Title: Censorship In Schools And The Effects On Our Children | Everyday Health
Headings: Censorship In Schools And The Effects On Our Children
Censorship In Schools And The Effects On Our Children
NEWSLETTERS
Sign up for our Healthy Living Newsletter!
Enter your email
The Latest in Kids' Health
New WHO Guidelines Urge Less Screen Time, More Active Play for Young Children
More Evidence Finds That Delaying School Start Times Improves Students’ Performance, Attendance, and Sleep
What Are The Effects On Children Of Single Parents?
Understanding Your Gothic Teen
Teaching Teens Responsibility
Six Suggestions for Boy Scout Meeting Ideas and Events
Piaget's Theory For Parents
Top 5 Baby And Parenting Magazines
Tips To Keep Your Sleepwalking Child Safe
Is School Food Bad For Students?

Content: The Snowball Effect
Additionally, censorship in schools tends to snowball when warring factions of parents take the battle of wills to the classroom with book banning. A small adjustment to the curriculum could lead to further demands, with the removal of a single book leading to the proposal of a library overhaul or the revision of a single point in a science class leading to a battle over the entire curriculum. There are many cases throughout “censorship history” that involve the removal of one or two books or forms of teaching to appease one group of parents, only to have another set of censorship opportunities requested by another group. The old adage “you can't please everyone” certainly rings true in this case, as a veritable “snowball effect” is a common danger of censorship in schools. Practical Considerations
An important distinction to make is the difference between selection and censorship. A teacher who crosses a book off her class’ reading list is not committing censorship unless she is doing so out of a sense of hostility toward the contents of the book. Teachers have to make choices as to the books and other materials that will most enhance the education of their students, and not every book can make the cut – there simply is not time to read everything. When bias and personal feelings get in the way of the selection process, censorship gets a foothold in our school systems. Another difficulty in monitoring censorship is that it is against the nature of concerned parents to think that they are committing this act. Many parents feel that by complaining against books that contain descriptions of nudity, occult references, or profanity, they are protecting the children in the school system and upholding the integrity of the community.