Why do they do it?: Middle school/junior high parent angst

Phil Bildner's piece, "Texas: If You Can't Ban Books, Ban Authors" in Time, discusses the denouement of the Humble Independent School District Book Festival. He included some comments from me in his article.  Bildner raised an interesting question during our discussion: Why are there more of these types of challenges in middle school and can anything be done to help the situation?

The Houston Chronicle article,  "Are these books not for our kids?" by Maggie Galehouse, discusses the incidence of  book challenges and banning in Texas public schools. Using numbers from ACLU of Texas, Galehouse points out,    "Middle schools across Texas saw the most controversy, with 50 percent of banned books removed from their shelves or class reading lists."

Hopes and fears

As a parent who ran the junior high gauntlet with my own children, I have great empathy and sympathy for everyone trying to survive those years.

I believe parents initiate censorship attempts for a variety of reasons,  the least of which is the book itself.  Unfortunately, junior high school is where a perfect storm of worry, control, anger, frustration, guilt, difficult kids, sympathetic kids, academic struggles, a need for attention and more can come together to form book hysteria.

Middle school is the first time real academic and sports/fine arts competition kicks in. A child may not make the volleyball team, the honor choir, the football team or the pep squad.  Social and romantic situations intensify. Academic difficulty ramps up (7th grade math, remember?) while academic placement in junior high often foreshadows a child's peer group and courses in high school.

All of this puts real pressure on kids AND parents. I think some parental units channel their guilt, fears, frustrations, disappointments, and lack of control into book challenges. Their child may not have made Junior National Honor Society but they can be sheltered from more of life’s cruelties by challenging a book that may feature them.

I have observed that by the time the child enters high school, parents are dealing with new issues including college entrance exams, no pass-no play, extra-curricular activities, dances, driver's license terror and AP course work which take precedence, to some degree, over library book selection policies. A parent's brain can only handle so much at one time, I know.

The books on the library shelves

There is a world of difference between a sixth grader who still has one foot in elementary school and eighth graders who are straining for a glimpse of high school.  Kate Messner describes the challenges of providing books to that wide range of reading interests and emotional development that is middle school in her guest post at The Hate-Mongering Tart.  Read it.

Parents who appreciate the need for The Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle AND  Louis Sachar's Holes in an elementary school library, often adopt a one-size-fits-all outlook when it comes to junior high school libraries.  A book that is comfortable for a sixth grader does not necessarily meet the reading interests or needs of an eighth grader and vice a versa.

There are more choices for YA readers today than in their parents' tween and teen years. These parents are a nervous lot.   YA books that deal with sex, drug abuse, and teenage "attitude" can panic them into a belief that the presence of these behaviors in a novel will encourage their child to emulate the plot line in real life.  Personally, I always felt it would be beneficial to have my own children experience dangerous and complex life situations through literature in preparation for the the real thing.  In my experience, kids are VERY good at self editing.  They will close a book they are not ready for. 

Still, not every book fits every reader so if a parent feels their child should NOT read a certain title, that is their prerogative.  They cannot make that decision for another family

What can be done?

Everyone suffers in a book banning maelstrom. Book banners decry the motivations of librarians, teachers, schools and threaten authors with diminished book sales.  Name calling does not help anyone. Once that starts, the conversation ends. I would rather channel my energy into talking and educating. I may not be able to persuade the person with the problem but others are listening to the discussion.  When a challenge occurs, policies must be followed exactly and all parties, the administration and library staff must behave with scrupulous professionalism. The book deserves due process, so to speak.


The very best outcome would be for parents to read the books and then discuss them with their kids. Reading the whole book (not just out of context snippets)  helps develop everyone's critical thinking skills and provides context for the  story.  Books are great conversation starters for tough subjects in families. Literature is a safe way to experience what life might throw at them. Both parents and their children might be surprised to by the things they learn about themselves and each other.

A World of Hurt

Pete Hautman has eloquently framed and explained a truly unfortunate and sad episode in the point of light that is the Teen Lit Fest in Humble, TX.  His post "The Nasty Thing in the Corner" describes how author Ellen Hopkins was invited (she accepted) then DIS-INVITED from the event.  DO read his post and all the comments.  Chris Crutcher's thoughts are so on target.

School Librarians

First of all, as a school librarian, I cannot imagine having to un-invite an author or illustrator to my school. How horrible.  We DO read the books, right?  We KNOW the author's work, right?  We understand the books and WHY they connect so profoundly with our students, right?  We have communicated this to our administrations, right?

Lost opportunity 
Wouldn't it have been an interesting part of the festival to have a panel on this very subject? Parents could have asked questions, there could have been a discussion, views could have been exchanged, ideas shared, opinions aired...an impassioned, thoughtful tussle over books and how they affect us.

Public relations
This is SUCH bad public relations for the Humble school district when you KNOW the superintendent just wanted the whole thing to go away so he could get back to worrying about drop-out rates and school safety. Of course, a discussion of Hopkins's book could have actually helped with drop-out rates and school safety, alas. Instead, he has put the district under a magnifying glass.  He has demonstrated that he does not trust his district's professional librarians who chose and invited the authors. That does not build confidence.

Parents
I have no idea about the identity of the parents who kicked this off but I would lay odds they were parents of junior high or early high school students. Those years are so difficult for parental units as they see their control over their kids and the school eroding. Elementary schools are the most responsive to "parent input" but that sensitivity diminishes as the years pass.  I believe that these protests are often a last gasp at trying to 'have it your way.'

Also, wearing my parent hat here now, I always thought it would be better to have my kids experience the dangerous corners of life, through an intense and realistic novel rather than try them out in real life.  Please, kiddies, just read about what it is like to get involved in (insert name of life-threatening behavior here) and experience the consequences between the covers of a book!

Book Challenges
Certainly, this was NOT a formal book challenge but it smacks of one.  A book challenge NEVER helps a community.  I like to point out to parents that it lands you forever,  on a list, Yearly Lists of Challenged and/or Banned Books,  that NEVER goes away. The community is enshrined there, on the .pdf, in a Book Banning Hall of Infamy. 

Adults as readers
One of the saddest thing about any challenge or ban, is that it points out how poorly parents (and superintendents) fare at reading with the same level of discernment and insight that they demand of their students.

As educators we ask students to (just to name a few):

(5)  Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Fiction. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about the structure and elements of fiction and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to:

(A)  analyze non-linear plot development (e.g., flashbacks, foreshadowing, sub-plots, parallel plot structures) and compare it to linear plot development;

(B)  analyze how authors develop complex yet believable characters in works of fiction through a range of literary devices, including character foils;

(C)  analyze the way in which a work of fiction is shaped by the narrator's point of view; and

(D)  demonstrate familiarity with works by authors from non-English-speaking literary traditions with emphasis on classical literature.
...   ...   ...

(7)  Reading/Comprehension of Literary Text/Sensory Language. Students understand, make inferences and draw conclusions about how an author's sensory language creates imagery in literary text and provide evidence from text to support their understanding. Students are expected to explain the role of irony, sarcasm, and paradox in literary works.

(8)  Reading/Comprehension of Informational Text/Culture and History. Students analyze, make inferences and draw conclusions about the author's purpose in cultural, historical, and contemporary contexts and provide evidence from the text to support their understanding. Students are expected to explain the controlling idea and specific purpose of an expository text and distinguish the most important from the less important details that support the author's purpose.

from Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Title 19, Part II
Chapter 110. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for English Language Arts and Reading §110.31. English Language Arts and Reading, English I (One Credit), Beginning with School Year 2009-2010.

I daresay, Hopkins' books fill the bill in all those TEKS.  Seriously, shouldn't  parents and administrators have to demonstrate similar insight?

I feel  sorry for Hopkins, all the other authors who were invited to participate (what a position THEY are in now) in what should have been a festive event.

As usual, when adults behave badly, students fare worst of all.   I am really, truly sorry. 

UPDATE: 
Ellen Hopkins posted about the incident on her blog here and here.
She notes "To date, four other authors—Pete Hautman, Melissa de la Cruz, Tera Lynn Childs and Matt de la Pena—have withdrawn, in a solid stand against censorship."

As If!

Do BBKNNs outnumber the Concerned Parents in your life? AS IF! Authors Support Intellectual Freedom is a blog I am clicking on regularly.

Their mission statement:

AS IF! (Authors Supporting Intellectual Freedom) champions those who stand against censorship, especially of books for and about teens.

There is a difference

It occurs to me that I should be clear. There is a difference between a concerned parent and a book banning know nothing nutter.

I love concerned parents.

Both a Concerned Parent and a BBKNN may not have read a children's book since their Betsy & Tacey / Go Dog Go days and are genuinely distressed by something in a children's or YA book

*******
A Concerned Parent reviews the book their child has checked out of the library

whereas

A BBKNN is working from a list they found on the internet and checking to see if the school library has any of the titles.

*******
A Concerned Parent talks to their child's teacher, librarian or principal about the book. They have a discussion with the librarian and others about the book.

whereas

A BBKNN goes directly to the school board demanding the book be banned.

*******
A Concerned Parent is genuinely worried about the effect a book has on their child and should be applauded for taking an interest in their child's reading life.

whereas

A BBKNN is primarily interested in the newspaper article about their school board appearance.

*******
A Concerned Parent works with the librarian to offer alternative reading choices to their child and the parent talks to their child about the books they expect them to read.

whereas

A BBKNN sends their kid into the library to check out yet ANOTHER controversial book so they can add it to their list of grievances.

*******
A Concerned Parent may determine that their child's reading selections need exploring and realize this is an opportunity to discuss certain issues with their child.

whereas

A BBKNN begins an email campaign maligning the librarian and expressing outrage over the presence of the book in the library and on the planet Earth.

*******
A Concerned Parent realizes that they can make reading choices for their own child but have no right to determine reading selections for other people's children.

whereas

A BBKNN complains about the book to people where he/she works and vows to "take the book down."

*******
A Concerned Parent may still honestly feel a book needs to be reconsidered after they have read it and they file paper work to have the book reconsidered.

whereas

A BBKNN files paperwork to challenge the book without reading the book in its entirety and goes through and picks words and scenes out of context to include in the complaint.

*******
A Concerned Parent reads the report of the reconsideration committee and finds a) the committee has agreed with the concerned parent or b) accepts that others have found value and merit in the book and is resigned that the book will remain on the shelf.

whereas

A BBKNN reads the report of the reconsideration committee and finds a) the committee has agreed with the BBKNN or b) shrieks in frustration that others have found value and merit in the book and is NOT resigned that the book will remain on the shelf.

Instead they immediately escalate and file an appeal vowing to take their complaint all the way to the state board of education.

*******
Concerned parents are concerned with the welfare of their own child.

whereas

BBKNNs' own children are not part of the equation because they don't let their kids read “those kinds of books” anyway.


I love concerned parents.