Culpeper school officials reverse decision to stop teaching Anne Frank diary

[RamboLiberal]

Source: Washington Post

Culpeper County public school officials have reversed an earlier decision to stop teaching a version of Anne Frank's diary that contains passages one parent found inappropriate.

School administrators said they would convene a committee this spring to review the book, in accordance with the school's policy of handling complaints about instructional materials. The earlier decision to exclude the book from classroom lessons had not followed the school system's policy.

"The definitive version has not been banned or removed from public schools," said a statement issued Friday afternoon.

"The Diary of a Young Girl: the Definitive Edition," which was published on the 50th anniversary of Frank's death in a concentration camp, includes passages previously excluded from the widely read original edition, first published in Dutch in 1947. The diary describes the daily life of a Jewish girl who lived in hiding with her family in Amsterdam during World War II. Some passages in the newer version detail Frank's emerging sexual desires; others include unflattering descriptions of her mother and other people living together.




Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/01/AR2010020102427.html?hpid%3Dartslot&sub=AR

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Idiots on the original decision!

[pnwmom]

1. For once, cooler heads have prevailed. n/t

[boppers]

2. Hm, haven't read that version yet....

Is it that different or shocking?

[chelsea0011]

3. "one parent'? Did I read that right?

[IndianaGreen]

4. One idiot parent was all it took!

Bunch of idiots!

[Auggie]

5. Yeah, and there wasn't any formal review or discussion

The decision was made immediately.

[eagertolearn]

7. Thats how it started at our school when a play by Steve Martin was banned.

Just took one very protective parent and then she got a petition filled out by members of two churches. But if this mother was just trying to "protect" her own daughter and not bann it from everyone else (isn't that what the article said) then i see no problem with that. Just have their kids do independent study on another book.

[midnight]

6. Can you imagine being a women in hiding and trying to keep the family calm.

I suppose there would be some unflattering moments.

[era veteran]

8. My family got out of that place over 200 years ago

FFV assholes

[mahatmakanejeeves]

10. Culpeper County is changing

It is increasingly becoming a bedroom community for commuters to DC. What was once farmland is now townhouse tract housing. Civil War battlefields are being buried under asphalt.

You probably know what happened to Loudoun County when the RW took over.

[Tim01]

11. Yep. And now the city people are trying to ruin it.

The school system is its own special mess though.

[tabasco]

9. Good result but the initial reaction

was one of utter cowardice and stupidity.

[One_Life_To_Give]

12. Do the added passages add value at the HS level?

I am reminded of two versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh available at my college bookstore. One was more descriptive in his lose of innocence than the other. Which for the purposes of that English class the extra details didn't add any value.

[coffeenap]

13. There are four individuals trying to ban books at our public high school-

and they are being listened to. A committee has been established to hear their complaints. It is amazing how disconnected the majority of parents are--they have no idea what is going on in the school much less at school board meetings. If 10 of us showed up vs. 4 of them, the battle would be won. Sigh....