The Department is quoted as requesting a word be banned if "the
topic is controversial among the adult population and might not be acceptable
in a state-mandated testing situation; the topic has been overused in
standardized tests or textbooks and is thus overly familiar and/or boring to
students; the topic appears biased against (or toward) some group of
people."
I can only echo the other articles I have read that ask how
words like Dinosaur and Rock-n-Roll evoke negative emotions. (Yes, Rock-n-Roll
is on the list too). Okay, the
Sleestak from the Land of the Lost
scared the crap out of me when I was a child. The newer generations have Barney. Perhaps this explains the ban?
The Department would not officially comment on each word,
and I have not yet found the entire list.
Many people are pointing fingers and saying this is the result of
religious conservatives. I can
almost see their point, but this is a much bigger issue.
Like it or not, we live in a global world with real people
and real issues. People celebrate
many different holidays as a result of many different religions. We do not live
in silos from country to country.
People watch television – they even watch dinosaurs on television
sometimes, and actually buy them – Dinos and/or TVs - as presents for
birthdays, Christmas or other religious occasions! They even dress up as dinosaurs for Halloween! My son was a dinosaur/dragon-type-thing
for his first Halloween and won best-dressed. We obviously did not celebrate in NYC.
It is unfortunate that still, so many people in the US think
this part of the world where I live is such a scary, repressed place. I am just entering the world of
education in Dubai with my son, and so far the only thing banned in schools
here that I am aware of is soda. A
kid could not even bring a cola in his lunch to school if he tried. Why? To promote health.
Banning words promotes what?
Uninformed, young adults? A
generation that is sheltered from the realities of the world?...and so much
more.
This is another reason why I feel so lucky to live
here. I am so grateful to the UAE
for creating an environment where people and their beliefs are respected. I love that the schools here encourage,
celebrate and respect all cultures and holidays of the children that go
there. It is an amazing experience.
 |
| The scary Sleestak. I am sure my fear is understood now! (Image from tvacres.com) |
P.S. For those of you living here, don’t tell the NY
Department of Education that there is beef pepperoni. That is one of the banned words – yes, pepperoni. According to the Department it may be
offensive because some "persons of some religions or cultures may not
indulge in it." Let’s see how long it takes them to catch on.
... If only this were an early April Fool's joke, but I would seriously doubt it!
