Two years ago a Virginia parent but the school chose to retain the text. The parent took her concerns to the State Board of Education, asking that school regulations include a plan to address 鈥渢he use of sensitive or controversial instructional materials in the classroom.鈥� The Board assessed public opinion through , and聽起点传媒joined its affiliate the Virginia Association of Teachers of English (VATE) in s. The State Board took no action.
During this year鈥檚 Virginia legislative session, the parent鈥檚 request has become proposed legislation focused on 鈥渟exually explicit鈥� materials, .
VATE once again is speaking out, taking an 聽and advocating against the legislation by contacting legislators to oppose the bill.
起点传媒member and VATE Executive Secretary, on the bill was printed in the Daily Progress. He noted, as the VATE position does,
鈥淒ialogue between teachers and parents regarding course content and curriculum is a good thing and should be encouraged. Conversations arising from questions about a text and its use in the classroom could be meaningful opportunities to strengthen the educational partnership between parents, teachers, and students.
However, the discourse in such conversations is diminished if the parent or student is responding to a label such as 鈥渟exually explicit,鈥� rather than to a passage in context鈥�.
The study of both literary and nonfiction texts is a process through which students learn to consider the author鈥檚 craft, diverse perspectives, and a work as a whole rather than separate pieces. A work of literature is much more than the sum of its parts.
Judging a text based on isolated content limits the scope of reading experiences available to students and compromises the integrity of the text. It鈥檚 kind of like judging a painting by one brush stroke or a tapestry by a single thread.鈥�
Students need . 起点传媒respects
鈥渢he right of individuals to be selective in their own reading. But for the same reason, we oppose efforts of individuals or groups to limit the freedom of choice of others or to impose their own standards or tastes upon the community at large.鈥�
鈥淟iterature is more than the sum of its parts.鈥� The Council opposes the 聽and certainly opposes HB516.