HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1978-08-24, Page 18RAGE 1s—GODERICH SIGNAL -STAR, THURSDAY, AUGUST 24, 1978
Board bans The Diviners from approve
BY JEFF SEDDON
The Huron County Board of Education has
finally become involved in a firey .issue
surrounding three English Literature books
being used in the five county high schools and
decided Monday night to ban one of the three
books from use in Huron county classrooms.
The issue surrounding the three books — Of
Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Catcher in
•W the Rye by J. D. Salinger and The Diviners by
*ettla" r�:.' "`° "7 -:nee — has involved hundreds of
county ratepayers, students and teachers in the
past months and in a surprise move at•Monday
night's board of education meeting, Seaforth
trustee John Henderson asked the board to take
The Diviners off its list of approved novels.
Henderson made the request when the hoard
was in the process of approving a list of text-
books for use in high schools during the 1978-79
school year. He told the board the book was
improper for use in county classrooms adding
that he felt the board would be "slighting our
job" if it allowed the book to be taught.
The board meeting was witnessed by about 40
people, most of whom were members of the
Huron branch of the Renaissance Group. The
Renaissance movement is dedicated to
"cleaning up our schools" as Huron branch
spokesman Lloyd Barth said Monday night.
--SILLY—PRACTICE- - - -
The whole question of the board approving
material for use in the classroom came under
fire prior to Henderson's .request for banning
The Diviners.
Colborne Trustee Shirley Hazlitt suggested
that the board's sanctioning of books for use in
classrooms was a "farce". Hazlitt said it
"seems silly for the trustees to sit down and
read a list of books they know nothing about and
say yes you can teach this and no you can't
teach this."
The Colborne trustee pointed out that many
trustees have been away from the classroom
atmosphere for long periods of time and that
many had no professional experience in
teaching to know why material would be
beneficial or not beneficial in a classroom.
"It just doesn't add up," she said.
Goderich trustee Dorothy Wallace added that
trustees are in no position to read a
mathematics text or a science text and judge
its merits •or •benefits -for --u-se and saidshefel-t
the same about English textbooks.
Board chairman John Elliott told the board
that the books in question were slated for use in
the -classrooms this year. He said they would be
used in Grade 13 optional English courses in
Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton and
South Huron Secondary School in Exeter.
A recently issued
university catalogue
offered a course on "the
next billion years - the
future of man." Over it
was stamped: CAN-
CELLED.
LARGEST STOCK
IN THE COUNTY
WORK
BOOTS
—Industrial
—Farm
—Factory
Plain or safety toe
PUNCTURE PROOF
SOLES
ROSS
SHOE SHOP
142 The Square
Goderlch, Ont.
Elliott explained that the optional courses are
available for students that may need, that
course credit to enter some university courses
and that students were not required to take the
course to get enr,ugh credits for their Grade 13
diploma.
Henderson said he realized students not
wishing to study any of the books in question, or
any other textbook in use in the school, had the
option of taking another book. He said board
policy permits a student to a4void a tex.�re". tionxia,,r;
which he or she is opposed allowing t ose
students to be taught from another text on the
board's approved list.
Henderson said department heads in the
schools prepare examinations on books the
majority of the students are studying and
claimed that if students had requested to take
another book, "they are pretty well on their
own".
If they haven't taken the book they have a
pretty slim chance of passing, he said.
TEACHERS' CONCERNS
Dorothy Wallace reminded the board of the
concerns teachers had expressed about ban-
ning the books. She said the teachers claimed if
the board this year banned the three books here
and next year banned the three under fire in
Wellington County and the year after that the
-three-nn-dEr-fire-irrNova Scotia t eachers may
find themselves not knowing where to turn for
representative Canadian literature.
"We're not taking the books away from the
students and teachers. We're just taking them
out of the system," said Henderson,"If this is
Canadian Literature then I don't want it."
Zurich trustee Herb Turkheim • pointed out
that most of the students being taught the books
would be 18 years of age and that they would be
permitted at that age to vote, become soldiers
and sign million dollar contracts to play
professional sports.
"And yet we tell them they're not old enough
to read these books," he said.
Turkheim added that he ,felt it is much wiser
to have a professional teaching the book and
putting it in its proper perspective than to have
the students "reading them in bed at night and
taking their own meaning."
Henderson asked board chairman John
Elliott to take a recorded vote on the books.
John.. Alex..and_er,. .Harry . _Hayter,.__Donald
McDonald, R. K. Peck, Charles Rau, John
Henderson, Eugene Frayne, Murray Mulvey
and Clarence McDonald were in favor of
removing The Diviners while Cayley Hill,
Shirley Hazlitt, Dorothy ,Wallace, Dorothy
Williams, Marion Zinn and Herb Turkheim
opposed the move.
Holmesville
news
Blanche Deeves, correspondent 482-338S
Mrs. Ladd of Clinton
and 30 members of the
family held a family
outing at the Ausable-
Bayfield Conservation
Park in Clinton on the
occasion of her mother's
25th wedding an-
niversary.
Mr. and Mrs. Ken
Harris • of Holmesville
were married for a
quarter of a century on
August 22.
Everyone joined in a
Walk through the new
nature trail and came
back to a bountiful supper
after which the Harrises
opened their gifts. An
enjoyable time. was had
by all.
Personals
The community wishes
Ken and Kay Harris a
very happy wedding
anniversary. The
Harrises, Brenda and
COME TO
US
FOR ALL
YOUR
PLUMBING
SUPPLIES
00111110111AVIVIRDIVAIIE
to VIIa T®RIA ST, NORTH
52443111
GODERICH
Heather have just
returned from holidays,
travelling to Sandusky,
Ohio.
We wish Pat Harris all
the very best, when she
moves to Sarnia early in
September to attend
Lambton College where
she will take a course to
be an executive
secretary.
Recent visitors with
Clarence and Jean
Perdue have been Janet
Taylor of Lambeth,
Debbie Perdue of London
and Mrs. June Irving of
Milverton.
•Congratulations 'to
Darrell and Ann Abbott
on the grand opening of
their store and butcher
shop. May their stay be a
long one.
Get well wishes go to
Bill Norman who is
patient in hospital.'
Brad Duff has been off
to the go cart races again,
this time to Point Peelee
where he came in first. .
Brad will be racing in
the Grand National at
Picton on the Labour Day
weekend and we do wish
him another trophy to
add to his collection.
rtazet ,McCreath and
Alice Porter of the
Goderich Township WI
and Eleanor Bradnock
a"hd Jean Peck of the
Auburn ' WI attended a
dinner and program at
Poplar Hill when the
London area entertained
a busload of women
members of the Ohio
Farm Bureau. They
represented 20 counties in
Ohio. The farm bureau
has men and women
members and The
program is similar to
'Canada's WI.
They are affiliated with
the associated Country
Women of the World. This
' trip was part of their
international exchange.
• They were going to the
Stratford F'estiv'al and
the next day planned to
visit the trland Lee and
Adelaide'Hoodless homes
ANOTHER TIME?
Anxious to prevent a recurrence of the book
banning issue the board looked at a policy that
would requig•e a teacher to choose material for
use in classrooms, justifying any decisions to
the board. In that way the board hoped to have
professional expertise bo into decisions on what
would be used in the classrooms and put the
burden of the decision on the teachers.
—.rd. -felt that since the -teachers make
most of the decisions on books and the trustees
merely rubber stamp the request for books, the
teachers shouldhave to defend their choices.
The policy put hefnre the hoard for approval
list
was rejected since it was apparent softie Ca dnraine told the board that the policy would.
trustees did not want teachers to have the force the complainant to take his or her case to
power to choose material without any board as close to the source of the complaint a
involvement. John Hen, :-son said the policy possihle, the teacher in the classroom. If no
before the hoard demi d the board power satisfaction was received there, the coml-
leaving the entire decision up to the teachers. plainant could them involve the trustee at the
board level..
The policy prepared for the board was
written by director of education John Cochrane
working with superintendents, secondary
school principals, Englisi ; ��.t.eiQat9,%,:< °_bvgous it did not agree with it- He said some..
and teachers and was a "el>t to mage ,• wive- inarde it clear the board did not
teachers responsible for the choice of materials want teachers inakin decisions on what should
and make them responsible to handle coin be taughtF'nor did they believe that professional
plaints about their choice of texts for ,classroom corn -
freedom and accountability are essential Ito the
use. teachiin;: profession.
It was Cochrane who suggested that the
board not adopt the policy prepared since it was
Concerned parents won't give up yet
BY JEFF SEDDON when deciding on the use of the books. He said
the group could prove to the board that as many
as "80 percent of the taxpaying parents in
Huron County wash to have the three books
deleted from the list of approved books".
Barth said The Diviners was a "very inn -
moral book" and that if trustees had not read it
they should so they would know what is taught
in county classrooms". He said Of Mice and
Men is "one step worse".
"Of 'Mice and Men is a book of
blasphemy," he said. "I went to the trouble of
going through the book and in the first 40 pages
I counted 40 examples of straight cursing and
taking God's name in vain."
"Taking God's name in vain is not acceptable
at any time or any place much less in the
teaching profession," he added.
The Group of Concerned Parents in Huron
County seeking the removal of three English
literature textbooks from county high school
classrooms does not intend to drop its cam-
paign just because one of the three books was
banned by the county board of education.
The group is seeking the removal of three
books -The Diviners by Margaret deaurence,
Catcher-- in-the--R-ye-by _JeDe-Sal ager_and- Of_ -
Mice and Men by John Steinbeck-from the list
of approved texts for Huron County schools.
Monday night the board of education satisfied
part of the group's aims when it banned The
Diviners.
The group attended Monday night's board
meeting about 40 strong and made a presen-
tation to trustees outlining its concerns and
requestingthat the board do its part by taking
the three books off its approved list. -
In a prepared statement for the board, group
spokesman Art Haverkamp said • trustees
should let "their conscience be their guide and
remove the three books from the list".
Haverkamp said the books didn't instruct
students or improve their character which is
what education is all about. He said education
is an exchange of ideas between. parents,
children and teachers to equip students with
broader views that in later life would give them
a broader ability to cope with decisions in life.
He said the books were "clearly immoral and
poor English and repeatedly take the Lord's
name in vain". He said the problem runs much
deeper than just the three books, adding that
"man often forgets that the beginning of all
wisdom is fear of the Lord".
Lloyd Barth, another member of the group,
told the board that it should listed to its electors
•
Bartle' asked the board what the group should
do in its next rnove to have the remaining two
books removed from the approv•. ,; list. He
asked ethat if the group could show the board
that percept of the ratepayers in the county
were in favor of having it deleted would the
board feel responsible for meeting the request.
"As our representatives would you not
almost have to meet our request?'" he ask
Board chailrunan John Elliott pointed out to
Bartle than -ate trustees _are-elleeted-to-Intake -
decisions they feel are in the 0, . st interest of the•
people they represent and' if that decision was
to remove the books, that would be tine decision
made. He added that the 0..nnin may not
necessarily be the decision made.
"That decision would be up to each in-
dividual trustee,'" said Elliott.
Courses planned for new politicians
Area residents who want to know how their
community is operated will have a chance to
find out this fall.
The Goderich Rotary Club, in co-operation
with the Ontario Conference on Local Gover-
nment, is offering a course on municipal affairs
at the Goderich District Collegiate Institute
commencing on Wednesday, September 20.
Topics will range from the history of local
government in Ontario, through the details of
its present operation, and end with a look at the
future and how citizensdan participate...... - ..
The course will operate one night a week for
approximately six or seven weekswith two
speakers each evening. Lectures will be drawn
from senior levels of provincial and municipal
government, the Universities and private in-
terests.
Similar courses, geared to the general public
as well as prospective and pa-esent municipal
officials, are held each year across the
province under the guidance of the Ontario
Conference on Local Government. This is a
non-profit organization composed (of a number
of provincial bodies interested in increasing
understanding of and participate in municipal
affairs.
Cost for -the course will be $15 per person and
$5.00 pe -r -student.
Registration forms and inforehation-can be•.
obtained from the Municipal Office Goderich,
Rotary 'Club, ox 411, Gaderieh, or the G.D.C-I.
More details will be fforthconning as soon as
speakers have been confirmed_
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