Whether in digital or paper form, books have always been a major part of what drives education in the United States. Whether those books are novels or entire curriculums marketed to state assemblies for adoption, books and education are often commingled with politics. Historically, we’ve seen districts and states ban books from classrooms in ways that bring politics and faith into our students’ classrooms. We’re going to take up the knotty issue of reading in schools and how it’s about a lot more than simply worrying about how many pages there are for homework. Today, George and I talk about our experiences with books and schools, the books we’ve read and didn’t read, and the books we’ve taught or elected not to teach, as we ask, “What’s on the syllabus?”

Context:
Today’s episode is inspired by an November 3rd article in The New York Times Education Briefing by Amelia Nierenberg that details the role that Toni Morrison’s Beloved may have played in Virginia’s recent gubernatorial race. Also, we’re drawing on an ongoing campaign by Rep. Matt Krause to inventory over 850 titles in Texas schools, as they might cause students to feel “discomfort.”

Key Questions:
What’s the strangest reading experience you’ve had in school?
What’s the best book you were assigned to read in high school?
What’s the best book that you didn’t read in high school?
Let’s talk about textbook adoption - don’t schools just fill out a scholastic book order as we did in elementary school?
As an educator, have you ever been questioned about readings on your syllabus?
From your experience, why do people choose to challenge reading lists or books?