District Administration - September 2011 - (Page 16)

NewsUpdate Celebrate the Freedom to Read During Banned Books Week SEP. 24 OCT. 1 IS BANNED BOOKS Week, an annual celebration of the freedom to read and create awareness to protect access to books, says Barbara Jones, Director of American Library Association’s Oﬃce for Intellectual Freedom, the group behind Banned Books Week. Local communities across the country celebrate Banned Books Week to emphasize the importance of our First Amendment rights and give kids the opportunity to read barred stories. Books are challenged most often by parents due to sexually explicit content or oﬀensive language, but participants during this week, including the Association of American Publishers, the National Council of Teachers of English, and local libraries and schools, recognize these books and their importance on youth. Popular young adult novels such as Stephanie Meyers’ Twilight series and Susan Collins’ Hunger Games are on ALA’s list of most criticized books. Classic books that have been on and oﬀ the banned list include J.D. Salinger’s e Catcher in the Rye, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, and Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. an anonymous donor, oﬀered Slaughterhouse-Five to any of the 150 students who were supposed to read the book in class and could not. ALA’s Oﬃce of Intellectual Freedom oﬀers solutions to banning books. Jones suggests that school districts start is would a book review committee. allow concerned parents or to discuss the books and understand their themes in a larger context. “ ese groups work because parents have the opportunity to really think about a book and what their child can learn from it. I’ve never seen a book get banned at a school district that does this,” says Jones. “Overprotecting kids isn’t doing them a favor. ere are a lot of issues in this world, and books confront kids with uncomfortable ideas and allow them the opportunity to talk about diﬃcult issues with parents, teachers or librarians. If they don’t read about it, they will see it,” says Jones. To get involved with Banned Books Week, ALA recommends holding public read-outs , virtual read-outs, or host banned music concerts in your community. To learn more about Banned Books Week, visit ala. org/bbooks. —Courtney Williams BR IEFINGS “Young adult novels are a bit bleak and contain drugs, sexually explicit content and violence. However, these novels have the power to save the lives of at-risk young adults because they can identify with controversial topics, such as gun violence, anorexia and cutting,” says Jones. In August, Republic (Mo.) School District banned two books: SlaughterhouseFive by Kurt Vonnegut and Sarah Ockler’s Twenty Boy Summer. Parents in the district complained about the way American history was presented and that it included controversial religious undertones. Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, courtesy of Educating a New Generation of Students about 9/11 TEN YEARS MAY HAVE PASSED, BUT the memory of Sep. 11 remains vivid in the minds of those who lived through it. Although students may have been very young or not yet born, when the World Trade Center was attacked, educators have found ways to memorialize at their schools and in their curriculum. Building fragments, particularly, have made their way around New York, Connecticut and New Jersey. A steel beam from the North Tower was delivered to Barnegat Township (N.J.) School District and will be displayed at the district’s high school. Superintendent Karen Wood said, “Almost 10 years after the attacks across New York, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pa., an entire generation did not witness what happened that day,” at an event held Aug. 10 upon the delivery of the beam, reported the Press of Atlantic City. “We have a responsibility to educate the generations to come so they never forget what occurred on Sep. 11, 2001.” Schools around the country have gotten involved. A group of students from White Knoll Middle School in Lexington (S.C.) School District One raised $540,000 in just three months after the attacks to buy the Fire Department of New York a new truck for its Red Hook neighborhood in Brooklyn. All seven ﬁreﬁghters were killed when Tower One fell. The September 11th Education Trust, an organization comprised of victims’ family members, rescue workers, survivors and educators, launched a curriculum, the September 11th Education Program, in 2008 for grades 6-12 teaching about the terrorist attacks and their aftermath through video interviews. For many, the events of Sep. 11 were the ultimate “teachable moment” and will be incorporated in schools’ culture for years to come. District Administration 16 September 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - September 2011

District Administration - September 2011
Contents
From the Editor
Letters
News Update
Tech Update
District Profile
Administrator Profile
Conversations
They Work Hard for the Money
The Road to Rigor
District-Charter Collaborations on the Rise
Designing Safe Facilities
Tony Smith Tackles Oakland
Product Focus
New Products
Research Center
Crisis Response
Going Mobile
Professional Opinion
Student Counsel

District Administration - September 2011