Censorship! ...or Selection?: Confronting a Curriculum of Orthodoxy through Pluralistic Models

This book is a must read for academics, policy-makers and teachers who grapple with policy and pedagogical decisions about what to include or exclude in schools that cater to diverse stakeholders. Much has been written about controversial, litigious school censorship controversies relating to text and library books. Post-September 11th, these have expanded to banning of religious clothing and symbols. Court challenges emerge in the context of a global and political media backdrop that consistently reinforces anti-Muslim sentiment. The re-emergence of an extreme right-wing religious backlash against liberal civil liberties that endorse homosexuality, feminism, religious and racial equality create formidable dilemmas for educators, further complicated by the blurred boundaries of free expression, safety and privacy in cyber-space, as students increasingly communicate on-line. Shariff and Johnny argue that censorship is deeply rooted in hegemonic perspectives that sustain neo-colonial privilege and silence the social, historical and intellectual contributions of some students. This “curriculum of orthodoxy” supports discriminatory political/media stereotypes of non-Caucasian ethnic groups through “selection” that is in fact “censorship.” The authors introduce a Critical Legal Literacy model for teacher education that combines legal and digital literacies with critical educational pedagogy to help educators meet contemporary challenges through pluralistic, ethical and educational decisions.