They’re still teaching the same books they did when I was at school

[Rapidmama]

DD massively dismayed to see Macbeth on her reading list. She utterly loathed it in year 7.

An inspector calls....I did that for GCSE 20 years ago

Animal Farm - not so bad but done to death by now surely?

Why can’t they inject some life into the reading syllabus?

Yes absolutely I mean the hunger games and Harry Potter. Chuck some twilight in there too whilst you’re at it.

Oh and I don't remember doing Macbeth at school at all. We I remember the Tempest at KS3, R&J at GCSE and then Much Ado and Hamlet at A Level.

I think part of the problem with Shakespeare as well is that it isn't intended to be read slowly in a classroom, its intended to be acted. I understood Hamlet much better 5 years after I finished studying it when I went to see it performed. And while watching a film version is better, it isn't the same.

@DullPortraits, your literature knowledge must be awfully stilted if you think there is nothing between Shakespeare and 50 shades?

Let me guess, you belong to that Richard and Judy book club don’t you

See, we can all make sweeping statements

Kids tell me they’ve ‘done’ Shakespeare when I start teaching them in year 7. Always makes me smile 😊

I dislike when schools repeat texts (like your experiences with Macbeth in year 7 and 10+), but i absolutely disagree we need to shake up the curriculum every 5 minutes. The texts we teach are classics!

That said, I’d bloody love to go rogue and teach some new stuff. But my results (and therefore my reputation, abilities and pay would suffer) so I will teach what I’m expected to teach.

I can't really work out why anyone thinks it was surprising that they are doing Macbeth now when it was also studied 30 years ago? It was 390 years old then, it's not like an extra 30 have rendered it irrelevant!

Pssst- Lots of schools ARE teaching The Hunger Games at KS3 👍dystopian literature!

Captain Corelli's Mandolin
Jane Austen
Charles Dickens (actually Great Expectations might already be on there)
Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Any of them for starters

It seems some people don't really understand the concept of a classic. Shakespeare has stood the test of time. I didn't so Macbeth at school but I absolutely love it as a play and have seen several productions of it. Perfect piece to study. Animal farm is also a classic. These texts are exactly what people need to study to give a broad education and to counter some of the modern stuff they may be reading themselves.

@TheZeppo oh god PLEASE go rogue

The Scarlett Letter maybe?
On the road?

Swap out the poetry for Charles Bukowski!

Dickens and Austen are on the syllabus depending on which board the school do.

Just because something is old doesn’t make it absolutely respected. I can’t abide Macbeth myself. Would much rather TMOV.

No wonder kids can’t engage

DD got

Macbeth
Animal Farm
Jekyll and Hyde
Inspector Calls

They did Jekyll and Hyde in year 9.

So three of those books have already been covered

No text is universally loved. The fact that you don’t like Macbeth and prefer MoV doesn’t mean that others won’t feel the other way.

I did To Kill a Mockingbird for GCSE nearly 20 years ago, still have my book with the annotations in and read it every so often. I love knowing the meaning behind certain phrases etc

I’d say Animal Farm is bloody excellent to study right now!

I can only speak for AQA, but Great Expectations, A Christmas Carol and Pride and Prejudice are all on the current spec.

There are others available (A taste of honey, Blood brothers, DNA for example). But at KS4 we tend to stick to things we know we are great at teaching (we want kids to do well too you know!)

You should have a read of the new OFSTED framework though, as I think you’ll find it interesting. They want to move away from what you’re discussing too.

I would say- it’s not the individual teachers. I have a Literature based masters. There are LOADS of texts I’d love to teach! Literature is brilliant!

I kind of agree - I can't imagine why no 21st century books ever get added into the rotation.

That said - if you do English at uni it's wall to wall Shakespeare and contemporaries so you may as well start as they will mean you to go on.

Students respond well to MacBeth - that is why it is a popular choice - even though teachers have a choice of a number of Shakespeare plays (Romeo and Juliet is the next most popular, but I know the Tempest is on the list too).
Jekyll and Hyde is hard - so maybe by doing it twice they are trying to make sure everyone gets it. The popular choice for "Victorian" is A Christmas Carol.
Inspector Calls is popular, and has some good depth which helps the best get good marks. My youngest did Lord of the Flies instead, which is harder and is what I studied (along with an Inspector Calls) eons ago.

They used to be able to do American novels but Mr Gove didn't like studying Of Mice and Men, so they are not allowed at GCSE now.

The school does seem a bit unimaginative studying the same books before GCSE as at GCSE.
But my poor son had to study MacBeth 3 times in total - at Primary school, beofre GCSE and GCSE. He was relieved when a resit got him to do Romeo and Juliet instead.

No wonder kids can’t engage

My classes always engage with Shakespeare.

The only one of the four things you listed as good options I like is Austen, which is already on the syllabus. There's no such thing as a universally engaging text.

Not Captain Corelli???? God I have very bad associations with that book. I was going through a breakup when I read it. I found it so turgid and over long and dreary. Then I went to see it at the cinema and when the woman was hanged from a tree (remember that bit?) two people stood up on the front row and walked out crying.

I thought we were going to be hoicking bosums at a Haralambos 1980s 2nd edition knocking around a classroom today .

Tbh, it sounds like a problem with the school. I love reading but rarely choose to read the same book twice and studying them in depth twice sounds like a ball ache. I do love Macbeth tho - but out teacher took us to see it before we did the in-depth study and I think that really helps.

However, if it improves their results it isn't surprising. Schools are at the mercy of ofsted/league tables and individual teachers/HoDs often have their pay linked to results so it is hard to blame them.

Gove said no American literature?

God how reductive

Urgh I’m just annoyed for DDs sake. She HATED Macbeth and I got sick of hearing about it. She left the class and went to pastoral when they watched the film. She won’t even watch Harry Potter (hates anything with tension!). I don’t want to hear about bloody Macbeth for the next two years

Lots of schools do ‘Of Mice and Men’ in Y9. Texts and resources are all in place-shame to waste them!