Catcher in the Rye dropped from US school curriculum

[Skidmore]

14. It's not just the notion of reading a couple of pieces of fiction here or there.

Some of the greatest introductions to the problems addressed during history were through works of fiction which were part of the curriculum. Whether it was reading works of Dickens or Austen or more modern writers like Hemingway or Orwell, these writers helped us look into the mindset of eras in a way that straight history texts cannot and that a technical book never will. Great works of literature tap into our humanity and its progression through time. When I was a kid in school, we were very fortunate to have teachers and a curriculum which introduced us to English and American, classical, and world literatures. In addition to the targeted classes, we had reading lists for outside reading. Up through eighth grade, the period after lunch was devoted discussions of what we had read that week and what we had gained from it. These were some of the most instructive periods of my life. I learned to love literature and appreciate the stories of us. I learned that you can tease out an author's thought processes and learn something about a time and a place. This reductive approach to teaching will have an impact.