Petitioning the "RFH Reading Assignments, Rumson NJ 07760" Petition

Well said! BTW, I was at RFH with your Dad!

The best essay grades I received in my high school honors english classes were about sexuality in these books. For this I am not embarrassed or ashamed. I didn't conduct this analysis out of perversion -- the books are not purposefully salacious. Each scene of a sexual nature had metaphorical significance and played an important role in furthering the central narrative of the text. Treating them as something to censor denies the text of its literary value and RFH students of a significant learning opportunity. Critical thought shouldn't require a permission slip.

Yeah listen to her she's smart

everybody bombard the anti-book petition page lol, piss off some over controlling parents

you the man

You can not tell an American student in a public school what they can and can not read!!!

.....how do ever ban any child frome reading a book! You let them read it and then as a PARENT - take the time to discuss the content with them. Stop relying on your school system to parent your children!

Day in and day out we encourage our students to appropriately advocate for themselves and for what they believe in. It makes me proud to see current and former students use their voice in support of their education. Let's be honest, life isn't always comfortable. Learning how to work through the, sometimes, uncomfortable moments in life is a skill that takes practice. Educators would not be doing their jobs if they didn't try and prepare students for what they face in their daily lives and what they can expect to face in the "real" world.

You're a wizard, Harry.

Love how classic RFH parents this is... actually absurd.

i cant believe parents are trying to argue this, there is so much irony going on here.

The people who repeat that "this is not banning books," such as Anonymous's postings on this site, should reflect hard on the petition that prompted this site's angry reaction. The former petition states: "Petition to remove books such as Cal by Bernard MacLaverty & Death & The Maiden by Ariel Dorfman from Rumson Fair Haven’s Curricula and any other material that is not age appropriate. (sic) This material should be replaced with material that uses age appropriate language & situations. In addition, we ask that the administration institute a policy, whereby parents must sign a permission slip if assigned reading material, films or any media contains profanities, explicit sexual passages or vulgar language such as Fuck, Twat, Tits, Dick, etc. ..." I have taught college and high school English for over 20 years. I have multiple advanced degrees, and I suggest that Anonymous imagines the classroom where parents must scan books that he or she deems "appropriate." Would Shakespeare and Sophocles withstand such parental approval? Doubtful, as these esteemed writers refer to all sorts of bawdy and objectionable content including sex, incest, bullying, and much more. This brings our community to the questions: What is appropriate? What is inappropriate? Should we decide by the number of dirty words that appear in each text? Clearly, some books cannot be comprehended by very young students, as Russian theorist Vygotsky wisely warns educators. However, he also strongly suggests that reading with a more capable other (teacher, peers) can help students grow and learn. Ahhh. The very reason why we teach books that may make parents uncomfortable: educators want students to think and reflect beyond students' comfort zone. As many former students attest on this site, such nudging generates the kind of thinking which uniquely prepares students for post-secondary studies. Parental permission based on risque language and uncomfortable scenes? This would deeply

I graduated from RFH and it is a PUBLIC school. What are these parents thinking?

RFH Class of '90. The message of the book is what is important, not specific words or phrases. Banning books makes it a certainty that they will be read. You would think that parents would know this by now.

RFH Class of 1988. Don't sensor young minds.

Macbeth

Those lists have options, if there is one you don't like pick another. Freedom means making your own choices, not getting to choose for others.

The Color Purple - once banned!

Freedom to the people!

This will hurt the Reputation for the Rumson area and have broad consequences.