Authors warn of literature deprivation
In a letter published in the English Sunday Times today and signed by leading authors including Michael Morpurgo and Ronert Harris authors warn that the government's proposed reform of GCSE English Literature examinations will deprive children of the classics of English literature.
Under the reforms English literature will not be made compulsory. Critics fear that disadvantaged children who do not have books at home will suffer the most. They fear that English literature is in danger of becoming an elite subject.
This is not a good idea. We already have far too many reluctant readers among our children. Testing their knowledge by exam only is not going to help this situation.
It is authors like Michael Morpugo who are doing so much to engage children through reading. The big growth in young adult books is also boosting interest. The genre wasn't there when I was a kid. I got into science fiction as an adult, but now most of the exciting new SF books are in young adult.
If you want to know what sinister things can be done with cosmetic surgery and body re-sculpting, read Scott Westefeld's Uglies/Pretties/Specials series. If you want a cautionary tale about cutting down all the trees, read Breathe. Race relations, drugs, environmental disaster, all these these and more have been tackled in young adult books. I read a lot of them, and am just about to start on Sam Hawksmoor's The Hunted. High-tech experimentation on children.
This is where the future lies, so don't deprive our children of it. What we should be doing is getting them to read young adult classics, books that will get them to think about their place in the world today and it's issues.
Under the reforms English literature will not be made compulsory. Critics fear that disadvantaged children who do not have books at home will suffer the most. They fear that English literature is in danger of becoming an elite subject.
This is not a good idea. We already have far too many reluctant readers among our children. Testing their knowledge by exam only is not going to help this situation.
It is authors like Michael Morpugo who are doing so much to engage children through reading. The big growth in young adult books is also boosting interest. The genre wasn't there when I was a kid. I got into science fiction as an adult, but now most of the exciting new SF books are in young adult.
If you want to know what sinister things can be done with cosmetic surgery and body re-sculpting, read Scott Westefeld's Uglies/Pretties/Specials series. If you want a cautionary tale about cutting down all the trees, read Breathe. Race relations, drugs, environmental disaster, all these these and more have been tackled in young adult books. I read a lot of them, and am just about to start on Sam Hawksmoor's The Hunted. High-tech experimentation on children.
This is where the future lies, so don't deprive our children of it. What we should be doing is getting them to read young adult classics, books that will get them to think about their place in the world today and it's issues.
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