"It Was ... the Word Scrotum on the First Page": Educators' Perspectives on Controversial Literature

• In Event: Roundtable Session 2
  In Roundtable Session: Media, Culture, and Learning SIG Roundtable: Exploring Media and Learning in School Spaces

Abstract

Awareness of how pre-service teachers and librarians feel about using controversial literature – literature challenged or banned because of its content or language – can help teacher educators support new professionals in promoting intellectual freedom. Discussion transcripts, discussion board posts, and interviews were examined using Gee’s discourse analysis to study the perceptions that pre-service teachers and school librarians have about using controversial literature in school settings. The findings revealed a wide range in pre-service educators’ attitudes and comfort with controversy, from absolute silence to reflection about sharing uncomfortable topics with students, suggesting a critical need for teacher educators to more actively promote the ideals of intellectual freedom and the “right to read” in higher education classrooms.

Authors

• Sue C. Kimmel, Old Dominion University

• Danielle Eileen Forest, University of Southern Mississippi