Argumentative Essay On Censorship In Schools

“Protecting one of our most fundamental rights- the freedom to read- means respecting each other’s differences and the right of all people to choose for themselves, what they and their families read.” So, how is it that boards of education are the ones making decisions on books? Which ones should be censored? What right do they have to do so? The boards are not the ones who should be held accountable for what books children and adolescents absorb; this is primarily the responsibility of parents.

Banned For as long as people have been printing their ideas onto paper, there has been conflict. Anytime someone voices their opinion, there will be those who disagree. This is an unavoidable truth. However, through the practice of banning books, it has been possible for certain individuals to deny others their right to freely choose what they wish to read.

The biggest problem school libraries seem to face is where to draw the line on book content. But school libraries must understand that allowing book banning, they are taking away the opportunity for all students to read , instead of letting the parents decide what their child should be reading. Finlo Rohrer, BBC News Washington, explains that “In the US more and more parents are pressing schools to withdraw books with bad language or sexual content.” Parents that are uncomfortable with books in school libraries have made the effort to completely remove them from the library altogether. But when parents press to remove books that they might find unacceptable, they are actually deciding for the rest of the students as well. Mike Rose argues that “One disturbing aspect if censorship is its power to deny students in one class or an entire school system the right to read particular texts” (Agee, 61). Parents have every right to watch what their child reads and

There has recently been a renewed interest and passion in the issue of censorship. In the realm of the censorship of books in schools alone, several hundred cases have surfaced each year for nearly the past decade. Controversies over which books to include in the high school English curriculum present a clash of values between teachers, school systems, and parents over what is appropriate for and meaningful to students. It is important to strike a balance between English that is meaningful to students by relating to their lives and representing diversity and satisfying worries about the appropriateness of what is read. This burden often falls on teachers. The purpose of this research paper is to discuss

There is a book out there that talks about a topic that you do not agree with. While you may find the book offensive, others may find it inspiring or a reflection of their life. These varying points of view are what often lead to people calling for a ban of a certain book in a school or public library. This brings to light a topic that impacts all of us in one way or another, censorship in the form of book bans. This leads to a topic that can be the center of debate for many, whether or not we should allow the censorship of books, or other forms of media, in our libraries. And by censoring books, we are referring to taking them off of the shelves. Of course, many people have strong opinions on this. Coincidentally, I also have an opinion. My opinion is that we should not censor books, while making you understand why the idea of censorship in our school and public libraries goes against the fundamental values and freedoms that we hold dearly as citizens of the United States.

Many parents monitor what their child is reading. When something is brought home that they don’t agree with, this is when the anger comes out. Every parent believes the library’s policies should be set “by the people” (Berry). Parents believe when a book is “threatening” towards their child it should immediately be removed from all shelves and forbid from being read by any other students. This situation happens quite often, but in realization no child should be told what they are allowed or not allowed to read by another student's parent. Some parents have even began to call them “challenged” books because they believe the term is too harsh, and sounds too much like censorship. Once again the term fear manifests itself; parents are extremely afraid of what their child can find in between the pages of a book. Many of the times the parent will not read the book, but rather read the premise and decide from there. Parents do not realize that the book they are reading could be the most important books that child or teen could ever read. “Words and ideas... will help them fight their monsters” (Finan). Children will never know how to be the best that they can be unless their parent’s guide them in the right direction, and that direction is towards the restricted section of the

Knowledge is power. Using knowledge, people can reshape society and the world as a whole, changing it for the better. However, gaining access to the necessary wealth of information requires a full education: people should be taught multiple ideologies and topics from an unbiased perspective. They must receive access to various viewpoints in their entirety. Teaching only one worldview strips students of their ability to truly analyze the world and its issues, because they cannot look beyond the one restrictive narrative they learned and therefore cannot develop their own perspective. Censorship hinders schools, institutions with the purpose of informing students and helping them develop their beliefs. Therefore, schools should not practice censorship when selecting literature for students because censorship obscures the purpose of literature, because censorship fails to expose students to a variety of ideas, and because censorship removes students’ ability to develop unique opinions and worldviews; education should provide an unbiased view of the world and many ideologies, so students can take their own stance on various issues rather than blindly following what they learn.

School boards, principals, and teachers have a responsibility for protecting the minds of their students by covering grade and age appropriate material in the classroom. However, does this given responsibility cover the act of banning books from their classrooms? As an advocate for each student, does the teacher not have a duty to introduce the students to a these words issues in order to help the student cope with the different problems in the world? How does a school decide which books should be banned and how much say does the teacher have what should be left up to the teacher? Some say that banning books from the classroom, we prevent them from learning about different controversial topics in a safe and secure environment. In this paper I reflect on my research question: Why do schools ban books in the classroom?

The practice of the censorship of books in schools has been prevalent due to the explicit content of them. Parents have been complaining to schools about books that count as required reading because they disapprove with the points made in the book. If a book consists of offensive or sexually explicit material, then parents would challenge the schools about them in order to prevent their children from reading them. Censorship in general has been an intensely debated issue because it is considered an infringement to the First Amendment of the United States Constitution while others argue it is used to conceal inappropriate things (Aliprandini and Sprague). The banning of books in school curriculum has also been debated since parents see

It's not right to censor the thought of some and boost the efforts of others. All members of society should have equal access to all books and . Several school districts, libraries and cities have banned books for different reasons including violence, sexual content, drug abuse, rape and content that is unsuitable for their age group. Several experts including Ana Agenjo have argued against banning any books. In her letter to the kern high

Literary works are the foundation for education and are crucial for multiple reasons, some of which include that literature obtains a large variety of information that is at times not accessible to students by computers and teachers alone. Another advantage is adults and children alike improve their understanding and knowledge of certain topics whilst improving their intelligence of the language itself. Banning literary pieces of work is unjustifiable and proves to students that if something is not agreeable within a book, shielding its contents is the next honorary thing to do in order to prevent disruption. High schools should not ban books due to their excessive profanity, violence, sexual content and unagreeable topics because this restriction prevents young readers from developing a better understanding of the society they live in, and could counter act a new change and lessons to be learned.

The controversial act of banning books in the public school system is hindering children from growing in their intellect and identity. “Schools and Censorship: Banned Books” is an article released by People For the American Way, which explains that American’s were given one basic right and it is one that must be fought for and maintained daily. This is the freedom to express as each individual sees fit. Because of concepts that challenge the level of what is “appropriate” for students, millions are being deprived of powerful works of expression which possess the power to shape students in who they are and who they can become.

"Censoring books that deal with difficult, adolescent issues does not protect anybody. Quite the opposite. It leaves kids in the darkness and makes them vulnerable. Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance. Our children cannot afford to have the truth of the world withheld from them” (Halse).

The first side of this debate claims that banning books is for the good of the students, and parents should be happy that the school cares about the students and what they are reading. Robert P. Doyle shares his opinion about books and how they are banned because of the mild use of language, sexual content, and text against the government (Doyle). “So, in 1939, they wrote the “Library Bill of Rights,” which begins to articulate the library community’s philosophical position regarding censorship” (Doyle). ”For the book community, it wasn’t political content so much as sexual content that created censorship challenges and ultimately brought the issue to the attention of the courts” (Doyle). Doyle is the author of an article entitled “The American Experience”, he expresses his opinion for Pro banned books using statements such as above. Banning books is always for the benefit of the students, schools don’t ban them because they want to, there is always a reason for banning the book.

“Censorship is the child of fear and the father of ignorance”. – Laurie Henderson. By banning books, it can deprive children the information or the mental nourishment they will need for life.