<
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/08/florida-schools-shakespeare-sexual-material>
"Teachers in a Florida county are preparing to use only excerpts of works by
William Shakespeare, rather than whole plays, as part of an attempt to conform
to hardline rightwing legislation on teaching about sex.
“There’s some raunchiness in Shakespeare,” Joseph Cool, a reading teacher at
Gaither high school in Hillsborough county, told the Tampa Bay Times. “Because
that’s what sold tickets during his time.”
But, the newspaper said: “In staying with excerpts, the schools can teach about
Shakespeare while avoiding anything racy or sexual.”
The legislation at issue is the Parental Rights in Education Act, commonly
known as the “don’t say gay” law for its clampdown on teaching about LGBTQ+ and
gender issues.
The act was signed into law in March 2022 by Ron DeSantis, the hard-right
Republican governor who is now running for the 2024 Republican presidential
nomination, and expanded in April this year.
The law has fueled widely reported culture-war clashes, including parental
pushes for book bans in public school libraries and a legal battle between
DeSantis and Disney, a major state employer which opposes the law."
Thus making Shakespeare far less interesting to the students! :)
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
