Banned Books discussion
BANNED/CHALLENGED
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Oh no! They might LEARN something!
(Deep sigh)People never cease to amaze/disgust me.
How can you say something about this? Wow! Hmm, Ah, Well. How can you not feel like you are taking things just a little too far? The dictionary. Come on people.
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Ok, to be realistic...not all administrators/teachers/principals are like that. Those are not the people running MY schools.
No one's saying that all of them are like that, but even these pockets of ignorance are disheartening.
It's funny because I teach in a Catholic school and though there are books we choose not to teach, we are a pretty censorship-free zone. I don't understand some of the books which school districts choose to ban. I especially don't understand when it's books they've never even read before agreeing to a banning. I definitely don't understand banning the dictionary...
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The reason it's banned is litterally what I said in the topic title, because children might learn something. Honestly, how else do you know that "bitch" is a female dog or "faggot" is a bundle of sticks? As kids, my friends and I looked those words up in the dictionary, and we snickered and giggled and continued to get in trouble at school or home for using those words. Amazingly enough, we managed to make it to adulthood without becoming serial killers; the dictionary did not ruin us.
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Ignorance and stupidity are both cause for concern. I always considered someone ignorant if they simply were not informed or educated about a particular subject, for example I am ignorant when it comes the quantum physics, I just don't know about it. Stupidity comes after a person is taught something and then does something to the contrary, like not playing in traffic because it's dangerous but going out and becoming a human speed bump.
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And, a lot of people are not only as Kelly states purposefully ignorant, they are proud of the fact. You cannot know everything and maybe it is impossible to know everything. But, it is a sign of intelligence to be aware of this fact and to not only accept this as a given, but to also strive to the best of your ability to constantly and forever further your knowledge of the world. Education is a lifelong process; it does not stop when you reach adulthood (or, rather, it should not stop when you reach adulthood). Also, parents, teachers, and other adult figures of authority should realise that children are not stupid, that you can learn from them just like they can learn from you.
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Gundula, I agree that education is a lifelong process. Just because it isn't possible to know everything doesn't mean one shouldn't try to learn as much of everything as possible.Kelly, I'm with you on becoming more and more aware of truly little I know. I work in a place where I am surrounded by knowledge and I therefore constantly learn new things. Plus, everyone I work with has their own area of interest so we all constantly teach each other new things.
I think I would go completely insane without a dictionary. I know that I personally own at least two in English and one in French. The real problem with trying to ban a dictionary is that kids will find the words that they are being "protected" from one way or another. In an age of advancing technology there is always a way to find them. I use Google to define words if I don't know the meaning of something and I'm not near a dictionary. When so many kids are getting cell phone before they hit puberty, there really isn't a way to stop them from using Google Texts to find a definition, unless they don't have texting.
I wonder why people still believe that ignorance is bliss.
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One of the reasons that this is truly sad and appalling is that dictionaries are absolutely critical in schools for this reason. Most schools, my son's included, have a variety of internet filters on the computers. For example, when my son was learning about the Age of Exploration, they couldn't look up the word "sextant" (A sextant is an instrument used to measure the angle between any two visible objects. Its primary use is to determine the angle between a celestial object and the horizon which is known as the altitude. ). You can guess why. So, even though all of the classes have computers, they still NEED dictionaries.
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This would be funny, if it weren't so ridiculous. A few years ago, I was downloading some German pop music from the I-Store to my I-pod, and they partially bleeped out the title of the Udo Jürgens song "Aber bitte mit Sahne" (but, with whipped cream on top, please, is a rough translation); it's a 70s song about the German obsession with having cake and whipped cream for coffee time, harmless, silly and fun. But, on my music lists, the title always appears as "Aber b***e mit Sahne." I could not figure out why, but then I wondered if the "bitte" (please, in German) was filtered because it looks like a bit like "tits" (which, in German, is "Titte"), anyway, totally stupid, in my opinion (and I've had other German songs with "bitte" in the title being automatically censored as well).
Kelly wrote: "I live in fear of ignorance and these people want to make their children as ignorant as they are."What's disgusting to me is that one or two parents file a complaint and it seems without consent of the rest of the parents, things are not being taught.
LMAO! I hadn’t heard that the dictionary has been banned. I've got to say... it was such a relief to me when I found the word fellatio in the dictionary. For one, it sounds so much nicer when spoken than its modern synonym. Second, there are a lot of people who don't know what it means so I'm less likely to offend by saying it... Of course, I'm more inclined to get people to admit to performing fellatio for this reason as well.
Rock ON Dictionary!
Heidi wrote: "LMAO! I hadn’t heard that the dictionary has been banned. I've got to say... it was such a relief to me when I found the word fellatio in the dictionary. For one, it sounds so much nicer when s..."
huh...it's a noun, i was thinking it would be a verb...
;P
WOW. Maybe the movie Idiocracy is right even though its fictional, I wouldn't doubt it. This article really does disgust me however because in some weird way it seems just another way to corrupt and control children. I can understand their children not being exposed to certain elements and there is a fine line somewhere between there. But in a way its allowing ignorance because ignorance grows out of being not informed about certain subjects and then people wonder why we grow in a society of hatred.
I mean you can teach children about all the worst subjects that people wouldn't want to teach their kids but it just depends on how you do it. There is a right way to teach kids about those kinds of subjects without making it biased or ignorant.
"Some 902 students attend Oak Meadows Elementary, a K-5 school located in a demographically diverse, inland city of 70,000. The school is ranked highly by parents. Like others in the district, it emphasizes cutting-edge technology as part of its curriculum, such as "virtual field trips."
VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS??
REALLY?
Wow now we know why most people are lazy now in days. I think the real experience is a good thing for kids not just sitting around watching a computer screen saying "oh look a Zebra" (as in a field trip to a virtual zoo would do anything for kids.)
Still doesn't teach tolerance though.
WOW.
Gundula wrote: "Shay wrote: "One of the reasons that this is truly sad and appalling is that dictionaries are absolutely critical in schools for this reason. Most schools, my son's included, have a variety of inte..."LOL. I did the same thing except with Russian music (I cant even understand it but I love Russian music for some reason.)
And the other day I went on my youtube channel and half my songs were deleted with a warning saying "we're sorry these songs are not available in your country, welcome to Russia!"
LOL. Ironically I tried to go on to music channels and I got this other warning saying the Russian Federation has blocked these websites and then it says:
Welcome to Russia!
LOL.
Atlas wrote: "WOW. Maybe the movie Idiocracy is right even though its fictional, I wouldn't doubt it. This article really does disgust me however because in some weird way it seems just another way to corrupt an..."Are you sure about that? I think that we may be just a few generations away from Idiocracy. My library has 40 copies of the book Shutter Island, many of which are available and on the shelves. It has 95 copies of the movie Shutter Island and 600 requests for it. It has about 6 copies of a book longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and 50 copies of The Best of the World Wide Wrestling 2009 (something like that) with 300 people waiting for it.
Shay wrote: "Atlas wrote: "WOW. Maybe the movie Idiocracy is right even though its fictional, I wouldn't doubt it. This article really does disgust me however because in some weird way it seems just another way..."Being a librarian I don't like to point the finger but sometimes I think a library's desire to 'serve the community' drives them away from books.
I recently went to a seminar where out of 10 librarians only 2 discussed how their library was promoting actual reading.
We are going back to basics. No games on the computers and only project work for the under 18s. We also reaaranged the children's section to make it more accessible to teenage girls.
Suddenly we have less people hanging around the library but more subscribers and more books taken out.
And several inveterate gamers have been turned into book lovers.
We are part of a community centre so there are plenty of place to 'hang and chat' and the library has returned to being a quiet refuge for people who want to read.
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When I was younger, I used to actually often sit at the library to read (well, I also did that at university), but I've stopped doing that since the noises of computer games really distract me when I'm reading. I really LOVE the fact that you have removed games from the computers, I think more libraries should be doing that. Nothing against computer games, but I really do not think that the library is the place to play them, the library should be about books and reading.
I'm personally not a fan of all the DVD's that libraries seem to be carrying now a days either...but I don't mind audiobooks (i mean, they are books, even if you are listening to them). I do like that libraries are starting to carry ebooks too, if you use one of the various e-readers
Gundula wrote: "Esther wrote: "Shay wrote: "Atlas wrote: "WOW. Maybe the movie Idiocracy is right even though its fictional, I wouldn't doubt it. This article really does disgust me however because in some weird w..."At my library we have a real simple solution to any sound that may come from computer use, we just have headphones plugged in. We don't have computer games loaded on our computers, but there are plenty of website games that the kids can play, for entertainment and for education sake.
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I guess that would work, but until it gets quieter at my public library, I will generally only use it to pick up books.
Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "I'm personally not a fan of all the DVD's that libraries seem to be carrying now a days either...but I don't mind audiobooks (i mean, they are books, even if you are listening to them). I do like ..."Audiobooks are different. I know people check them out who don't "need" them, but people with failing or no eyesight need them. As such, we need to supply things that make reading materials accessible to people who have limitations. I'm sure no one here has any problem with this or books in braille, large print, etc.
I don't "need" audiobooks but I use them...i have an hours commute to work each day and there is only so much talk-radio I can do (especially driving in DC)
Esther, my librarians are trying. They always have new displays with a rotating stock of books, even audio books. (For the people for whom real books are kryptonite.) Not books like War and Peace either. What I would consider commercial release, easy to read books, like Patterson, Koontz, etc. They put out stuff, like Shutter Island, when the DVD rolls out, on and on. But, I see very few people who are checking out their maximum amount of DVD's ever check out a book, not one measly book. The really disgusting, maddening thing is when they have kids in tow, no books for the kids, but a stack of DVD's. All while the library has cut the amount of children's books they buy by 30-50%. (That's why I sound so bitter and hateful and snobby. Sorry, I'm furious.)
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That really is annoying. You know, my library also won't accept donations, even of brand new children's books that have only been read once, by me. I had to actually purchase a few picture books earlier this year because for my picture book club reads in the Children's Literature Group, some of the titles were not available at the library, really top-notch children's books like Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez and Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale. I tried to donate these to our local library because not only are the books brand new, but they are titles that "should" be in the library, but the library will not accept "any" donations of books (and I think they are also not obtaining as many children's books as before, so I honestly don't understand their "reasoning").
i'm curious, why does your library not accept donations? I know my old one used to - not sure about my new one since I moved...I've had to buy some random books for a challenge I'm doing and was going to hopefully donate them when I finish with them
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Well, they did not really explain the reason, just that it was their policy not to accept donations. I wonder if they had maybe received inappropriate material in the past, or books that were of questionable quality, but that is their policy now. I've talked to others on this site whose libraries have similar policies. Some will not accept any books, while others will accept book donations, but will then sell them at library sales. I guess you should check what the policy is at your own library. I'm actually now considering sending those picture books to my brother and sister who live in Europe. Their children go to international schools and they are always happy to get English children's books donated to their libraries.
You could also donate them to a local elementary school. Maybe their library would take it, or one of the teachers would. I'm pretty sure most school districts have an official charity set up so you may be able to get a receipt for taxes. If they have no official means to "accept" the book, my son's school has a sister school that they raise book donations for twice a year. Once is a straight donation to the library and the other is a "book store" for the students.
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Thanks for the information. I was also wondering if I should maybe donate them to the local Salvation Army for their Christmas toy drives. Books can be so expensive and I'm sure that many children would appreciate books for Christmas.
My school district also has an official district wide charity. You can donate and a few time a year, they open a "store" to teachers. Each teacher has a certain amount of credit to "buy" things. (All free, of course) My district is hardly the brain trust of education, so they probably stole this idea from someone else. I was a teacher and I probably spent at least $1000 a year on stuff, so I just know that if you could find a teacher, they would be grateful and find a use.
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I'll do some research, don't know any teachers, locally, as I have not lived in the areas that long yet, but thanks for the ideas. When I was teaching college German, I also spent a lot of extra funds on teaching materials, I know, teaching requires not just imagination, but funds (as, no teachers will simply rely on the textbook to teach, or rather, should simply rely on the textbook to teach).
you might also try military bases in the area...there is a program for deployed troops where they can pick books and film themselves reading them for their kids...i'm not sure who runs it, but they might be interested in donations
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I will see what I can do, some of the picture books I actually wound not mind keeping, but, I actually have more books than furniture at my house right now and I keep tripping over all of my books. Also, I think some of these books really deserve to be or need to be shared.
That program you talked about sounds really amazing. Do you know if it is available in Canada is well?
i'm not sure...I think,(we had some non US guys with us on base), that they were able to use it - but its been a while...it might be run by the USOGundula wrote: "Delicious Dee Challenge Addict wrote: "you might also try military bases in the area...there is a program for deployed troops where they can pick books and film themselves reading them for their ki..."
As long as we're on the subject of donating books, I have some information to share. The details are here:
http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/bookdrive
I've participated in NaNoWriMo for a few years and donate to the cause as well. There are local chapters / groups in United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom that are participating, so it may be easier to donate books than you think!
I'm looking forward to thinning a bit of my collection to aid the cause.
http://www.nanowrimo.org/eng/bookdrive
I've participated in NaNoWriMo for a few years and donate to the cause as well. There are local chapters / groups in United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom that are participating, so it may be easier to donate books than you think!
I'm looking forward to thinning a bit of my collection to aid the cause.
As a libraian I have to add my two cents. I noticed that Esther made a comment about her library not being a Community Center. Which might be fine for her area since they already have one. In my area there are not enough places for the kids to go so the library does become the Community Center. The books are important but, also equally important is enriching the lives of our patrons who don't have easy acess to the extras that suburban kids get.Such as too much video games well time to teach them what a board game is. Which is what I do with my board game club. I also teach theater arts so some of the kids get some exposure to acting. We do also have kids play video games (have to use headphones for sound). The reality of our area is some people can't afford the internet or a computer. It is also better to have the kids in the library rather than on the streets where the gangs are.
There is also the fact that if you can get them into the library you have a better chance to getting to know them and perhaps influencing them. Such as getting them into an acting class, playing a board game, doing arts and crafts, and yes even pointing out a good book.
As for the moives did you ever try to get a movie that was older than the ninties from Blockbuster? It was getting impossible. You had to have acess to a private video store to get any movie that was a little bit different. Which was fine if you lived in such an area but, there are not many of them. As for cable that is very expansive and in people in my area can't afford it.
That is why libaries do collect videos and Dvds. I agree hundreds copies of one movie is too much. Didn't they learn anything from Blockbuster? However when I look at the DVD collection in my libary it is pleasing to see classic 1930's and 1940's movies there as well as some quirky hard to get stuff. Like an Ed Wood moive or The Great Rupert. As for the kids it is important to give parnets acess to good family entertainment so they are not stuck with just what is currently on.
And again if you get people into the library it is easier to talk to them, offer advice, and show them options. We are also more than just books. We also where people meet to solve problems - Gang prevention, learning disablities, grandparnets raising grandchildren etc.
As for the library not acceepting books. It could be a space problem. Libraries like to buy books so they can manage the collection and have control of it. A new Ceser Chez book maybe grand but, if a library already has eight other books on Cesear Chez they might not what another one.
As for school assignments don't get me started. The fact is libaries don't have ESP. If a school refuses to talk to a library about what they want to assign kids then it becomes very difficult and frustrating for the library to support the school. Especially with unreasonable request such as the library have sixty copies of one books so a whole grade can read it. Even better put a out of print book on a required reading list.
I sorry for sounding off but, reading these some of these posts I detected a little middle class snobbery. Reminded me of a scence My Fellow Americans when James Garner and Jack Lemon were looking down they noses because the people who were giving them a car ride were such idoits. That was until the wife pointed out that the car was not a car it was their home.
Which is why I don't see my job as a libraian as being the custodian of a museum of books. It is for me to find ways to become a virbant center for people offering them a place of enrichment and bridging the information divide. So, the world is is little less haves and have nots.
Pandora Kat wrote: "As a libraian I have to add my two cents. I noticed that Esther made a comment about her library not being a Community Center. Which might be fine for her area since they already have one. In my..."Points well made. As for computer games, after I helped my children pick out books, when they were young, it was nice to let them play for the 15 minute limit while I picked out my books. My son picks out his books quickly, my daughter takes her time. He can play while she looks. I think there are marketing opportunities for kids and adults who like video games. Put up a display of graphic novels near the computer stations to lure them into the books.
Banned Books
Books mentioned in this topic
City of Light, City of Dark (other topics)Malice (other topics)
Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez (other topics)
Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale (other topics)
http://www.aolnews.com/nation/article...