There were many key takeaways from the readings on censorship in Module 6.2. What provided the deepest reflection were those on self-censorship. Self-censorship is where resources are not chosen for a collection, mostly predominantly due to the teacher librarian’s own personal bias and preference for exclusion, and/or for fear of the item being challenged (Dawkins, 2018). I believe that this is a dilemma that all teacher librarians will struggle with at some point in their career.
For me, a challenging moment occurred last year with the consideration of fiction text Bumface, by Morris Gleitzman, for our primary school collection – where content related to sex, pregnancy and contraception are freely explored. What I found quite confronting was the thought was that this book would not be appropriate for my own Year Two son, who is a highly competent reader and would definitely gravitate towards a book with such an appealing title, like this.
Taking it home to contact cover it after the accessioning process, I placed it higher on the shelf at home to keep it out of reach. But of course, he managed to sniff it out and began reading. However, a few pages in, he made the decision himself to discontinue reading as it didn’t sustain his interest. This is a book which he could have easily devoured in a few short hours. But he self-evaluated and determined he wasn’t ready for the content.
In this instance it was about me and my personal biases and judgements. No, I wouldn’t want my son exposed to this content at this point. But, I can recognise that there are other young people who would benefit to being able to relate to scenarios and experiences such as those depicted in the book. And what right do I have to limit their access? Similarly, other parents and carers will have concerns that will be completely valid, but applicable for their child only.
Life and experience is so diverse; and varied representation in books is necessary.
Reference
Dawkins, A. (2018). The decision by school librarians to self-censor: The impact of perceived administrative discomfort. Teacher Librarian, 45(3), 8-12. http://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/A_Dawkins_Decision_2018.pdf