School Committee

Now that we’ve had our in-class committee, I want to hear what YOU think! You’ve read the book, you’ve seen your peers' position statements, and you’re high school students – you are among the most qualified to settle the question: Should we teach The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in high school? Compose a 250-400 word post that expresses your opinion. Some areas you may want to consider (I don’t think you’ll be able to address all of them in such a short post; pick one or two, or focus on something else that you find interesting):

• Does exposing students to the racism in the novel have a positive or negative effect?
• Would we be better off teaching the book in college?
• Should we consider teaching the censored version of the novel?
• Are there other books that could replace Huck in the curriculum? Is the novel truly an irreplaceable American classic?
• Do parents have a say in what their children read in school?
• What should a student who is not comfortable reading the book do?

A couple of helpful tips:

• Feel free to mention someone else’s comments in your post! This is a conversation!
• Write your post in Microsoft Word, and then copy & paste it into the comment page. This way, you will be able to keep track of your word count and avoid losing your work to a browser crash.
• Make sure you include your first name and last initial in the “Name” section. Do not use your complete last name.

The post is due by 11:59 pm on Friday, November 16. If you have any questions, email me at tioconnor@arlington.k12.ma.us. Have fun!

-Mr. O’Connor