
“If you continue to ban books, I'd like to hereby lodge my own personal request. You have in the Charlotte High School library, a book that tells the disgusting story of two, (view spoiler)That's a repulsive story to keep on the shelves within reach of our impressionable young children. Therefore, I demand you immediately remove all copies of this book, the King James version of the Holy Bible!”
There was passion on both sides — several speakers said the removal of content is critical to protecting parents’ rights to protect their children.
“Your job is to educate their children only. I do not give you my hard-earned tax monies to be getting in people's private lives. LGBTQ plus is a very small minority, and you can support them, but the rest of the children do not need to hear the disgusting, obscene p___hy that is in some of the books that are being read,” Christine Carlomany of Gulf Cove said. “I believe you are pushing a woke agenda that none of your parents want. Please do your job only. Stay out of our children's pants.”
But Hal Trejo, who is transgender and shared with the board that they contemplated suicide as a Charlotte County student, said removing these books puts children in danger:
“It's been life saving for me to be able to read narratives and books and comments that I see myself in.”
Trejo asked for clear guidance on books that protect LGBTQ youth.
In Oklahoma schools, the debate over religion's place in schools reaches a new level. Personally the first half of his memo is spot on. I feel it is appropriate to offer a moment of silence or non-denominational prayer circle to pray/think of the people/children (depending on age level) affected by violence in Israel. That's all the memo says. Encouraged not mandatory. Let the parents wank. Kids aren't stupid! When I was in 7th grade I was fully well aware of the Persian Gulf War since my math teacher went off to fight and the New Kids on the Block performed at the Super Bowl singing for the children whose parents were away fighting in the Middle East. Kids today are far less sheltered than we were in 1991.The second half of his memo is off base. WAY WAY wrong.
Here's the story:
https://news.yahoo.com/doing-wrong-st...
State Supt. gives school districts a sample prayer for students to read, says he’s fighting secular groups
Supt. Walters provided a sample prayer stating, “Let us offer a prayer for safety and peace for the people of Israel. We pray that violence against the Jewish nation should stop and that a time of healing occurs for those lost. We pray for our leaders to stand strong and defend any attacks against the Israeli people.”
A metro Assistant Principal posted to social media about the sample prayer. He asked KFOR to conceal his identity for fear of retaliation.
He wrote, “How dare [Ryan Walters] indoctrinate me and tell me what I need to pray. He throws a fit at educators indoctrinating kids, but turns around and does what he spews about. Not sure I’ve ever disliked a politician more than him. What a cancer to our public education system.”
News 4 spoke with another educator who has been in the classroom for 20+ years. She, too, asked KFOR to conceal her identity for fear of retaliation.
“Teachers just want to teach. They don’t want to pay any attention to the political aspects of what’s going on. It’s very frustrating. It’s a little stressful. This whole religious stuff is just about to drive me insane,” she said.
She told KFOR if one religion is going to be pushed in the classroom, then all religions should be allowed, but questions how educators are supposed to lead prayers when it’s not something they needed to earn their education.
“How can teachers do that? I don’t know enough about Islam to lead anything in my classroom. I don’t know enough about Judaism to lead anything in my classroom. If I had not grown up in a Baptist church, I would not know enough about Christianity to lead anything in the classroom. It’s not my responsibility. I’m not an ordained minister in anything and I don’t want to be. I want to teach reading. That’s it. I don’t want to be a religious teacher,” she added.
She said her rural school district has several Christian-based organizations. She said to have school sanctioned religious organizations is acceptable, but to push one religion on students is inappropriate.
“We have kids that are Jehovah Witness. We have kids that are Christian. We have kids that are Catholic, and I’m sure we have some Muslim kids and we have Shaman kids. And how do you fit all that in and still teach math, reading, science and history?,” she asked. “Is [Ryan Walters] going to eventually tell me that I have to use the Bible to teach reading? That’s not out of the realm of possibility.”
She stated for those families who want more of a religious-based education for their students, a private religious school would be their best bet, and not a public school.
She said if she is ever forced to lead a prayer or teach religion, she would likely leave the classroom.
On top of the sample prayer Supt. Walters provided to school districts, he also sent a memorandum on Thursday referring to a “Wisconsin-based secular organization.”
Supt. Walters said he was notified of a school district in Oklahoma receiving a letter from a “Wisconsin-based radical secular activist organization” demanding the removal of teachers’ personal displays from their classroom walls.
In a press release, Supt. Walters said the letter sent to schools threatens litigation if they continue to practice their Freedom of Religion.
“The targeted displays include a sign displaying the vaguely spiritual text ‘He is still good,’ and a sign with the Bible verse John 3:16,” said Supt. Walters in a memo.
He said the organization is telling school districts to place atheism as the state religion.
".... if you receive any letters from similar activist organizations, please forward them to my office for assistance. I do not want to see Oklahoma school districts become complicit in promoting atheism, and I intend to pay close attention to schools that simply surrender to such demands. If you provide a copy of the letter to your regional accreditation officer before responding, they can ensure that the Department is able to review and assist your district in standing their ground against unwarranted demands from radical secular activists.”
“My thoughts are go for it. Do it because no one is standing up to him here. I don’t think religion should be in education. It really bothers me when he implies that atheism is a religion. Being secular is not a religion,” she said. “How did this group in Wisconsin find out that a teacher in Oklahoma had a sign up in her room that says ‘He is still strong?’ How does that happen? Most of the time, I wonder when he says things if he made it up, and that’s because that’s what he wants to talk about or if it’s an actual fact.”
Another Oklahoma educator, Robin Needham told KFOR teachers are losing the battle with Supt. Walters and she worries for what the total loss will look like.
She asked KFOR to not publish the district she works in because she didn’t want to make a statement on behalf of her district, but rather on behalf of all rural schools.
She said the prioritizing of religion in the classroom needs to be put on the back burner and funding rural schools needs to be in the front seat.
...
The anonymous longtime educator News 4 interviewed over the phone said she believes Supt. Walters knows what he’s doing is wrong and is hopeful someone will step in soon
Authors with banned books talk about protecting access to storieshttps://www.mprnews.org/episode/2023/...
Kelly Yang
“I guess people started to question why kids should learn about the immigrant experience. Like: I don’t want my kid to feel sad or uncomfortable,” said Yang. “But if we airbrush our nation’s history and ignore the experiences of millions of people, what is the difference between this country and where my parents came from, which is China?”
“The freedom to read is what makes this country great,” Yang told Miller.
Matt de la Peña
“When you’re a new writer, you sometimes glorify the idea of getting banned,” laughed de la Peña. “But then you don’t have the context for who is unable to have access to your book.”
“I wrote [‘Mexican White Boy’] because I’m mixed — my dad is Mexican, my mom is white — and I wanted to write about sometimes not feeling Mexican enough growing up.”
But then it got caught up in a political battle in Arizona. De la Peña met with students at Tucson High School who had the book taken out of their hands as they were reading. And why?
“There is no context for the banning,” de la Peña told Miller. “It’s a rumor. ‘Oh, I heard this book has a scene about such and such.’ Or, ‘I heard this book leans into racial identity too much.’ ‘Maybe it fits into that critical race stuff.’”
“Book banning has nothing to do with young people. It has everything to do with parents,” he said. “And I understand this instinct. I’m a parent of two young kids, and I’m very cognizant of what goes into their brains. But we run into trouble when parents are trying to eliminate that content for other people’s children.”
Samira Ahmed
Ahmed said her earliest experience with book banning was “soft banning.” Librarians told her they were hesitant to put her first book on their shelves because they had no Muslim students in their community. A Kansas teacher told her a school staff member continually delayed putting in a purchase order for Ahmed’s “Internment.”
“The voices of those who want to challenge books or censor books or ban books are very loud,” she said. “But I assure you, they are the minority. Find your community who is willing to advocate to ensure that our children have freedom to read.”
Texas -HISD teachers say curriculum ordered by Mike Miles is riddled with errors, inappropriate content
Houston ISD Superintendent Mike Miles, since being appointed in June, has made “high-quality instruction” the focal point of his reforms, using the phrase to justify frequent observations of teachers, a performance-based pay scale and rigid classroom pacing based on a standard curriculum.
But some HISD teachers have reported that the lesson plans they are required to use are riddled with errors, don’t align with state standards and include inappropriate content, forcing them to work extra, causing undue stress, and, in at least one case, contributing to them quitting HISD.
In response to these issues, the district has now recruited nearly three dozen teachers from various schools to spend part of their day reviewing curriculum materials. The teachers will spend half of their day in their classrooms and the other half working with the curriculum department to strengthen and catch errors in lessons, leaving their students with teaching assistants and learning coaches, Miles said.
“They’re going to be able to help the curriculum department see a little bit closer, from the teacher’s perspective, what the material looks like,” he said. “They’re going to have a better eye and help us vet.”
Curriculum writers begin their work by looking at objectives laid out in the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), the state board-approved standards that dictate education in Texas, and tying them to resources such as Amplify or Eureka, generally well-regarded curricula used by a majority of schools in the district, Miles said. They then build worksheets, slideshows and lesson plans and distribute them for districtwide use.
One problem this year, however, is that teachers have reported occasionally receiving instructional materials that are aligned to the wrong grade level. One seventh-grade language arts lesson plan shared with the Houston Chronicle, for example, dictates that students should be expected to “develop drafts into a focused, structured and coherent piece of writing.” That directive, however, comes from the sixth-grade TEKS.
Miles said that any issues around curriculum are the result of human error and that the addition of dozens of teachers to the curriculum team should help alleviate mistakes.
The curriculum issues are not just limited to its alignment with state standards. Teachers and parents have been raising concerns about sexual and racial content and frequent errors, misspellings or misleading information in the lessons. One Demonstration of Learning quiz included an excerpt about healthy eating that was apparently generated by ChatGPT, according to a citation on the paper.
Teachers from one middle school, for example, said they felt uncomfortable teaching an eighth-grade lesson that included a Frederick Douglass passage in which the N-word appeared multiple times. Other readings described the lynching of a Black person, clitoral circumcision in Sudan and teenage eating disorders, which felt inappropriate for the age level, teachers said.
Another teacher said she spends hours each day after school correcting the materials, refining the lessons and getting ready to teach the curriculum in a way that feels natural. Sometimes, she stays awake until the early hours of the morning, annotating the lessons as well as grading stacks of worksheets that she carts home in a wagon.
Other times, she said, the district provides updated or corrected materials on the same morning that a lesson is supposed to be taught, leaving teachers scrambling to quickly make new copies and get up to speed with a new slideshow presentation, different answer key and updated quiz for students.
(goes on and on)
The problems with curriculum have been great enough that they drove at least one teacher, at a non-NES Vanguard school, to resign after eight years with HISD. The teacher, who asked to remain anonymous because she has not formally been hired at a nearby district yet, said that the misalignment of her lessons with the state curriculum standards was “extremely distressing.”
When she raised the issue with district supervisors, she was told that they understood her concerns but that she was required to follow the curriculum laid out for her, she said.
“That’s why people are struggling with the curriculum so much, because when you have the autonomy and trust of your employers, the learning happens,” she said. “But when we’re not trusted to know what our kids need, it becomes so scripted, so regimented, so chore-like, it sets them up for failure.”
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news...
So then this happens...Students at one of HISD's top schools left to teach their classmates
Juniors and seniors at Houston ISD's DeBakey High School for Health Professions walked into their AP Physics classes at the beginning of the school year and asked one question: "Where's our teacher?"
About 150 students at the top-ranked high school signed up for the advanced science courses, many with the hope of earning college credit, but found themselves without a qualified teacher. Given the complex nature of the material, substitute teachers brought in were unable to do much more than supervise the classroom.
The teens spent the first seven weeks of the year trying to teach themselves sophisticated concepts, including electric circuitry and thermodynamics. In some cases, seniors in AP Physics II were pulled out of classes to teach juniors in AP Physics I. Students were told by administration that their hands were tied — a hiring freeze at Houston ISD had left them unable to fill the vacancy, they were told, which was created when a teacher went on leave to start the year.
Senior Zain Kundi says the AP Physics position was left vacant because the school's administration tried to saddle a standard physics teacher with the role just before the start of the school year, causing the teacher to use accumulated leave days in protest. The senior made it clear he does not blame the teacher nor HISD for the vacancy, arguing that DeBakey's administration had a whole summer to find someone for the role. Now, student GPAs, AP scores and college prospects may be affected as a result, he says.
DeBakey Principal Jesus Herrera did not respond to multiple requests for comment. A district spokesman said last week that schools "have been asked to limit outside hiring" until staffing audits are complete in the 85 schools in or aligned with Miles' New Education System, where enrollment was less than forecast to start the year.
"This will give existing HISD teachers whose positions are eliminated in NES and NES-A campuses the first opportunity to apply for other positions available in non-NES schools. Exceptions can and have been made for specialized instructors like AP teachers," the district said in a statement.
Meanwhile, DeBakey students presented a petition with dozens of signatures to administrators at a PTO meeting in late September, demanding answers and a solution to the problem.
"Our current management of these courses is not working to benefit our students or our teachers, and it is time for answers," the petition reads, noting that having senior students teach advanced physics to juniors is "extra work for the seniors and suboptimal instruction for the juniors."
https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news...
Same old same old. Louisiana
Book restriction debate comes to St. Tammany School Board. Will book challenges follow in schools?
St. Tammany Parish School Board members sat in silence Thursday as more than 20 people took to the podium to debate the appropriateness of student reading material in school libraries, including the reading aloud of portions of some of the books they want removed.
But St. Tammany Schools Superintendent Frank Jabbia suggested afterward that the effort might not have much impact.
"The majority of the books mentioned during the public comments are either not on our library shelves or have been checked out fewer than two or three times," he said in an email.
“These books that have crept in somehow to the libraries, I’m asking you to take them out,” said David Ziegler, representing the Slidell Ministers Association.
A joint effort by the Slidell Ministers Association and the Arizona-based conservative Christian nationalist group, Turning Point USA Faith, to attend the school board meeting stirred noise this week.
The groups asked people to join them in reading provided excerpts from a list of "explicit" books to the School Board, a move that prompted some pushback from others in the audience.
“When you go into book banning, you’re going down a very dangerous, slippery slope,” said audience member Joan Simon, adding that the topic is a “culturally divisive issue that has become a political hot bed.”
Another speaker agreed. “Why would any student select a book over a device with the internet if they wanted material like this. It’s just nuts,” said Lisa Rustemeyer.
The item was not on the board's advertised agenda -- it came during the public comment period -- and board members, adhering to the board's policy, did not respond.
"Why do you think all these kids are having problems?” said another audience member, Fran Smith. "Because you put this smut in their minds. They may dream about it.
"God knows I dream about it after I have to read 30 of these books and write statements of concern,” she added, referencing the book challenge process at the parish's public libraries.
The School Board has little to do with the school district's book-review process until after several steps are taken by parents, according to the district handbook.
Parents and guardians can challenge books in school libraries by submitting a written complaint form to the principal and the librarian. After that, the principal would convene a reconsideration committee of five members.
The committee would review the book and make a decision whether it should be removed. Appeals could be brought to the School Board.
“Our school libraries are designed to provide services for all of our students across St. Tammany Parish," Jabbia said. "School librarians, working with their principal, use selection criteria and procedures to determine the books that go in school libraries."
https://www.nola.com/news/northshore/...
Oh Scholastic! For Book Fairs, Scholastic Will Separate Titles That Deal With Race and Gender
According to the New York Times, schools can opt to display these books — or not. The list includes biographies of the civil rights icon John Lewis and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Scholastic, the children’s book publisher, said that its elementary-school book fairs would now have a separate section for titles that deal with race, gender and sexuality — a response to dozens of state laws that restrict how those subjects are discussed in schools.
Those organizing book fairs can include — or exclude — that set of books, known as the “Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice” catalog. School fairs can also choose to include specific books from the list.
The separate catalog of 64 titles includes a children’s biography of Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson; a fantasy novel about a Lakota girl; a graphic novel featuring the Black Panther superhero; and a book about different family types, such as adoptive families and families with same-sex parents, according to a list provided by Scholastic.
Scholastic's lame press release states:
.The company called the idea that the fairs “put all diverse titles into one optional case” a “misconception.” Instead, Scholastic said, in order to protect “teachers, librarians, and volunteers” who work in states with laws about critical race theory and discussion of LGBTQ+ issues in schools from being “fired, sued, or prosecuted,” it had created an “additional collection”—called “Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice”—while maintaining that there are still “diverse titles throughout every book fair, for every age level.”
http://mediaroom.scholastic.com/press...
On this, people on either side of the political spectrum may now agree. Anti–book banners online thought Friday’s Scholastic press release was far from sufficient, calling the company’s position “craven,” “disgusting,” and “gutless.” “I understand if a librarian needs to separate out certain books because displaying them will put them in danger,” wrote graphic novelist and Scholastic author Molly Knox Ostertag, in a much more understanding response than most. “But I fundamentally don’t think that is a call the publisher should be making for them.”
Before Scholastic consolidated the national school book-fair market in the 1990s, there were other choices. Will the politics of the book-banning era provoke an undoing of its chokehold on the category? After author Jacqueline Woodson tweeted about Scholastic’s press release, asking for “other options for book fairs,” many replies mentioned collaborations with local indie bookstores, as well as a startup called Literati. (Literati touts its fairs’ lack of trinkets as a selling point.) But while profits from Scholastic’s book fairs fell, for obvious reasons, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the company says, the business has now recovered. In September, Scholastic CEO Peter Warwick described the spending at Scholastic book fairs as now “very strong.”
MONEYWATCH
Scholastic book fairs, a staple at U.S. schools, accused of excluding diverse books
moneywatch
BY AIMEE PICCHI
UPDATED ON: OCTOBER 17, 2023 / 2:12 PM / MONEYWATCH
Book fairs run by publisher Scholastic are a staple at schools across the U.S., with the pop-up sales events allowing students to shop for new titles without leaving school property. But now, the company is being accused of creating what some are calling a "bigotry button" that allows school districts to exclude books from the fairs that touch on race, LGBTQ and other issues related to diversity.
Some social media users noticed last month that Scholastic had carved out a separate category of books for the book fair events dubbed "Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice." The collection, which includes books about civil rights icon John Lewis and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown, among others, allows schools to opt out of carrying the titles in their book fairs.
Scholastic on Friday issued a statement defending the new collection, saying it took the step because of existing or pending legislation in 30 states that prohibit "certain kinds of books" from schools, such as titles that focus on LGBTQ issues or racism. Grouping books in this fashion is a way to protect teachers, librarians and volunteers from legal problems, or even from getting fired, for providing access to books that violate local laws.
"We cannot make a decision for our school partners around what risks they are willing to take, based on the state and local laws that apply to their district, so these topics and this collection have been part of many planning calls that happen in advance of shipping a fair," said Scholastic, which bills itself as the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books.
"We are invited guests in schools, and we took that into account when making this decision," a spokeswoman for the company added.
PEN America: Risk of "censorious ends"
PEN America, an organization that promotes free speech and literature, on Tuesday said it "shares the dismay we are hearing from authors" about the publisher's decision.
The group acknowledged the challenges facing librarians, Scholastic and other groups in the face of state laws targeting some topics, but added that creating a separate group of books dealing with diverse themes "risks depriving students and families of books that speak to them."
"Despite the challenges of this climate, we call on Scholastic to explore other solutions so they can reject any role in accommodating these nefarious laws and local pressures, or being an accessory to government censorship," PEN America said in the statement.
But PEN America also blamed lawmakers and others in states who have promoted and passed book censorship laws. The group added that Scholastic's approach to keep its book fairs running through "a fraught legal and political climate" risks "being twisted to accomplish censorious ends."
MONEYWATCH
Scholastic book fairs, a staple at U.S. schools, accused of excluding diverse books
moneywatch
BY AIMEE PICCHI
UPDATED ON: OCTOBER 17, 2023 / 2:12 PM / MONEYWATCH
Book fairs run by publisher Scholastic are a staple at schools across the U.S., with the pop-up sales events allowing students to shop for new titles without leaving school property. But now, the company is being accused of creating what some are calling a "bigotry button" that allows school districts to exclude books from the fairs that touch on race, LGBTQ and other issues related to diversity.
Some social media users noticed last month that Scholastic had carved out a separate category of books for the book fair events dubbed "Share Every Story, Celebrate Every Voice." The collection, which includes books about civil rights icon John Lewis and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown, among others, allows schools to opt out of carrying the titles in their book fairs.
Scholastic on Friday issued a statement defending the new collection, saying it took the step because of existing or pending legislation in 30 states that prohibit "certain kinds of books" from schools, such as titles that focus on LGBTQ issues or racism. Grouping books in this fashion is a way to protect teachers, librarians and volunteers from legal problems, or even from getting fired, for providing access to books that violate local laws.
"We cannot make a decision for our school partners around what risks they are willing to take, based on the state and local laws that apply to their district, so these topics and this collection have been part of many planning calls that happen in advance of shipping a fair," said Scholastic, which bills itself as the world's largest publisher and distributor of children's books.
"We are invited guests in schools, and we took that into account when making this decision," a spokeswoman for the company added.
PEN America: Risk of "censorious ends"
PEN America, an organization that promotes free speech and literature, on Tuesday said it "shares the dismay we are hearing from authors" about the publisher's decision.
The group acknowledged the challenges facing librarians, Scholastic and other groups in the face of state laws targeting some topics, but added that creating a separate group of books dealing with diverse themes "risks depriving students and families of books that speak to them."
"Despite the challenges of this climate, we call on Scholastic to explore other solutions so they can reject any role in accommodating these nefarious laws and local pressures, or being an accessory to government censorship," PEN America said in the statement.
But PEN America also blamed lawmakers and others in states who have promoted and passed book censorship laws. The group added that Scholastic's approach to keep its book fairs running through "a fraught legal and political climate" risks "being twisted to accomplish censorious ends."
One author told CBS MoneyWatch she shares those concerns.
"I get that they're caught in a hard place during this awful, incomprehensible season of censorship in many communities," Denise Lewis Patrick, whose book "Justice Ketanji" is included in Scholastic's new collection, said in an email. "But as a mother and grandmother, I strongly believe that all children should have access to books that both expand and enrich their worlds."
The book publisher also said that books representing diversity are still included in its main book fair offerings. According to a list of books provided by Scholastic to CBS MoneyWatch, its core book fair titles include one called "Frizzy," about a girl who stops straightening her hair, and "The Hidden Girl," about a girl who hides during the Holocaust. But most of the titles are related to popular characters like Spiderman or games such as Minecraft.
Creating an opt-out group of diverse book fair titles comes as Scholastic is under fire from some conservatives for its book selection. One group, Brave Books, is urging parents and schools to "cancel Scholastic," claiming that the book fairs sell titles that "appear harmless" but include "ideas like gender fluidity and the LGBTQIA+ agenda on the inside."
More titles:
Big Nate: Payback Time!
Picture Day: (A Graphic Novel)
Daddy and Me and the Rhyme to Be
Because of You, John Lewis
Change Sings: a Children's Anthem
You Are Enough: A Book About Inclusion
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/16/us...
https://slate.com/culture/2023/10/sch...
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/scholast...
__________________________________________________________
The first time I heard about this was Friday evening when a school librarian said she had to call to order the "diversity box" for the book fair and the sales rep on the phone said "It's oh you know- a box of 'voices' books." Yes that's what kids want to read. Books they can relate to. They still buy the BSC books and posters, erasers, markers and all the stuff we used to buy but they also want new books.
I know of Denise Lewis Patrick. She writes for American Girl and she's great. Meet Cécile series, No Ordinary Sound: A Melody Classic, Never Stop Singing: A Melody Classic Volume 2, A New Beginning: My Journey with Addy, Makena: See Me, Hear Me, Know Me
Oregon - After complaints about 36 books, Canby School District bans just 1 - Lolita.Four other books were restricted to Canby High School students.
“The district followed our policy and procedure, establishing a committee made up of community partners, parents, district principals and district teachers to review the books,” the district wrote in a short statement. The process “concluded when the committee decided to continue use in district libraries of all books except one.”
A Court of series by Sarah J. Maas (frequent offender on the M4L hit list. It's a new adult series which is a sub category of young adult)
Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez also restricted
The statement does not explain the district methodology for choosing which books would remain available for students, which would be restricted and which would be removed.
In March, the district temporarily removed 36 books written primarily by Black, Latina or LGBTQ+ women after Canby school parents Lesley Paradis and Nicole Cole submitted complaints about their overly “sexual” and “complex” content. The list of challenged books included Nobel Prize-winner Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.”
In response, around 30 Canby High students protested the removal of the books, carrying signs and creating an Instagram account, @donottakemybookschs, to provide updates and information about the challenged book review. More than 2,000 students attend the district’s high school and two middle schools.
“Public school libraries are central to a student’s First Amendment right to access ideas and information,” said Kelly Simon, ACLU Oregon’s legal director. “Restricting books is restricting student freedom. And school districts should be on notice that controversy is not a permissible justification to ban ideas or identities in our schools.”
The Oregon Library Association has argued that the district didn’t follow proper protocol in removing the challenged books before completing its review.
Administrators were in compliance with district policy when they removed the books, district communications director Kristen Wohlers said.
“We’re trying to be clear with everybody about how careful we were with following our policy,” Wohlers said. “Our policy calls for discretion as to whether to remove the materials during the reconsideration process. But as we have told folks, we would not do that again. Our policy is the same, but our practice would be different.”
https://www.oregonlive.com/education/...
Oregon - After complaints about 36 books, Canby School District bans just 1 - Lolita.Four other books were restricted to Canby High School students.
“The district followed our policy and procedure, establishing a committee made up of community partners, parents, district principals and district teachers to review the books,” the district wrote in a short statement. The process “concluded when the committee decided to continue use in district libraries of all books except one.”
A Court of series by Sarah J. Maas (frequent offender on the M4L hit list. It's a new adult series which is a sub category of young adult)
Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez also restricted
The statement does not explain the district methodology for choosing which books would remain available for students, which would be restricted and which would be removed.
In March, the district temporarily removed 36 books written primarily by Black, Latina or LGBTQ+ women after Canby school parents Lesley Paradis and Nicole Cole submitted complaints about their overly “sexual” and “complex” content. The list of challenged books included Nobel Prize-winner Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.”
In response, around 30 Canby High students protested the removal of the books, carrying signs and creating an Instagram account, @donottakemybookschs, to provide updates and information about the challenged book review. More than 2,000 students attend the district’s high school and two middle schools.
“Public school libraries are central to a student’s First Amendment right to access ideas and information,” said Kelly Simon, ACLU Oregon’s legal director. “Restricting books is restricting student freedom. And school districts should be on notice that controversy is not a permissible justification to ban ideas or identities in our schools.”
The Oregon Library Association has argued that the district didn’t follow proper protocol in removing the challenged books before completing its review.
Administrators were in compliance with district policy when they removed the books, district communications director Kristen Wohlers said.
“We’re trying to be clear with everybody about how careful we were with following our policy,” Wohlers said. “Our policy calls for discretion as to whether to remove the materials during the reconsideration process. But as we have told folks, we would not do that again. Our policy is the same, but our practice would be different.”
https://www.oregonlive.com/education/...
In Alabama where the governor wants to ban books but yet a retired Methodist minister does not...Residents speak against banning LGBTQ books in Fairhope
Several dozen people attended a Fairhope Library Board meeting Monday afternoon after months of conflict over books with LGBTQ themes and their place in the library’s catalog.
After the room reached its 25-person capacity, many attendees stood in the hall, observing the meeting through the doorway and stepping in to speak one by one.
“I think we can all agree that we want safe spaces for our children to learn and grow in,” said Dr. Jennifer Walker, a local pediatrician and Fairhope resident. “The idea of a library banning books based on a specific organization’s opinions is antithetical to the idea of our library being one of those spaces.”
Rev. Jenny Allen, a retired United Methodist minister, spoke in support of the library and “letting people be the parents of their children,” rather than relying on the library to make decisions on what its patrons read.
“It’s the hardest thing we do as human beings, is raise people,” she said. “I don’t believe it’s anyone’s duty to demean someone because of what they believe, because each one of us chooses what we choose to believe.”
The library board meeting came highly anticipated by advocates after a contentious Fairhope city council meeting last month drew more than 100 people concerned about the library. That meeting concluded with Jay Robinson, the president of the city council informing residents that, while the council was appreciative of the civic engagement, library book selection is an issue for the library board.
Many of the people who attended that council meeting showed up at the library board on Monday, including Brian A. Dasinger, a local attorney and representative of the Faith Family Freedom Coalition of Baldwin County [again] , a chapter of the organization that advocated against Mobile annexation because of their opposition to Mobile’s actions supporting LGBTQ people.
At both meetings, he urged the library to move certain books with themes of sexuality, LGBTQ topics and race from the sections of the library serving youth to the adult sections. Dasinger emphasized that he and his group “are not trying to ban books.”
Dasinger referenced Miller v. California, a 1973 Supreme Court case that established how obscenity is determined in state and federal law based on a triple pronged test, as a mechanism for the library to consider books.
One requirement of the Miller Test, according to the Legal Information Institute, requires that the work, “taken as a whole,” lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.
“I haven’t read the books, but I have seen excerpts,” Dasinger said. “It’s common sense that children should not be exposed to this.”
“It’s challenging for me,” said Conyers, a nonvoting member of the board. “I got a lot of friends and constituents who believe differently than me, and I think libraries need to stay neutral and apolitical. I feel this has the feel of being a political challenge.”
Tamara Dean, the library’s director, listed 33 books that are in the process of being reviewed. The location in the library is being reconsidered for some of those books, and some books are being challenged altogether, according to Andy Parvin, the board’s vice chairman.
Of the 55 books on that list, eight are not carried in the Fairhope location, one is not carried in any Baldwin County libraries and 14 are not cataloged in the teen section of the library, according to a search of the library’s catalog in September.
According to the library, those 33 books combined have been checked out less than 500 times over 15 years.
The library has not yet decided on whether to keep the challenged books in circulation and has not announced a date they plan to release a decision.
https://www.al.com/news/mobile/2023/1...
California- Huntington Beach council will consider a children’s library book review board
Huntington Beach city libraries might soon have a community board reviewing children’s library books to determine if materials “meet the community standards of acceptance” and would need to have books containing any sexual content be placed on shelves designated for adults.
Councilmember Gracey Van Der Mark, who has pushed for the city to make it harder for children to access sexually explicit books in city libraries, is proposing the new board and other changes the City Council will consider on Tuesday.
“All of this is to really empower the parent,” Van Der Mark said. “We are simply giving the parents more control over what their children have access to.”
Van Der Mark’s proposal would mandate that no city library allow children to access books or other materials that contain “any content of s---ual nature.” It would require a parent or guardian’s consent to access those materials, whether they are intended for children or adults.
Van Der Mark’s resolution also would require city libraries to receive approval from a community/parent-guardian review board to obtain new materials intended for children containing any sexual content or references. She is proposing each of the seven members of the City Council would appoint three people to be on the board, which would meet at least twice a year and could reject by a majority vote material recommended to the library.
Dina Chavez, a board member of the nonprofit Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library, said the proposed resolution isn’t needed and is an insult to librarians. The library purchases about 9,000 children’s books a year, Chavez said, and the proposal “will absolutely disrupt operations of the library.”
“It’s all based on a completely ridiculous idea that there was p____y in the library,” Chavez said. “There never was and there isn’t now.”
The board would have the power to subject books already in circulation to review and move them to the adult section. Van Der Mark said if the board is created she didn’t think they’d have a whole lot at first to review. She said librarians are already reviewing books, but this would bring the community into the process.
Chavez said if she was asked to be a member of the review board she would refuse so as to not give it legitimacy.
So far in 2023, no books have been challenged for review under the existing process. The Huntington Beach Public Library has denied five requests in as many years to have books in its collection removed – one of which came from Van Der Mark in 2020.
City staffers on Tuesday will also present their research and library policy changes they’ve been working on the last few months. Their recommendations for new policies include a new library card that would require parental permission for checking out books, raising the age for minors needing to be accompanied by an adult in the library and updating processes for book recommendations for children and families.
City staffers formulated their ideas after having research meetings with the publishing industry, other city managers and library systems and the public, officials said.
In their report to the council, staffers said they were told by Penguin Random House, the largest publisher in the U.S., that the publisher wouldn’t release anything that would raise red flags under the Miller Test, a legal test for determining if something can be considered obscenity, and the company has a multi-level review process that includes going over illustrations.
It also uses third-party companies to identify content levels for children’s books.
Van Der Mark said her proposal will allow parents to have more input on what books their children can access and more changes could be made.
“This is the beginning,” Van Der Mark said. “As issues and concerns come up, we could fine-tune it. We have to be flexible about this because it’s never been done before.”
https://www.ocregister.com/2023/10/15...
Surprise surprise... Wilson County, Tenn., which has already banned an obscene number of books, surprise surprise challenges coming from people who don't have children in the district schools.Wilson County Moms 4 Liberty chair challenges around a dozen ‘sexually explicit’ books
According to a school board member, none of the challengers have students in the school district except for one. The lone parent also happens to be the chapter chair of Moms 4 Liberty in Wilson County.
“What is the educational value of this book? What is it that you wish children to know who have read this?” said Amanda Price, Wilson County parent.
Price first brought up her concern during a school board meeting in November of 2021. It was the same year she became the chapter chair for Moms for Liberty in Wilson County.
“This has been exploited by Moms 4 Liberty,” Jessica Smith said during an October 11 school board meeting.
Smith filed a public records request to see who was behind the book challenges. “The only one that was submitted by a parent of a Wilson County student is the chair of the local Moms 4 Liberty chapter.”
“I feel that is it intellectually dishonest, to consider an extremist group based on the fact that these are s---y explicit books,” Price said.
Last week, the school board discussed reviewing their policy on who can challenge books to make sure it aligns with state law. The board will review it in November.
“The problem is I think the reason why they want to reword this policy is to prevent this controversial issue to come up as frequent as it is,” Price said.
Price told News 2 that she has not read all of the books she has challenged but has read excerpts. She said she has gone through all the proper channels to challenge a book based on the school district’s policy.
The policy requires the challenger to first bring up the concern with the high school before it can go to the book review committee.
https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/...
Book ban demands increase in ColoradoThe Library Research Service says Colorado's libraries saw 120 content challenges last year. Few resulted in book bans. About 10% caused a change.
https://www.9news.com/video/news/loca...
The news today is not so good thanks to all the new and hateful laws that force librarians to "weed" their school libraries to "err on the side of caution." There's nothing in most of these books for censors to object to. There's a huge list from Iowa that includes New Kid and Class Act. No explicit content in either of those and it's not critical race theory when the author a)is writing about their own experiences and b)has no idea what CRT even is. The list also includes old books I'm sure no one reads The Face on the Milk Carton. I remember that one! I read it twice, I think and never would have read it if it contained "explicit" content or violence or anything like that. I have The Chocolate War downstairs I think. I remember that one being in the 6th grade classroom library. Again I don't remember anything explicit and that teacher was TOUGH and mean. The list from Iowa also contain books about health topics and "one of these things is not like the other, one of these things just doesn't belong. "
Having young
Urinary Tract Infections
Genital Herpes
Gonorrhea
Endometriosis
Chlamydia
Good grief!
The rest of the books are taken right from M4L's list!
In KentuckyBoyle schools removing library books in response to SB 150
A local resident voiced concerns about the Boyle County school district removing library books in response to Senate Bill 150 at the Boyle County Board of Education meeting on Sept. 21. SB 150 is a new Kentucky law, passed in March, that changes how schools teach about gender identity and LGBTQ issues. It requires public schools to notify parents about instruction related to human sexuality; does not require teachers to use students’ preferred pronouns; prohibits districts from keeping student information confidential from parents; establishes requirements for any public school’s course, curriculum, or program on the subject of human sexuality, among other things. About 106 books have been removed from the five district schools in response to SB 150. Personnel have removed 55 books from the high school, 17 from the middle school, 15 from Woodlawn Elementary School, 17 from Junction City Elementary and two from Perryville Elementary.
Wade explained that they reviewed current courses, programming, instructional resources and learning experiences, including health education curriculum, Advanced Placement coursework, dual credit courses and extracurricular activities. District leadership worked with all school library media specialists, and the district’s legal council, attorney Stephen Dexter, to ensure compliance with the law. “Our school library books and programs are considered instructional resources, and are made available to support the grade-level standards being taught,” Wade said. “School libraries are instructional support entities within our school. As such, school libraries operate differently than a public library system.”
During the public comment section of the Sept. 21 BOE meeting, county resident Shonna Storz said she doesn’t believe the district is interpreting the law correctly, saying SB 150 states nothing about library books. Storz has two teenagers in the Boyle school system. She is a former educator who has taught life science to middle schoolers. “I’m so proud to be a parent at Boyle County Schools,” Storz said. “I love education, it’s one of my highest values.” Storz explained that SB 150 does not mention books or libraries. She argued that books should not be classified as “instruction,” as it is not the same as the term “instructional resources.” According to the Cambridge Dictionary, one definition of “instruction” is “the act of teaching someone how to do something.” Storz argued that the section stating “…any child, regardless of grade level, enrolled in the district does not receive any instruction or presentation…” refers to the act of teaching, rather than extra student resources like library books.
Attorney Stephen Dexter, who provided legal counsel to the district on this law, told the Advocate-Messenger that the district’s new policies are in compliance with the law. “Ultimately, district leadership determined that library books constitute curriculum and programming for the district, which is a legally defensible position,” Dexter said. “As such, a limited number of books pertaining to the topics referenced in SB 150 were removed.” Storz pointed out that the law’s section stating “…children in grade five and below do not receive any instruction through curriculum or programs on human sexuality…” is only specific to grades 5 and below. Yet books are being removed from the middle school and high school as well. “Even if libraries are interpreted as programs, libraries and books above the fifth grade should not be impacted,” Storz argued. For grades six and above, the law states that schools need to get written parental permission for students to receive “any instruction through curriculum or programs on human sexuality or sexually transmitted diseases.” Parents have the right to review materials including curriculum; instructional materials; lesson plans; assessments or tests; surveys or questionnaires; assignments; and instructional activities.
“In my understanding of the law, and in talking to a couple of lawyers, and in talking to many librarians across the state, other libraries are not removing books from shelves in our state; this is not a common practice based on this law,” Storz said. Storz said she has not heard of any other school districts in the state removing library books in response to SB 150. Wade said he has heard of other districts removing books, but would not share which districts.
"Some of these books, you would want all of our young adults to be able to read and have access to,” Storz said. “What world do we have right now that we don’t want our young people to understand about what sexual consent is?” Storz said she is part of a group of concerned parents who have taken this issue to the BOE. “The only response has been to put some of the books back and parents have been told to take it up with each principal; this is infuriating,” Storz said. Wade said the schools have a reconsideration policy for library books, and that parents can go to the principles of each school and make an argument on why certain books should be put back. “Our first move was a big filter, and with a big filter, you’re going to catch some things you don’t need to, and catch some things you do need to,” Wade said. “Of all the publications that exist in the world, not all are appropriate or relevant to high school students.”
Storz said that some books have been put back since parents first talked to the BOE, but that the list is still long. “They are 106 books that our librarians felt were valuable enough to purchase at one point that took money from our budget,” Storz said. Wade said that if a student or parent desires a book not carried by the school libraries, he encourages them to visit the public library or purchase it online. “There is not a requirement or right for certain books to be made available,” Dexter said. “Rather, it is up to district leadership to determine what books, curriculum and programs should be included in district libraries. Library books are reviewed, removed or added to on an annual basis at the discretion of district leadership and needs.” Storz said that she is disappointed in the district’s decision to remove educational resources.
Wade said the law could continue to evolve, and that they are obligated to implement the law and respond if there are changes.
Read more at: https://www.amnews.com/2023/10/17/boy...
The list
https://www.amnews.com/wp-content/upl...
More from OregonDayton school committee debates removing 5 books from high school classrooms
Dayton community members and a committee heard from the person who filed the complaint and a district language arts teacher who uses some of these books in the classroom, but a decision as to their future is ultimately up to the superintendent.
The meeting stemmed from parent concerns over graphic language used in some of the high school’s language arts curriculum.
Because a complaint was made, district policy is to address any concerns with materials and if requested, form a reconsideration committee that can hear both sides, make a collective decision and give their recommendation to the Dayton superintendent on whether the books should be removed from the classrooms, or even assigned to higher grades. Those facilitating the meeting were adamant though that this is not a book ban and that the complaint is not asking for books to be removed from the school library altogether.
The five books brought into question include:
“The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien (adult)
“The Glass Castle” by Jeanette Walls (adult)
“Sold” by Patricia McCormick (YA)
“The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas (MG/YA) <-- also a movie and NOT R-rated
“All-American Boys” by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely (YA)
“Why can’t our classroom curriculum be the one place where our young people aren’t exposed to R-rated content? Again, I’m not asking for these books to be removed from the school,” said Karalee Johnston, who filed the complaint. “I’m questioning if these books are really the best choice for our whole class instruction.”
During the presentation, both sides made their case to the eight-person committee made up of four community members, a librarian, an administrator, a teacher and a student.
“Kids understand that those swear words that they’re reading are authentic to their own voices,” said Jennifer Shadden, a teacher at Dayton High School. “Explaining complex topics like sexuality, violence, substance abuse, suicide, and racism through characters lets kids contemplate and empathize in a safe setting.”
The superintendent does have the authority to make their own decision regardless of the committee’s recommendations, but the person who filed the complaint also has the option to take concerns before the school board if they don’t like the superintendent’s decision.
About half of the committee members did ask for more time before making a decision. The committee then went into a private discussion where the community members in the room were asked to leave. The district did clarify ahead of time that a vote would be made by secret ballot.
Just before 10 p.m., the private meeting wrapped up and the committee’s facilitator confirmed to KOIN 6 that while a decision was ultimately made amongst the committee, they weren’t able to reveal what the decision was when it came to their recommendation.
The answer will come from the superintendent and KOIN 6 will continue to follow up.
https://www.koin.com/news/education/d...
Upcoming Subcommittee Meeting on "Combating Graphic, Explicit Content in School Libraries"Tune in tomorrow, October 18, to the livestream of a hearing over "explicit content in school libraries," chaired by a Moms For Liberty fan.
Another federal-level committee will meet this week to take on the topic of books in school libraries. This follows several prior book ban related committee meetings in, including the 2022 House Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Liberties on book bans and censorship and a fall 2023 Senate Subcommittee on the Judiciary holding a hearing on how book bans limit liberty and literature. The Senate meeting opened the opportunity for Senators like Robert F. Kennedy to go viral for reading passages of so-called "explicit" books out loud, perpetrating the exact tactics used by far right book banners at the school board level.
Tomorrow's meeting will be different–and potentially much more fiery than either of the previous hearings. It will be hosted by the Committee on Education and the Workforce's Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Hearing. The name of the hearing tells everything you need to know about the spin on Protecting Kids: Combating Graphic, Explicit Content in School Libraries." The echoes to the Senate Judiciary Committee Hearings on Juvenile Delinquency, which helped fuel the panic around comics in the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s are undeniable.
It will include opening statements from Republican Chairman Aaron Bean from Florida, who has parroted several of the same talking points about childhood innocence we've seen from groups like No Left Turn in Education and from Moms For Liberty–the designated Hate Group who have become welcome into the legislative workings of Florida.
Moreover, Bean disagrees with the labeling of his friends at Moms For Liberty as a "Hate Group.”
Blah blah same old rhetoric designed to promote hate and hurt.
https://literaryactivism.substack.com...
The good news of the day isTwo Texas Bookstores Are Leading the Fight Against Book Bans
https://www.texasmonthly.com/arts-ent...
Mod
I love that Way Kinew is not only the first First Nations premier of a Canadian province but that there are ten indigenous members in the caucus and that during his swearing in ceremony Kinew honoured his culture and wore tribal regalia.
And huge SHAME on the Progressive Conservatives for running a hate campaign that specifically targeted Kinew being First Nations (but I guess I am also not at all surprised as Social Conservatives often tend to actively disrespect First Nations and consider them as lesser).
This smells like a set up to me too. The kid just HAPPENED to notice a book among many and picked it up and looked at it in THAT much detail?https://lancasteronline.com/news/loca...
_______________________________
Lancaster, Penn.
After Moms for Liberty chair's son raises concerns over LGBTQ+ book, some say it's a 'setup'
A Warwick High School senior provided another example of explicit materials being made available to students: The teen said he stumbled upon a book called “Queer, 2nd Edition: The Ultimate LGBTQ Guide for Teens” while printing out some documents at the school library.
“I was a little surprised to see it lying in with the philosophy and religion and social science books, so I picked it up,” Chance Wilson said at an Oct. 3 Warwick school district meeting. “One would think that it is a book explaining what homosexuality is, and how to have safe sex, or something along those lines. However, the book was quite different.”
Wilson isn’t just a student. He’s the son of Rachel Wilson-Snyder, the Moms for Liberty Lancaster County chapter chair who since 2021 has led and supported challenges to books and teaching materials at schools across the county — while galvanizing support for GOP school board candidates.
Wilson-Snyder did not respond to requests for comment. Her son wasn’t immediately available.
The public challenge to “Queer,” the group’s critics say, provides a glimpse at how Moms for Liberty works to create a controversy in order to spur action by public officials. In this case, Republican school board member Emily Zimmerman cited Wilson’s public comments on Tuesday at the state Capitol as she testified about GOP state Sen. Ryan Aument’s bill to make it easier for parents to restrict students’ access to books in schools.
Speaking to Zimmerman and the rest of the board on Oct. 3, Wilson, whose relationship to Wilson-Snyder was confirmed through public records, explained his issue with the book.
“My concern is that it also included numerous instructions about maximizing s--ual pleasure,” Wilson said.
After reading passages offering tips on [pleasuring oneself], the teen’s remarks turned technical.
“Due to the subtle wording of the policy on gratuitous sexuality in board policy 109.1, the book could be argued to not even violate the policy,” Wilson said. “But either the book contradicts the policy, in which case we must get rid of the book, or the book passes the policy, in which case, the policy itself, I think, must be changed.”
Noting the book’s content and its targeted teen audience, Wilson said “it’s difficult for me to see how the book could be desired by someone to remain in our library, without that person intending to increase grooming of children.”
At the same meeting, Zimmerman, who is not up for reelection this year, read from prepared comments:
“This past weekend it was brought to my attention by numerous community members that there is a book in the Warwick High school library that has raised serious concerns as to the instructural (sic) and manual-type format pertaining to (view spoiler)
Zimmerman said at the meeting that she would follow policy in considering whether the book should be removed but called the book “shocking and abhorrent.”
Responding Wednesday to questions about the issue, Zimmerman said she was not aware that the student who found the book was Wilson-Snyder’s son until he spoke up at the meeting.
Shelly Chmil, a parent and educator in the district, said the whole scenario “feels like a setup.” For one thing, she noted, that Zimmerman prepared a statement to read at the Oct. 3 meeting showed that she planned to address the issue in advance.
Zimmerman herself serves on the school district’s library book review committee, which approved the book, Chmil noted. However, district records show she wasn’t yet on the committee in March 2022 when “Queer” was approved. Those records show the book had 83% support among the committee, which is made up of teachers and school staff, parents and two school board members.
Chmil said that after the meeting she took a look at the book. Even compared to other books targeted by Moms for Liberty in recent years, this one felt tame. “It pretty much just reads like a health book,” Chmil said. “So this crap about being a ‘groomer,’ it just infuriates me.”
Lititz resident Shirley Showalter said the episode strikes her as an effort to drum up a sense of urgency among Republican voters in the weeks leading up to a municipal election where seven school board seats are up for grabs in Warwick.
“Well the timing is quite strategic,” Showalter said in an email. “The book was ‘found’ at the last meeting before the election. Hmmm.”
Showalter, who recently founded an alternative to Moms for Liberty called Grandmas for Love, said she remains concerned about the group’s effect on the community.
“This is a manufactured crisis,” Showalter said.
While the school has a clear policy on how Wilson and his parents can challenge the book, that may not have served their ends, she said.
“(I)f the objective is to excite or enrage the voting public, then simply filing a challenge does not suffice,” Showalter said. “Moms for Liberty do not want carefully selected processes like the Warwick book policy. They want to generate anger in the community in order to motivate voters to elect their candidates.”
Speaking under oath before the Senate Education Committee on Tuesday, Zimmerman recounted the concerns expressed about “Queer."
She said “this high school student was not intending to locate a book of this topic or nature and even came to speak to our school board about their displeasure of finding and being exposed to this content erroneously.”
Pennsylvania Sen. Ryan Aument said he wasn’t aware that one of the examples Zimmerman provided traced back to a student whose parent is involved with Moms for Liberty. But he said this information doesn’t change his perspective on what Zimmerman said.
Aument said the bill he introduced to give parents more say in what materials are available in schools “closely mirrors” a law passed in Virginia last year, and was not influenced by Moms for Liberty.
“Like many organizations, I suspect I agree with some of their views and oppose others,” Aument said. “However, I do not seek to cancel their views or the views of any resident I represent. This is unhealthy in a civil society.”
Chilling news from Huntington Beach, Calif. They don't trust librarians and teachers to do the jobs they were trained for. This can't possibly be legal for a city library.________________________________
Huntington Beach to use community review board to vet children’s books for s---ual content.
https://www.ocregister.com/2023/10/18...
Huntington Beach will soon have an appointed community review board for its public library branches that could reject new children’s books deemed inappropriate, a move critics are calling a book-banning system.
The City Council majority decided to create a 21-member community review board that has oversight of children’s books in city libraries. Its powers include rejecting, by a majority vote, new children’s books the library staff wish to obtain that “do not meet the city’s community standards of acceptance” and reviewing books already in circulation if they should be moved from the children’s section.
Councilmember Gracey Van Der Mark is behind the push. The three other conservative councilmembers joined her to pass the contested proposal Tuesday night in a 4-3 vote.
Each councilmember will get three appointments to the board.
Scores of vocal residents denounced Van Der Mark’s resolution, calling it a book ban.
“If you don’t procure something, what are you doing? You’re banning it,” said Jeff Lebow during public comment.
The Council Chambers at City Hall were filled with people and many had to sit in an overflow room. The public comment period went over five hours, with residents bringing signs that called the proposal government overreach.
The resolution mandates that no city library allow children direct access to books or other materials that contain “any content of sexual nature.” It will require a parent or guardian’s consent to access those materials, whether they are intended for children or adults. Books with sexual content will be moved out of the children’s section.
Mayor Tony Strickland argued against the other councilmembers and residents who see the resolution as a ban. “We are not removing any books or restricting any books. It’s been said before: It’s not a ban.”
The councilmembers who voted for the new system continually said during the meeting that they don’t see the move as a book ban. Councilmember Natalie Moser, who voted against the proposal, expressed numerous concerns with it, including that the city was putting itself in legal risk.
“Those seeking to impede access to collections and dictate how library workers do their jobs are doing so to silence and obscure the voices and perspectives of those whose opinions they feel do not have a right to full and active participation in American society,” Moser said. “While the protection of our community’s children is paramount, this resolution is not the way to achieve it.”
The First Amendment Coalition, the ACLU of Southern California and the Freedom to Read Foundation said in a letter to the City Council that creating a review board violates the First Amendment. The groups said the resolution, taken literally, would prohibit children from accessing literary classics such as “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings,” “The Great Gatsby” and “Romeo and Juliet.”
“While no one can be forced to read a library book to which they object, no one has the right to subject, through force of government, the entire community to their narrow and arbitrary view of what books are acceptable for minors of any age to read,” the groups said.
The groups also warned in their joint letter that the proposal would negatively affect LGTBQ youth and overall called it unconstitutional.
...
School of Information Director at San José State University Anthony Chow said the plan in Huntington Beach will set a dangerous precedent. Chow said other topics like race and religion in books could be looked at down the line.
“Once you open that door, I think it’s very difficult to stop,” Chow said.
Councilmember Pat Burns said some age inappropriate books have made their way into the children’s section that shouldn’t be there. He said the head librarian shouldn’t have unfettered authority over what books are in the library.
The nonprofit Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library released a statement ahead of Tuesday’s council meeting that it opposed book bans in the city’s library system, saying individuals have the right to determine what’s appropriate for them and their families to read, not a government-appointed committee.
Earlier in Tuesday’s meeting, city staffers had presented possible policy updates for the library to make, separate from Van Der Mark’s resolution. Those changes include a new library card that would require parental permission for checking out adult books and updating processes for book recommendations for children and families.
Van Der Mark asked Community and Library Services Director Ashley Wysocki, who gave the staff presentation, if any books were going to be banned from the library. Wysocki said: “I think there are a lot of perceived ways books can be banned, and so until I better understand what the direction from council is, I don’t know that I can answer that.”
And they wonder why there's a teacher shortage?‘We’re not getting respect’: USF Education majors fear future as teachers amid book bans
For Juliana Pinho, a freshman elementary education major, Florida’s recent book bans are disappointing because they may limit what kind of educator she can be.
“There are things that I wish kids would learn at school, and it is sad to see that I won’t be able to do anything about it. If this is the way book bans look like right now, how’s it going to be in the future when I am a teacher?” Pinho said.
She said she believes banning books is taking away educational opportunities from kids and narrowing educators’ teaching abilities.
“Book bans limit educators because they have more rules to follow, and it makes everything very limited. They have to really pay attention to what they are teaching and even filter some topics,” Pinho said.
https://www.usforacle.com/2023/10/19/...
Good news from Alabama. The Madison library has been shamed into returning children's and YA books back to where they belong after being moved to the adult section . These were primarily LGBTQ+ themed books.https://www.al.com/news/2023/10/madis...
"The collection review process at the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library ended this week, one month after staff and community members shared their frustrations about moving children’s and young adult books to the adult section for primarily having LGBTQ themes.
In one instance during the process, the library made national headlines for flagging “Read Me a Story Stella” because the author’s last name is Gay.
North Huntsville branch librarians moved six books out of the adult section and back to the young adult section this week. Two of those books, “Crank” and “Identical,” were written by Ellen Hopkins.
“I’m happy to see wiser minds prevailed and my books are readily available for the kids who need them,” Hopkins said in a Facebook message. “I hope the trend continues.”
Alyx Kim-Yohn, circulation manager at the Madison branch, said the damage has been done because the process “ostracized queer folks and people of color.” Kim-Yohn, who refused to participate in moving the books, shared an internal apology from Cindy Hewitt, the library’s director.
“This was a mistake and was hurtful to library staff and members of the community,” Hewitt said in the message.
Kim-Yohn expects further movement at the next library board meeting on Nov. 15 at the North Huntsville branch.
“(The administration) is still kind of in a backpedaling state, hoping everything will blow over and that (the backlash) will lose steam,” Kim-Yohn said.
Of the 233 titles added to the review late September, 91% had LGBTQ themes. Hewitt said this was not intentional and asked branch managers to look at books with overall themes on sex, gender, and dating.
Jay Hixon, the library’s public relations director, said in an email that moving back books should be complete by the end of the week. The next step is getting input from the Alabama Public Library Service (APLS).
“(APLS) have been instructed by the Governor to provide guidance to public libraries across the state,” Hixon said. “Once we receive that information we’ll need to review it and determine the best way to move forward.”
More from Alabama - an opinion piece"Roy S. Johnson: Attacking libraries is what’s obscene
"Libraries are sanctuaries of discovery. Libraries are America.
Yet John Wahl, chair of Alabama’s GOP, wants to attack them as if they are a threatening insurgent.
He sits on the board of the Alabama Public Library Service (APLS) yet is also slated to speak next month to a group stoking fear of libraries—fear of ideas, perspectives, and experiences that differ from theirs.
[Wahl has been accused of actively spreading] misinformation about Alabama library collections and publicly suggested revising laws that would allow for prosecution and imprisonment for librarians.”
It cited a recent appearance by Wahl on the Jeff Poor Radio show when the GOP chair lobbied for legislation that would turn librarians into criminals by removing the obscenity exemption that protects libraries and educational institutions from zealots who declare any idea, perspective, and experience that differ from theirs to be “obscene.”
“Libraries are abusing their status here in putting explicit s--ual material in front of children in children’s sections,” Wahl charged on the show without, of course, citing any specific examples. Without offering any truth.
On Wednesday, Wahl tried to temper his earlier remarks and insisted there was no conflict of interest in attending the meeting.
“I work very hard to try to be genuine, to try to be a peacemaker,” Wahl said. “I really do want to get to the bottom line of things and talk about the issues and have a respectful conversation.”
Wahl’s words may conflict with his responsibilities as an APLS board member, and said it was “are happy to hear” Wahl’s clarification. Still, his words certainly conflict with common sense, with the library as an oasis of knowledge.
Of ideas, perspectives, and experiences that differ from theirs.
Attacking them--and good folks like [childhood librarian] Miss Holderness--is obscene.
https://www.al.com/opinion/2023/10/ro...
Iowa's official banned list. The DesMoins register had a longer list by county.https://www.thegazette.com/k/iowa-cit...
Iowa also reports : Indianola teachers 'totally scrambling' in wake of Iowa's book ban law
https://www.indianola-ia.com/news/ind...
"Books have been leaving Indianola High School by the boxful. Crammed into duffel bags, too.
Whatever your opinion on Iowa’s new legislation that bans any book containing any sexual reference from its kindergarten-12th grade school libraries, local teachers have been left “totally scrambling,” according to Kevin Barnes, who teaches English at Indianola High School.
Just days before the beginning of this school year – when he and his colleagues usually put the finishing touches on their classrooms and lessons plans – they learned they needed to tear those things apart, removing any book with so much as a questionable sentence.
“Oh, it was terrible,” said Barnes. “We had a meeting, and we were waiting to hear clarification from our superintendent, which was nothing more, really, than the reading of the passage of the law. … Aside from loss of life and terrible things like that, it was the worst professional day of my career.”
Last May, the Iowa legislature passed the law known as “SF 46,” which states that any K-12 school library must contain “only age-appropriate material,” adding that “‘age-appropriate’ does not include any material with (view spoiler)
The legislation came on the heels of tense discussions, including at more than one Indianola School Board meeting, as to whether graphic material akin to pornography was being taught in local schools – an accusation that Barnes said is false and offensive.
“I’m in this job to help kids and I enjoy working with kids, and I want them to be the best runner they can be, and I want them to be the best person that they can be,” said Barnes, who has taught 30 years and is also Indianola’s boys cross country coach.
“It goes back to, when did I stop having the knowledge to do this?” he continued, referring to teaching. “It’s ironic to me that I have the most experience and knowledge I’ve ever had at this point in my career, and this is the time I’m questioned the most.”
Even still, Barnes said he’d been “naïve and optimistic” over the summer. Perhaps there would be an amendment to the broad-sweeping law. Could he continue to teach a book if, say, he ripped out the one page in a 300-page volume that mentions sex?
The answer, on both counts, had been no. And so came that “terrible day” just before school started when the nine members of the IHS English department dismantled their classroom libraries and curriculums.
To be clear, said Jonathan Bethards, who has taught English at the high school for nine years, there was never a “banned list” issued by the district, nor the state. Rather, teachers were encouraged to cull their own collections, erring on the side of caution.
“I don’t think our school is at fault in any way,” he said. “I don’t blame our administration for their kind of ‘non-answers.’ They’re just doing the best they can to navigate a really ridiculous law, too. The people I’m mad at are our legislators.”
Not all the titles would be classified as “classic” literature, of course. And some did indeed contain descriptions of a s-e-x act.
... "One paragraph in a 300-page book ruins it,” said Barnes, referring to its eligibility to be taught under Iowa’s new law. “Let’s not forget that part is to build sympathy or empathy to teach kids. Like, no one is reading that going ‘p____y.’ … You’re going, ‘Oh, good! She got away.’”
The new legislation also meant an end to a longstanding tradition at the high school: “The Long Walk” by Stephen King, read by students who then wrote papers before and after their own “long walk” on the Summerset Trail.
“This was supposed to be the 13th year of it where we walked to Carlisle and back,” said Barnes. “It is, number one, the best thing I do, and it is vaporized because, yes, there are teens in this book and, yes, they do teen things.”
It isn’t just these losses that are frustrating, said Bethards, but the void they leave behind. He has about nine weeks’ worth of material that he’s “scrambling” to fill, while some of his colleagues have an entire semester.
“We’ve literally had to throw them out,” he said, referring to books previously taught, “and try to find something brand new in the meantime, which is made doubly difficult because now we have even more strict rules for our school board to approve a book.”
“I feel that honest parents have been duped by anti-public school talking points and made to feel as though they’ve lost all power of their kid’s education – and they really haven’t,” Bethards said. “I’ve had students my last nine years whose parents have requested alternate books, and it’s been granted every time, no questions asked.”
Now, Barnes is hoping that Iowa legislators will find an alternative to the new law.
“It’s not just us,” he said of his department at the high school. “It’s every English teacher in every district scrambling. … It’s beyond frustrating – very, very stressful – always trying to figure out, what can we do?”
That is, amid reminders of what they – and their students – have lost.
In Bethards’s classroom hangs a list of the 17 titles that he removed. At the top, he scrawled an epitaph of sorts: “Dangerous books removed from this classroom.”
And in WisconsinMenomonee Falls School District removing more than 30 book titles from high school library
While several of the books chosen to be removed from Menomonee Falls High School are on the Advanced Placement English Literature reading list, Superintendent David Muñoz said the 33 books being removed from circulation are not in compliance with the "sexually explicit content and/or profanity guidelines" set in school policy.
Those policies and guidelines are based on age and grade appropriateness with specific focus on limiting or excluding materials with sexual content and profanity, Muñoz said in a statement. The policy was updated in April 2023.
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Banned books are visible at the Central Library, a branch of the Brooklyn Public Library system.
Banned books are visible at the Central Library, a branch of the Brooklyn Public Library system, in New York City on Thursday, July 7, 2022. The books are banned in several public schools and libraries in the U.S., but young people can read digital versions from anywhere through the library. Ted Shaffrey/AP Photo
Menomonee Falls School District removing more than 30 book titles from high school library
Banned books chosen for 'sexually explicit' content
By Corrinne Hess
Published: Wednesday, October 18, 2023, 2:45pm
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Starting Friday, the students at Menomonee Falls High School won't have access to Margaret Atwood's "The Handmaid's Tale" or Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse-Five." And they won't read Rupi Kaur's poems in "The Sun and Her Flowers."
Those books and 30 others will be pulled from the shelves tomorrow after administrators in the School District of Menomonee Falls have deemed them too "sexually explicit" for students. The decision is the latest in the battle over books and free speech taking place across Wisconsin and the nation.
While several of the books chosen to be removed from Menomonee Falls High School are on the Advanced Placement English Literature reading list, Superintendent David Muñoz said the 33 books being removed from circulation are not in compliance with the "sexually explicit content and/or profanity guidelines" set in school policy.
Those policies and guidelines are based on age and grade appropriateness with specific focus on limiting or excluding materials with sexual content and profanity, Muñoz said in a statement. The policy was updated in April 2023.
The community advocacy group, Grassroots of Menomonee Falls Area learned about the book ban earlier in the week when students who had the books checked out from the library were asked to return the materials by the end of the week.
"It's just another blatant attempt to take resources and material out of the hands of students," said Andrew Guss, co-leader of Grassroots of Menomonee Falls Area. "We’ve circumvented the policies we have in place for book reviews."
Previously, per school board policy, "challenged" books would be reviewed by the Menomonee Falls High School library media specialist, an administrator, a “reconsideration committee” and finally the superintendent before going back into circulation.
Muñoz's statement says these 33 books were reviewed.
Grassroots Menomonee Falls Area released a statement saying all decisions to remove books from the school library should be made transparently and using the established policy.
In June, Republican lawmakers proposed a bill that would target "obscene" materials in Wisconsin school libraries and overturn a law that protects public and private school employees from prosecution for distributing the materials.
https://www.wpr.org/menomonee-falls-s...
‘I Don’t Get to Opt-In to Be Black’: A Scholastic Author Speaks Out Author Tanisia Moore tells Rolling Stone that school book bans allow racist ideology to skate by
https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/...
More bad newsGRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — A lawsuit against Rockford Public Schools wants books removed from libraries in the district, saying the books are sexual in nature.
https://www.woodtv.com/news/kent-coun...
Attorneys made arguments before a Kent County judge Friday morning.
Attorney Helen Brinkman argued the case on behalf of a group that calls itself Parents and Taxpayers Against P____phy in Rockford Public Schools.
“The First Amendment has never allowed children access to this type of material. This is not a First Amendment case,” Brinkman said. “It is a felony in the state of Michigan to provide this material to minors.”
The lawsuit mentioned several books that have been frequently challenged in libraries across the country. It alleged that the school and its leaders have committed a felony by having multiple books in its collections that are sexual in nature and making them available to minors.
The district said parents can have any book blocked from being checked out by their students, but it hasn’t received any formal challenges about these books.
“There are two anonymous plaintiffs, Jane Doe and John Doe. The allegations are only that they’re former students of Rockford Public Schools. They’re not current students,” said attorney Steve van Stempvoort, who was representing the district.
Brinkman argued that the books in the library are sex education books and fall under state law that requires notification of parents.
Superintendent Steve Matthews said the books are not part of the curriculum.
“These books are not required books. They’re books that students can check out, and they appeal to a broad cross section of our student population,” Matthews said. “So we don’t view any of them as inappropriate.
“These books are not required books. They’re books that students can check out, and they appeal to a broad cross section of our student population,” Matthews said. “So we don’t view any of them as inappropriate or, as the lawsuit suggests, pornographic.”
The superintendent said the district is following policy consistent with the First Amendment. Matthews, who said he has read many of the books in question, argued that the portions of the books highlighted in the lawsuit do not reflect the material in full.
“You can single out any single passage and make it without context seem worse than it is,” Matthews said. “But in the context of the total book — I think if people would take the time to read them, they would understand that for some students, these are meaningful books.”
His investigation doesn't make sense. I'm not sure what the policy is in schools but in public libraries, patron records are wiped from computers and not available without a police warrant. Has it occurred to him that the long wait lists are because these are popular books? They're mentioned in the media and people are curious? If he is correct, the library staff has a lot of explaining to do._______________________________________________
Pennridge (Penn.) ordered to produce library records, pay legal fees for dad challenging book removals
A Common Pleas Court judge sided with father Darren Laustsen in his battle for records of library books checked out by staff members, finding the district manipulated reports in a "coverup."
More than a year after he tried to determine whether the Pennridge School District had been secretly banning books, Darren Laustsen may finally get an answer.
A Common Pleas Court judge on Friday sided with Laustsen, who has a child in the Pennridge district, in his battle for records of library books checked out by staff members. The judge, Jordan Yeager, ordered the district to both give Laustsen the records he sought last October and pay his lawyer’s fees, which are still being finalized.
But the decision went further than an order to turn over information. Yeager said the district had not just failed to respond to Laustsen, but had deliberately hidden books checked out by staff — after administrators had acknowledged to Laustsen that they were checking out books to review them under a new school board policy prohibiting “sexualized content.”
“The district altered the records that were the subject of the request, thwarted public access to public information, and effectuated a cover-up of faculty, administrators, and other non-students’ removal of books from Pennridge High School’s library shelves,” Yeager wrote.
The judge also quoted George Orwell’s 1984 — “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past” — writing that Pennridge had “produced a manipulated” checkout report in “an attempt to control the past.”
The bluntly worded decision doesn’t resolve the bigger question about what books Pennridge has pulled under the “sexualized content” policy, which the Bucks County district passed last year after a similar policy was adopted by the Central Bucks School District.
Laustsen has already reached his own conclusions about more than a dozen books he believes have been effectively banned from Pennridge High School: Through searches of the district’s online card catalog, he identified books frequently targeted by such groups as Moms for Liberty that were checked out for unusually long periods before winding up on library “weeding” lists — proposed to be discarded for such reasons as “infrequent use.”
But to him and his lawyer, the ruling made a strong statement about the lengths the district went to in an effort to cover up its actions.
“They lied to a parent. They’re lying to taxpayers about what they’re doing,” said Joy Ramsingh, who represented Laustsen. “It’s just tremendously sad to me. I think the school has really let down the community.”
Mod
Honestly, I wish that the children of that father would keep bringing in books he finds offensive to simply refuse to cease doing that. But I guess that would probably be considered the fault to the library as well by the IDIOT judge.
Manybooks wrote: "Honestly, I wish that the children of that father would keep bringing in books he finds offensive to simply refuse to cease doing that. But I guess that would probably be considered the fault to the library as well by the IDIOT judge..."No, the father isn't the one who finds the books offensive. He's investigating whether the library quietly removed the books on Moms for Liberty's hit list. It's a confusing investigation that doesn't make sense.
Very sad for the librarians but hooray for librarians!Opinion piece from Florida
Inside a Florida school librarian convention, the revolution is quiet
Librarians at the Tampa Convention Center should feel safe. They don’t.
And while the librarians should have spent their weekend here focused on workshops about student motivation and copyrights and STEM and instructional standards, they found themselves guarded, participating in a sort of quiet subterfuge.
If you don’t believe librarians are legitimately afraid of being harassed or worse, consider this. On Friday, the convention was planning a Right to Read Rally, not on the streets where others could see, but inside the convention center. The decision was born out of real concern; a conference organizer named Amanda Jones said she’d been called those awful names mentioned above, even threatened with death.
But the exchange of information was still happening in full force. Librarians from Florida sat on the floor, snacking with friends from South Carolina and California. They talked freely, but when I asked for their names, their eyes got wide. They wished they could, they said, but comments had to go through school channels.
Some of them used vacation and sick time to come. One librarian from Bay County said her principal sent her to Tampa in a desperate bid for ideas on how to coexist with the reality of Moms for Liberty. Another librarian said she’d resorted to hiding controversial books in her office for when a student might need them. Sometimes, titles get checked out and mysteriously never return, if you catch the drift.
“It makes me really sad to see the way that my pu“It makes me really sad to see the way that my public school colleagues are being affected by the legislation and how it’s so much harder for them because they don’t want to lose their jobs,” said Diana Rendina, a teacher and librarian from Tampa Prep. “Ultimately, we just want our kids to read and to be happy, and it’s hard to do that with the legislation the way it is.”
https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2023...
Ron DeSantis rejects book rating system pitchhttps://floridapolitics.com/archives/...
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While I don't agree with putting ratings on books, I don't agree with DenSantis's plan of purging all the books he and his fascist supporters find objectionable. This wannabe dictator still thinks book bans are a hoax because books are still available to be purchased. He doesn't take into consideration people who lack money to buy books, people who don't speak enough English to buy English language books, kids who are afraid of what their parents will do to them if they find out their kid is LGBTQ+ but desperately need answers and to find someone out there like them.
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Bad news in KentuckyAgainst KDE guidance, Boyle County Schools removes books they say in compliance with SB 150
“It is an act of cowardice and it is an act of hatred,” said Willie Carver, and educator and LGBTQ advocate.
More than 100 books were removed from library shelves in Boyle County Schools over the past few months. Superintendent Mark Wade said they’ve done this in compliance with Senate Bill 150. The controversial bill that bans gender-affirming health care for minors and prohibits teachings on gender and sexuality in the classroom.
“It didn’t even occur to us that a school would try to do this because it’s so outside of what the bill is clearly about,” Carver said.
The Kentucky Department of Education agrees. As an educator and an LGBTQ advocate, Willie Carver said books on sex education to books portraying families with LGBTQ members have been taken off the shelves at the high school, as well as books like ‘Julian Is a Mermaid’, a picture book about a boy who wants to become a mermaid, have been taken off the shelves at the lower levels.
“If we were to see this spread to other schools, what we’re going to see in lots of schools is kids who sit in a room, eight hours a day, nine, 10 months out of the year, and they’re told ‘You don’t belong here. There’s no space for you.’ It’s like it’s illegal to exist.”
KDE Spokesperson Toni Tatman said in a statement that ‘SB 150 does not provide for the removal of library media resources from a school library.’
In response, Wade said ‘School libraries are instructional support entities within our school. As such, {they} operate differently than the public library system.’
Carver fears this could have dangerous and potentially deadly, consequences.
“I think this can kill children. And I don’t say that lightly.”
https://www.wkyt.com/2023/10/20/again...
In Flemington/Raritan, New Jersey Board of Education Responds to Concerns about New Library Policy Discussionshe Flemington-Raritan Regional Board of Education adopted revised school library resource policies and regulations (P. 2530, R. 2530, and R. 2530.01) and a new public complaints and grievances policy and regulation (P. 9130 and R. 9130).
While the new policies and regulations make clear what materials are acceptable to the district and establish a process for residents to address any concerns related to resource materials, it’s not without controversy.
Resource or research materials are not designated student textbooks but sources of information such as reference books, fiction and nonfiction books, maps, pamphlets, periodicals, pictures, online or digital references and audio and audio-visual materials.
The library resource policies and regulations outline the selection process, selection standards for what makes materials acceptable to the district and the removal of resource materials, such as the procedure for citizens to request the reconsideration of resource materials and instructional resources.
However, Kent Davis, a resident of the Flemington-Raritan School District (FRSD), asked for more transparency from the board of education (BOE) when handling or addressing controversial topics by highlighting such issues on the agenda and giving clear input during BOE meetings, something he felt was lacking when the board approved the new resource policies and regulations on Aug. 28.
As part of the library resource selection standards, materials must be suited to students' varied interests, abilities, reading levels and maturation levels and, where possible, provide major opposing views on controversial issues for critical reading and thinking, and may be inclusive of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity or expression, religion, disability or socioeconomic status.
They must also be factually accurate and of genuine literary or artistic value, appropriate to their intended uses and longevity, align with the curriculum adopted by the board and not contain obscene material per NJ Revised Statute 2C:34-3.
"The goal of the policy committee was to be mindful of the age of students that are in Flemington-Raritan Regional School District, students that are in grades kindergarten through eighth grade,” said Superintendent Dr. Kari McGann, adding that the board had been working on the library resource policies for months, and mentioned them in committee reports multiple times before adopting them.
During the Aug. 28 meeting, the board publicly shared the concerns FRSD school media specialists and librarians had with the revisions, which librarians originally shared with the policy committee during a committee meeting. Their primary concern was the NJ Revised Statute (2C:34-3) – a New Jersey Criminal Code – listed on the Instructional Resources Challenge form because they believed it was threatening to librarians.
During the August meeting, board member Susan Mitcheltree asked why the committee included a criminal code in the library resource policy and regulation.
"I've never seen it in school policies before," she said. "So, I'm just asking why."
Policy committee member Jaclyn Arce said the code defines an acceptable resource material by clarifying obscenity, and the librarians played an instrumental role in developing the resource policies.
During the revision process, McGann said, the board was specific regarding policy protocols and took time to consider individuals in the community who might want to make a complaint about resource materials, ”that these individuals must have students in our district, and that we would not act on anonymous complaints,” she said.
"Our intent was to have a proactive approach on a controversial topic to establish a clear process so that materials were not excluded solely on the basis that they may contain potentially controversial information and also be mindful of the age of our students in Flemington-Raritan," she added.
As a result, McGann and the policy committee worked together to set up a process that would trigger a review committee to consider citizen concerns about instructional materials brought to the attention of the board. They also created a Citizens Request for Reconsideration of Instructional Materials form.
The form and policies provide step-by-step instructions for citizens concerned about instructional materials while establishing committee members to serve on a hearing committee and providing steps for the hearing committee and the board of education to address citizen concerns.
"The board intends to be completely transparent with the public in its actions, as a result of policies put into place," said McGann.
If a parent has a complaint about instructional materials, the board will take a public vote to affirm or reject the superintendent's recommendation on whether to accept a hearing committee's recommendation to remove a specific book title or educational material.
https://www.tapinto.net/towns/fleming...
Very sensible policy. Everyone else should follow suit and copy them. This is how we choose books, if you are a parent/guardian here's how you object to said books, here's what we'll do about it and work with you and your child.
CHARLESTON COUNTY, S.C. (WCIV) — An ongoing crisis in the classroom is the debate on which books should be allowed in school libraries.The State Board of Education is considering drafting a new regulation addressing school and classroom library materials.
The State School Board governs the selection process for textbooks, not the books for school or classroom libraries.
Those are governed by local school boards.
"To make content decisions about classroom and school libraries is really a naked form of censorship," Steve Nuzum, board member for SC for ED, said.
Educators told News 4 that the selection of library and classroom materials should stay at the local level.
"That's why we elect local school boards and boards of trustees because those have always been local decisions with local funds," Nuzum said.
"There are parameters, there are guidelines that we follow. And so it's never as individualized. I think as people believe it is," Cassie Owens, Intellectual Freedom Chair for the South Carolina Association of School Librarians, said.
"The people who should be involved in decisions about local school board issues are people who live in the community. That includes parents and taxpayers. That includes teachers and administrators, and it doesn't really have a place for the state board," Nuzum said.
Librarians and educators are asking for transparency.
"Librarians are the experts here, and as far as we know, none of those groups have been consulted in the process of developing whatever these regulations might be," Nuzum said.
"If everyone has a voice at that table if everyone's concerns are being heard, then it will make more sense to the people that it's going to affect," Owens said.
Nuzum said a parent not wanting their child to read a book is not a justification to ban it for the entire state. He said being against censorship is not anti-parent involvement.
"I don't think anyone's against parental involvement and what children are reading, and I think that that should be applauded. Parents, asking their children questions about what they're reading and reading with them. I know as an English teacher is a huge, huge boon for literacy, and parent involvement is something that everyone wants," Nuzum said.
https://abcnews4.com/news/local/debat...
The Mat-Su, Alaska Borough School District’s Library Advisory Committee evaluated three books at its October meeting last week.Only one YA book Flamer was up for review. The vote on whether the book violates state was split five votes to five. Six members voted to allow the book in high school libraries, only. Four voted to remove it from all school libraries.
Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood is sometimes considered YA.
four members voted to retain the book at the high school level only, three voted for the book to be allowed in middle and high school libraries, and three voted to not allow it in any school libraries.
The committee’s votes are not binding. They are recommendations to the Mat-Su Borough School Board, who will make the ultimate decision on each book at a later date.
In November they will review The Perks of Being a Wallflower.
Ironically, the ADULT books are recommended to stay.
https://ktna.org/2023/10/school-distr...
Back to South CarolinaBeaufort County book review committees voted Wednesday night to return 11 library books previously on grade 9 to 12 shelves back to those shelves.
It has taken nearly a year to review 85 of the nearly 100 books removed from shelves in October of last year. Of those 85, four have been banned:
“The Haters” by Jesse Andrews, (YA)
"Nineteen Minutes” by Jodi Picoult, (New adult)
“It Ends With Us” by Colleen Hoover (new adult)
and “Forever for a Year” by B.T. Gottfried. (YA).
Of the 77 committee members who should have attended last night, 60 were present, according to District Spokesperson Candace Burder. She said nine of the 11 committees had more than half their members present. From previous review committee sessions, over 17% of participants tapped to decide on the books haven’t shown up, according to an Island Packet and Beaufort Gazette analysis of committee attendance.
The books the committees reviewed and returned to grades 9 to 12 last night are:
“All Boys Aren’t Blue” by George M. Johnson
“Confess: A Novel” by Colleen Hoover (adult)
“Cool for the Summer” by Dahlia Adler (YA)
“Half of a Yellow Sun” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (adult)
“Hopeless” by Colleen Hoover (New Adult/Adult)
“Kingdom of Ash” by Sarah J. Maas (new adult)
“Lolita” by Vladimir Nabokov (wow! Surprised they let that one through).
“November 9” by Colleen Hoover (adult)
“Red at the Bone” by Jacqueline Woodson (adult)
“The Duff” by Kody Keplinger (YA)
“Tower of Dawn” by Sarah J. Maas (new adult)
The final decision on the books will be made by the board if any appeals are filed by the original complainants
https://www.aol.com/beaufort-county-s...
Children's Books
Books mentioned in this topic
Out of the Blue (other topics)The Princess in Black and the Prince in Pink (other topics)
My Rainbow (other topics)
Butt or Face? Volume 3: Super Gross Butts (other topics)
The Day the Books Disappeared (other topics)
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Jodi Picoult (other topics)Sarah J. Maas (other topics)
Ellen Hopkins (other topics)
Jodi Picoult (other topics)
Scott Stuart (other topics)
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American Library Association President Emily Drabinski’s participation in a state library conference in Florence drew protestors on Friday.
A group of Northern Kentucky Moms for Liberty members stood on the sidewalk in front of the Hilton Cincinnati Airport Hilton Hotel entrance, displaying signs representing opposition to what they deemed American Library Association policies.
Drabinski, a critical pedagogy librarian at the City University of New York Graduate Center, served as the featured speaker during Friday morning’s 2023 Kentucky Library Association Conference session at the hotel.
“We are trained, we have master’s degrees,” Drabinski said. “Many of us have been working in libraries for decades and the decisions that we make are professional ones.”
The American Library Association is a nonpartisan organization committed to library services for everyone in every community – and that is the core of its work, Drabinski said.
“It’s not about me and who I am,” Drabinski said. “ALA has 40,000 members from all across the country. We represent all different kinds of people, but what unites all of us is a commitment to American libraries.”
Liar of the day: Moms for Liberty Campbell County Chapter Chair Mirna Eads
Moms for Liberty is examining avenues to have the American Library Association Kentucky affiliation removed, Eads said.
“Moms for Liberty does not go after public libraries because it is a free speech ordeal,” Eads said. “We just go after-school libraries and ensure that we’re trying to get as many of the pornographic books removed.”
It is important for library personnel to assemble and discuss best practices for serving communities, Drabinski said regarding the conference.
“We do good work in our communities and it’s important for us to remember that and important for the public to know that,” Drabinski said. “We’re committed public servants and the opportunity to work together to enhance services for everyone in our communities is a precious one.”
https://linknky.com/news/2023/10/06/n...