Anonymous Patron writes ” that British schools are looking at giving the time-honored classics a backseat in the classroom according to this Sunday Times (UK) article.
In their place, children may be required to study a greater range of modern writers and those who reflect the ethnically diverse nature of modern Britain such as the prize-winning black author Andrea Levy.
Other potential candidates for the new list include fantasy writers Tolkien and Philip Pullman, who many believe more closely reflect the reading tastes of children than the current list.
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Britain does this well
In Canada, we see a lot of British books and my perception is that the country has been publishing kids’ books with multi-ethnic characters long before the U.S. or Canada got in on the act to any degree. This is just one more recognition that their population has been changing drastically over the years. I would hate to see some of the classics go, but it is nice to see new “classics” come in.
I agree a bit…
I agree that we need to redefine what is classic every so often (not every ten years, but every 100 years minimum) or risk not including works that deserve to be.
eh
I can see Tolkien. I’m not sure about Pullman. The Golden Compass series was certainly impressive but it also leaves you with the equivalent of a bad taste in your mouth. Honestly I’d probably only recommend it to adults.
Do we fear change?
I am glad to hear that the literary classics are taking a bit of a backseat to make room for classroom choice. I think it would be a great loss to forget “the classics” altogether, but certainly they ought to be up for review at this point! Variety ne’er hurt anyone…
If what’s important is to get people reading, than they should be aloud to start wherever they are comfortable, not always tossing people in with harder to read period literature.
On the one hand, I am really glad I was expossed to Shakespear in school. On the other hand, school reading lists certainly need to be revamped!
Re:Pullman
I’d agree about Pullman: nice read, but certainly not worthy of “classics” status in my opion.
Given the small number of books overall that can be covered in one lifetime (let alone 12 years of school), I wouldn’t really bother with the His Dark Matters Trilogy.
a good mix is necessary
There’s so much valuable literature being written and published these days that it’s sad when schools don’t cover it. On the other hand, an understanding of society is helped by knowledge of the canon, whether or not you agree that the canon itself represents anything positive. Unfortunately, there are only so many hours in the school year, and important books — both classic and contemporary — will be missed. But a good mix of both is important.
That being said, it drives me up the wall when high schools ignore fantastic YA literature for a 100% focus on adult classics. Some Dickens is important, sure, but do you really need to read a Dickens a year and never read Speak or Smack or some such?
Sounds sensible to me
Nothing wrong with reading a Dickens or Shakespeare but it should be about more than just reading certain books it should also be about getting people to want to read, and by that I mean read for leisure as well as for study.
Maybe getting schoolchildren interested in a whole range of books in less depth than monotonously reading or over analysing a ‘classic’ is the way to go?
Re:I agree a bit…
Time, quality of writing, and universality of content determine what will or will not be called a “classic.” Time, most of all will be the judge as to whether many works of modern or contemporary literature will be read a hundred years from now. It’s not a popularity contest (if it were, Barbara Cartland would be at the top of every list), nor is it a measure of the PC fad of the moment. The term “literature” is complement enough, but rarely understood or appreciated.