Actually, with the current elective system prevailing in high schools, and the time dedicated to non- literary courses, there is not much chance of promoting extensive reading lists. Most students in high school are fortunate if they spend a quarter on a novella (such as "Of Mice and Men"), and not all quarters are dedicated to reading, some focus on writing or extraneous matter dumped into the English syllabus, like career research. Additionally, few students have the requisite sophistication to pursue ambitious lists, which accounts for a great deal of the diversity in offerings: honors students get better lists in lit. courses. There are common touchstones: my wife and I both studied "Julius Caesar" in tenth grade, despite a five year and 1200 mile difference in school systems, and my son just finished it, but that only scratches the surface. In such a situation, you are right to worry that pushing a list, which must necessarily be highly exclusive, is a covert way of pushing an agenda.
On the other hand, it may be that the sort of "great books" curriculum I had in college is suited to high school. Not all texts, mind you, but a sufficient array to expose students to a variety of culture shaping books, and give them a greater insight into the "deep background" of their civilization. To do this, the way that students are taught would have to be very different, though, permitting much more time for reading and discussion....... |
