Sci-Fi in Schools?

Right now I am in 11th grade, and one of the things that bugs me most about school reading lists is their almost religious adherence to "the classics". I don't know if some of you have had different experiences, but I was wondering what anyone else thinks about incorporating different sci-fi or fantasy books in reading lists. It would certainly have to be selective (after all, there's only so much you can think about some things), but I think that many novels of these genres have as much, if not more relevance to current issues. Anyone have an opinion on this topic?

I read 1984 and The Hobbit in High School. I'd say they apply.

In college I took a comp lit class or two and read TONS of sci-fi and fantasy.

Only Bradbury and a couple of short stories.

mehastings said:

In college I took a comp lit class or two and read TONS of sci-fi and fantasy.

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I hope that I can take similar courses in college, they sound great

Part of the reason I think people don't like reading is during school they were forced to read classics that were terribly unpenetrable without explanations. At the point when you're encouraging book reading, who cares about underlying themes or pinpointing of climaxes or plots or use of language or whatever? Just gimme a good book!

jesschoub, I think it'll be cool to read scifi in school!

ds

I read The Hobbit and Day of the Triffids in school. Fantasy and sci-fi respectively.

I've read The Hobbit and some Bradbury stories in school.

jesschoub said:

Right now I am in 11th grade, and one of the things that bugs me most about school reading lists is their almost religious adherence to "the classics". I don't know if some of you have had different experiences, but I was wondering what anyone else thinks about incorporating different sci-fi or fantasy books in reading lists. It would certainly have to be selective (after all, there's only so much you can think about some things), but I think that many novels of these genres have as much, if not more relevance to current issues. Anyone have an opinion on this topic?

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Some of the classics are science fiction and fantasy.

I remember reading in school Brave New World by Huxley, Farenheit 451 by Bradbury, Slaughterhouse 5 by Vonnegut (and other works by him), excerpts from Tolkein, some Edgar Allen Poe, George Orwell's 1984 and Animal Farm, and there were some books about various utopian societies . . . I'm sure there were others. I think as a genre it was pretty well represented, and it was often used as a springboard to discuss moral dilemmas and security v. privacy issues.

I guess most of these are futuristic earth-based fictions, not set in completely imagined worlds. Don't know if that makes a difference?

We did Obernewtyn by Isobelle Carmody when I was in Grade 8 or 9. And 1984 in Grade 11. I was lobbying for Titus Groan to be on our Grade 11 literature list, but was outvoted by those who wanted 1984.

novella said:

I guess most of these are futuristic earth-based fictions, not set in completely imagined worlds. Don't know if that makes a difference?

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All the books you mentioned are great. I actually have read animal farm and a few others in school, but a lot of what we read is historical fiction, biographies, and lots of Shakespeare (although I guess he could count as some of all of those genres). Thanks a lot, it's great to hear from other people about this.

I wish we'd read some sci-fi or fantasy in English Literature lessons. Then I might not have been so damn bored. To be frank, I'm amazed that I wasn't put off reading for life.

jesschoub, In our school, we did Brave New World, 1984, and the others mentioned here. I think the reason that most schools focus on the "classics" by Hemingway, Steinbeck, Austin and others is that those works typify certain characteristics in style that have been adopted by subsequent writers. Plus, by having them pass from generation to generation, you have the bonus of having parents be able to assist in homework and such. We were fortunate in our high school to be at the beginning of the Advanced Placement concept, so that the teachers were willing to expand the boundaries of what were considered "classic." If you've read Beowulf, for example, as required reading, you should pick up "Grendel" which is the same story from the monster's point of view. Very interesting!

And honestly, a lot of those books that are considered classic I would probably have NEVER picked up in my life because I PREFER sci-fi/fantasy. So, really, it was good that they were forced upon me, because I would be less for not having read them.

Cathy

I read voraciously through high-school and junior high. I can't even list all the titles--hundreds of them. I would check out at least two or three a day. Not only did it expand my vocabulary but retention and comprehension too. It helped all my grades and...ta da! When it came time to read all those boring classics I had the concentration to plow right through them. It was great finishing up early, turning in my work, then sitting and reading a nice thick Heinlein or maybe Tolkein while the jocks were still trying to figure out how to get started.

I think there should be a lot more fantasy and SF in schools! Firstly because these novels foster a sense of wonder. Secondly, SF and fantasy novels are fun to read! The point was made up thread that schools should be trying to encourage reading. Making kids read "classics" will only put them off. Reading should be shown as a fun thing, and it is!

I also read 1984, Brave New World in high school. There were also other options on our reading lists. At university, I took a whole class on sci-fi and fantasy. It was fun. College is fun because you have more choice over what classes you want to take. I took Jane Austen instead of Shakepeare. I took grammar classes instead of literary history (I LOVE grammar). Remember that when you're in high school you can still read books that you're not assigned. I always had time for plenty of leisure reading until my second year of college--and like I said, then, you have more choice over what classes you'll take.

In my high school, seniors could choose from several elective "English" courses, one of them being Sci-Fi. We even had a textbook filled with short sci-fi stories, and our final exam was to write our own.

I was lucky enough to go to a Jesuit high school where a senior year elective was "Science Fiction." We read Dune (and had a trial of Paul Atreides; it was great), a bunch of short stories; too bad it was only one semester long...