Revised, more diverse english curriculum crucial in forming well rounded, cognizant students

By Katherine Mueller

Exec. Opinion Editor

Beginning this year, a significant part of Costa’s English department’s curriculum will change for the better in order to accommodate and promote more diverse viewpoints in literature. 

This semester, current ninth graders are required to read the young adult novel “SLAY,” which follows a young black female game developer as she fends off criticism from the media spurred from a violent incident tied to her online game which accommodates exclusively black players. Going forward, this novel will replace J.D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye,” a situation which has aroused uproar from various independent groups of South Bay parents. 

Learning from diverse viewpoints is a highly unpromoted aspect of many school curriculums. In 2020, Costa’s English department made a collective goal to represent at least one person of color in each grade level’s core curriculum, according to department co-chair Nicole Wachell. By hearing stories coming from those who don’t identify as cisgender, caucasian, or male, students can better cultivate their academic and social awareness as they catch up on a fraction of what was lost in history from authors denied a voice. 

Countless English curricula across the United States have taught the same works for decades. “The Catcher in the Rye,” a book often either adored or loathed by student readers, was implemented in schools nearly 50 years ago, and does not harbor values as impactful to the youth of today. Furthermore, much of the novel contains dialogue and details regarding rape culture, sexism, and homophobia. Though some of these details may serve to contextualize setting or characters’ actions, these plot features can fog the overall message of a novel when overused. When novels contain these sentiments, but ultimately address them and emphasize positive sentiments of equality and respect as a resolution, the outcome is infinitely more constructive. 

Besides “SLAY,” other books added to Costa’s English curriculum depict the experiences of contemporary youth with much more relatability. Several optional student reading books including “Gender Queer” and “Stamped,” two novels both published within the decade. When readers are given something that hits closer to home, it exponentially increases their interest, and makes for much more enthusiastic analyses and class participation. For readers in minority groups who feel especially represented by a certain novel, the experience of classroom reading is a way for them to feel seen in an educational environment. 

WeTheParentsMB along with the South Bay Education alliance claim MBUSD is promoting books loaded with racial, sexual, and profane content inappropriate for students. The books on Costa’s reading list that groups claim contain “graphic sexual content,” including, “Gender Queer,” are not required reading, as they are presented with a number of other books as options for one particular student-led assignment. Additionally, baseless claims such as that certain Costa teachers are instructing caucasian students to be ashamed of their race are not verified, according to Wachell. 

Removing certain books deemed “classics” by the literary canon is not a crime against education. When teachers add literature from recent years as well as old that represent diverse viewpoints, Costa’s English curriculum will only grow stronger.