So let's change the interpretation a little bit so that it will be the way we wished it were." Well, that's not what history is. History is what happened, and history ought to be nothing more than the quest to find out what happened. Now, if you want to get into why what happened, that's probably valid too, but why what happened shouldn't have much of anything to do with what happened. (Limbaugh 1994)
The push for the elimination of negative stereotypes, and to encourage the diversification of perspectives through education of our youths is certainly a noble and worthwhile effort. However, there cannot be an absolute answer for all of the problems. Certainly racism, for example, needs to be abolished, and the tone and viewpoints of our educational tools is the perfect place to begin this alteration. However, is it necessarily beneficial to erase all evidence of racism from the school systems? For example, a strict avoidance of stereotypes and language that can be considered racially biased places Mark Twain's Tom Sawyer squarely in the crosshairs because of its prolific use of the word "nigger" (Ravitch 2004) The question then becomes which is the worse crime: exposing children to the world of prejudice and racial slurs, or depriving them of landmark literary works that have messages far beyond the social colloquialism.
Ignoring a problem has never effected change, and covering up the history of racism in this country is not going to provide any kind of reconciliation of the past, nor is it going to allow future generations to learn from the mistakes in our history. Just because an element of history is distasteful does not mean it should be removed. However, what should be presented to students is the idea that things have changed, and should change from these periods of time that we study. The past can be used as clear examples of why things should not be this way. Tom Sawyer should be taught for its historical and literary significance, though the language should not be ignored. The best solution would be to target issues instead of removing them or ignoring them. If Tom Sawyer is to be taught then a requirement for part of the lesson plan for discussion or composition on the piece should be about the racial slurs. Student should learn that this was not a problem at the time of its writing and that it is highly indicative...
However, they should be encouraged to understand that this is no longer acceptable, and that our social climate has changed for the better over the years. Not only does this allow a genuine revue of the material, but it potentially leads into cross-curricular discussions, which are proven to be highly beneficial as well.
This controversy barrels forward at full steam with little indication of slowing. The
educational system will continue to take hits from all sides until a proper compromise is found, though the hope for a compromise that will truly satisfy all concerned is very small. What should clearly be taught in our school is the truth, no matter how ugly or embarrassing it may be. Unfortunately, the
censorship of
political correctness is presenting the art of lies as an
ethical decision. Things will not change until everyone is a proponent of the truth.
References
Cheney, Lynne V. 1994. The end of history.
Wall Street Journal. 20 October 1994.Evans, R.W., & Pang, V.O. (1995). National Standards for United States History: the Storm of Controversy Continues.
Social Studies, 86(6), 270-274.
Faulconer, T., & Freeman, A.C. (2005). Teachers, Classroom Controversy and the
Media. Social Education, 69(6), 323+.
Garvey, J. (1995, December 15). The Earth Is Flat: My Textbook Says So. Commonweal, 122, 7+.
Heritage Foundation (2006). http://www.heritage.org/.
Limbaugh, R. 1994. Text from the Rush Limbaugh television show, October 28, 1994.
Nash, G.B. (1995). The History Standards Controversy and
Social History. Journal of Social History, 29(Suppl.), 39+.
Ravitch, D. (2004). The Language Police: How Pressure Groups Restrict What Students Learn. New York: Knopf.
Zimmerman, J. (2004). Brown-ing the American Textbook: History,
Psychology, and the Origins of Modern
Multiculturalism.…
