What Texts Should We Teach?

"What Should We Read Next?: A Discussion of Classic and Contemporary Texts Within the Secondary Classroom"

By Kelsea Altheim

As English teachers, one of the greatest challenges we face is asking ourselves the most dreaded but simultaneously the most exciting question: what book are we going to teach next? From the range of both young adult texts and classic texts that are at our disposal, we certainly have a wide array of selection to choose from. Not only that, we have to choose texts that are appropriate for the grade level(s) we are teaching, relevant and engaging to our students, and that assess our unit concepts/standards. As a future teacher myself, I consistently have these questions swarming around my head -- and I haven’t even officially begun my teaching career yet. Consequently, in this essay, I will analyze the merits of both classic texts as well as young adult texts, and then offer a strategy to help teachers choose what texts to teach within their classroom and when.

Although many English teachers are quick to say that they will never teach classics within their classrooms, classic texts still offer great merit to students -- especially when trying to introduce students to the past. For example, Sally Law, the principal teacher of English at Marr College in Troon, Scotland, writes, “We shouldn't be ditching classic texts for contemporary stories, students need a blend of past and present to develop crucial skills.” Law goes on to argue that classic texts give our students a look into the past and other cultures that they may not otherwise have had the ability to understand. Not only do classic texts give students a look into the past, but they also teach students how to properly analyze that past. University of Florida’s Todd McCardle argues that there is value in “using literature as a vehicle to teach students other skills. Indeed, literary works, such as Heart of Darkness, are great tools to introduce students to historical and contemporary sociological issues, such as colonialism, racism, and sexism” (McCardle 98). In this way, teachers can use conventional, classic literary texts of the past in order to teach students about the foundations of systematic oppressions; following this discussion of the past, teachers can then guide students on how to view these texts with a critical lens. Without this foundational knowledge of the past, students would have no basis as to how deeply rooted certain certain systems of oppression are, which in turn would hinder their understanding of these systems today. Therefore, it is essential that students are exposed to classic of the past in order to understand their presents.

However, many teachers argue that classic texts do not engage their students in a modern world; while this assertion is true of many students, it is certainly not true of all students. For example, Brooklyn Smith, a ninth grade student at Poudre High School, stated that, unlike many of her peers, she thoroughly enjoys reading classic texts. She also said that, although many of her friends act as if they hate classics, there are many instances where they enjoy at least parts of them. Reflecting back on my own experiences as a secondary student not too long ago, I resonate with Brooklyn’s words. I remember my ninth grade English teacher, Mrs. LaFontaine, trying so desperately to push Romeo and Juliet on us, just hoping and wishing that we would find even an ounce of the love she had for it within ourselves. I adored Romeo and Juliet. In fact, I loved it so much that when Mrs. LaFontaine decided to, rather than continuing to teach the play itself, teach the Leonardo DiCaprio film version of the play, I was sorely disappointed. Although I am aware that few students will feel this same way about Shakespeare, as English teachers, we cannot forget about students like me or Brooklyn. We cannot forget about literature of the past, and it would be criminal for us to not see the merits behind trying to accomplish this task. After all, we are English teachers, so it is inherently part of our job description to not only feed the love of our students who already love classic literature, but it is also our job to help cultivate a new love for classic literature within our students who have not yet found their passion for it. However, as important as classic texts are in an English classroom, we cannot forget the merits of young adult texts either; more specifically, we cannot forget young adult literature’s ability to appeal to an adolescent audience. An anonymous English teacher on The Guardian stated:

YA fiction is specifically aimed at teens and contains really strong messages targeted to them, covering topics and issues that teenagers deal with on a daily basis. Schools need to do more to get these books to kids, and not only get them reading but also thinking critically about the problems these books discuss (“Should More YA Fiction Be Read in Schools?”).

In other words, this teacher states that young adult fiction has the ability to transform our classrooms. Young adult literature has the ability to more easily cultivate a love of reading within our students, because these texts deal with things that adolescents deal with every day. Classic texts that were written for adult audiences decades or centuries ago rarely if ever accomplish this same task. Yet, young adult texts are specifically targeted towards our adolescent students, so these texts are far more likely to resonate with their lives in comparison to classic texts. Therefore, it is essential that we incorporate young adult texts into our classroom in order to ensure that our students are reading texts that are relevant to them and their lives.

Not only is young adult literature more relevant to students’ lives, but it also has the ability to teach students about the social issues of today within their own cultural contexts. Whereas classic literature has the ability to teach students how to view these issues through a critical lens, young adult literature has the ability to teach students how these issues operate in the present tense. For example, in her discussion of mental health, Moorpark College’s Diane Scrofano writes:

We need stories of mental illness that focus on the illness as a biological brain disorder, a chemical imbalance in the brain. What's exciting about the recent YA literature of mental illness is that it treats mental illness as a medical problem while a lot of older literature has treated mental illness only symbolically, as ‘madness’ (Scrofano 15).

In other words, young adult literature often portrays mental illness in a more culturally sensitive and accurate way in comparison to literature of the past. Examples of this dynamic can be seen when comparing a young adult text such as Adam Silvera’s More Happy Than Not to Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Although both of these texts deal with discussions of grief and the subsequent depression that can follow that grief, Hamlet depicts this depression as ‘madness’ or something to be cast off, and Ophelia’s suicide in the text is not handled with care to put it gently; whereas, Silvera’s text delves into how one approaches overcoming a journey with depression, and his text also portrays a very real understanding of what it is like to experience this mental illness. Silvera’s text has the ability to show students how we should and do deal with discussions of mental illness in the present, and Shakespeare’s play has the ability to show students how mental illness was often depicted and discussed in the past. Although it is vital to introduce students to discussions of both the past and the present, by engaging them with texts such as Silvera’s, students have the opportunity to better understand their own mental illnesses and how to healthily approach those respective mental illnesses. However, young adult literature does not only have the ability to teach students about mental illness in the present, it also has the ability to teach them about LGBTQ+ issues, racial tensions, discussions of (dis)ability, class issues, and a plethora of other social issues that are relevant to students’ lives today. Consequently, it is vital that students are exposed to young adult literature in order to better grasp how various social issues operate in today’s context.

When considering the range of options we have as educators in choosing texts for our students to read, it can seem overwhelming when trying to select texts; however, this does not have to be the case. Mrs. Brakhage, a ninth grade English teacher at Poudre High School, firmly believes that middle grade students should rarely if ever be asked to read classic texts, and if they are asked to do so, these classic texts should be paired heavily with young adult texts that help students better understand the classic text’s material. She then argues that, as students grow older, classic texts can be introduced more and more to the classroom on their own; however, it is vital that we still continue pairing classic and young adult texts and/or offering opportunities for young adult literature within the classroom -- even with twelfth graders. Therefore, when trying to select which text(s) to teach ask yourself what grade you are teaching, what standards you want to address, and what theme(s) you want to address. After answering these questions, then choose both classic and young adult texts that appropriately address your goals, and teach them in tandem with one another. The idea behind this technique is that students are exposed to both the classic literature of the past as well as to the young adult literature of today, and that this task is done so in appropriate and fulfilling ways that foster critical analysis skills within students.

Although choosing what texts we teach our secondary students may seem like a daunting task, it does not have to be. By utilizing the choose your own adventure guide above in order to pair young adult and classic texts together in a classroom, teachers can then ensure that they are exposing their students to literature of the past, while also not ignoring the brilliant literature of today. In doing do, we are ensuring that our students are not forgetting about the importance of history, but that they are also being exposed to more contextually relevant texts as well. This dynamic then hopefully fosters stronger understandings and analysis of both the past and the present times. At the end of the day, it is vital that we remember why we specifically became English teachers in the first place. We need to remember our own individual passions and love for literature, and ensure that the texts we teach our students enable them to feel these same feelings of passion and love when reading -- while also cultivating strong critical analysis skills within each of them.