Annotated Table of Contents: Censorship

Teaching English, How To.... by Raymond Stopper

PartFive: Literature

Chapter 24. Censorship: How Can English Teachers Prepare for Possible Censorship Challenges? Dealing with censorship issues involves two fundamental procedures: first, a questionnaire to be completed by the challengers explaining why they think these books should not be required reading or even on the library shelf. And, second, a representative committee to consider the challenge and to recommend future use of the challenged material.

However, even more valuable in preparing for censorship challenges is writing rationales for teaching potentially controversial literary works, a technique that will help teachers decide on the appropriateness of the literature they teach in class and prepare for questions about the controversial material.