Why are any schools allowing this in their libraries?

[tabbycatstripy]

There was a mini scandal over a Catholic school in Southwark last month, with complaints to the Archbishop from a Tory MP (Eliot Colburn), after an invitation to a writer to come and promote his books and talk to the kids was withdrawn because his books were judged by the diocese to be ‘outside what is permissible in a Catholic school’. Complaints were made to Ofsted, the governors were dismissed by the diocese, and apparently the HT, who wanted the visit to go ahead, was at odds with the church.

So far so normal.

Twitter then went crazy in support of this writer, saying the books were lovely, fun, inclusive, with hardly any sexual content, and it was all so homophobic.

Anyway, I just saw an extract from the book:

twitter.com/dolphinmaria/status/1503490597931339785?s=21&t=0ZURhjXM1Ln6esoraw6Ilw

Why does a Tory MP (or any adult) think this content is suitable for adolescents?

Why is any librarian placing books in KS3 collections that talk this explicitly about (and trivialise) anal sex, oral sex, and porn?

Where did I say you can’t have a view, Rhubarb?

Update on this:

Ofsted visited the school and found no serious concerns.

This was part of their report:

‘Leaders recently invited a well-known, published children’s author to visit the school to talk about his career and the publication process. This visit was a planned part of the curriculum offer. Some of the author’s books feature gay characters and their experiences. The archdiocese deemed that this visit fell outside the scope of what is permissible in a Catholic school and recommended that leaders cancel it. The governing body voted, by a majority, in favour of leaders’ decision not to cancel the author’s visit. Two governors subsequently resigned, and the archdiocese informed the remaining governors that they had been removed from their posts. This included elected parent and staff governors, as well as the local authority governor. The archdiocese intended to replace the governing body with an interim executive board (IEB). While the Catholic Church retains control of governance in Catholic schools, the archdiocese’s attempt to impose an IEB was made unilaterally and without due regard to the published statutory guidance regarding the appointment of IEBs. Parent, staff and local authority governors have since been reinstated, and these members continue to provide support to you and your team. At the time of this inspection, plans were also under way to fill the vacant foundation governor posts. It is essential that all parties take swift and suitable steps to finalise suitable governance arrangements, and in turn ensure that the governing body can function fully and effectively.
These events, including the media attention that has come with them, have unnerved and upset many in the school community. Some leaders, staff and pupils have been left feeling angry, confused and frustrated. Others are worried about the impression these events might give of the school’s ethos. You and your team are steering the school well through this difficult time. Crucially, leaders and staff are focusing on making sure that the school runs smoothly on a day-to-day basis. The school continues to provide a calm and orderly atmosphere, in which pupils’ learning and well-being are prioritised. Pupils are also receiving additional guidance to help them make sense of recent events. You are identifying those pupils who may be personally affected and putting in place further layers of support tailored to individual need or circumstance. In the main, parents are highly supportive of leaders’ work. They appreciate the way their children’s pastoral care and personal development are provided for and continue to be prioritised. The majority of parents who responded to Parent View would recommend this school.’

The Archdiocese also released a statement:

Through concerns raised, the Archdiocese of Southwark was made aware of Mr Green’s book Noah Cannot Even (2017) which was the focus for the World Book Day presentation and signing at the John Fisher School. The event was for pupils in years 8 and 9, the vast majority of whom would be aged 12 to 13 years old. The book has a sequel, Noah Could Never (2018).
For Christians, the Lord’s Prayer (Our Father) is something very precious. We believe it was taught by Jesus Christ to his first disciples as the pattern for all prayer. We would not expect someone who is not a Christian to accept what we believe about this prayer. We would, however, hope that it would be respected as a treasured and intrinsic part of a major world faith, prayed daily by millions of people. The Lord’s Prayer forms part an intrinsic part of Catholic worship and devotion. It is taught to children by their family as well as by school staff, being part of the spiritual life of a Catholic school.
In the book Noah Can’t Even, chapter 13, on pages 124-125, begins:
“Let us pray.”
“Our Father, who art the gay boy? Noah be his name…” […]
“He makes Harry come. He gives him one. On earth as it is in Heaven. …” […]
“And lead him straight into temptation. Right into a gay bar. For Noah is a gay boy. Who likes to suck ck. For ever and ever. He’s gay.”
“OK, sit yourselves down!” said Mr. Baxter, head of year.
The year elevens all shuffled back into their seats. Noah despondently plopped back down, straight on to a banana that the hilarious occupants of the row behind had placed on his seat during the prayer.
“Awww – right up his ae!” said one of the lads. (It wasn’t.)
“He loves it!” said another. (He didn’t.)
“Oh, Harry! Do it to me!” sighed a girl. (Not a phrase he would ever use. He wasn’t a porn star with no class.)
Please see appendix I (below) for The Lord’s Prayer, as used by the Roman Catholic Church.
Asterisks have been placed in the text above, for the sake of modesty, but are not present in the original.
Mr Green has commented that his book simply has a gay character and some ‘kissing.’ Looking at the text above, the narrative employs sexual imagery which we believe is not appropriate for school age pupils in a Catholic context. The use of this prayer in this way, and for this to be promoted in a Catholic school, is a source of deep disquiet.
In the book Noah Could Never, early in chapter 4, there is the following narrative.
‘Rumour had it, Connor was seeing a boy in year thirteen – two years his senior! How very edgy. That meant Connor was also probably sexually experienced now, taken under the wing of this sugar daddy in the sixth form, who would have doubtless shown him exactly what to do and when to do it. … ‘
The context is Noah’s continuing personal journey. The concern is whether the themes raised are appropriate for school age pupils. If the narrative were about a female pupil in Year 11 and a male pupil in Year 13, who was her ‘sugar daddy’ and had ‘doubtless shown [her] exactly what to do and when to do it,’ the concern would remain the same. It is important to record again that sexual orientation is not, and never was, the reason for concern. It is the content of the material. If a passage such as that above had been written from a heterosexual perspective, it would have been equally unacceptable.
Additional concerns arose regarding inappropriate language towards women, specifically the mother figure in the book, who is described as ‘A total bitch from Hell’ (p.196) and ‘Cantankerous Hag’ (p.202), whilst a scene in which Noah and Josh give marks out of ten to girls based on sex is disrespectful towards women and promotes this attitude as acceptable (P.223-224).
We hope this information about the content of the material involved helps to explain the genuine matters of concern. Our priority throughout has been, and remains, the flourishing of pupils at the John Fisher School (see Appendix II). We are continuing to work with the entire school community and the local authority, and we are committed to the students’ academic, pastoral, and spiritual care.

So, in answer to some of the queries on this thread, the event was meant to be for pupils in Y8 and Y9. The pupils are 12 and 13.

The content of the book also includes sexual relationships between Y11 and Y13 pupils described as ‘sugar daddy’ (style) sexual relationships, and misogynistic content.

This was the book marketed to these 12 year olds for World Book Day.

The Ofsted team has no concerns about this.

To be clear, the sugar daddy content is in the sequel. But I don’t think that makes a difference. If you invite an author in to promote one work, you are promoting all the author’s books in that genre (most keen reading kids love series fiction).

Thank you for the update Tabby

Wow only read first few pages and last few weirdly circular pages.

looking at that prayer section - yes Id really have a problem with that and am genuinely surprised at anyone that wouldn't. I have a 13 year old girl who happily reads books with gay characters- I dont yet know if she is straight or gay- and I think its far better for kids to be exposed to a mixture to normalise both options.

However that's completely separate to this level of secual description. I'd not like that weather gay or straight sex was being referred to.

Thanks, Outlook. Same - gay relationships are absolutely part of what I already teach my kids (they’re primary age). Some people are gay, get over it. Etc.

It is far too sexually explicit. And I think the "prayer" is bad taste too, but yes the details are really inappropiate.

The prayer is definitely not appropriate for a Catholic school. The prayer is sacred to Catholic people. I know some people don’t think faith schools should be a thing (fine - it’s a reasonable view) but they are, and if you work in one you need to be prepared to uphold the ethos.

Yes I would agree with you completely there. Not that I think that should be the main thrust as I think you could end up with filtering books which dont agree with the church qhich is a slippery slope....

I genuinely think no 11-12 year olds should be exposed to that . Which is a stronger argument.

But I agree making sexually explicit a sacred text in schools would be banned if it were any other religion....

Pretty gross isn't it? Just piss poor writing which wouldn't pass muster as adult fiction. If it was about a kid on puberty blockers MN would be outraged of course. But it annoyed an archbishop so it must be OK. This is how the gender loons got Self ID done in Ireland.

‘Not that I think that should be the main thrust as I think you could end up with filtering books which dont agree with the church qhich is a slippery slope....’

It could be a slippery slope, but with reasonable people it doesn’t have to be. My view is that children in faith schools should be exposed to the perspectives of other faiths and of atheism (no question). They should also know about religious dissent and non-orthodox viewpoints. But outright mockery is out for me.

‘I genuinely think no 11-12 year olds should be exposed to that . Which is a stronger argument.’

It should be. Unbelievably, Ofsted don’t seem to think so. I think that’s part of the more general capture of institutions being prepared to choose inclusivity even when it means ignoring basic safeguarding. You shouldn’t have to choose, by the way, but in this particular case you do have to choose.

‘But it annoyed an archbishop so it must be OK.’

Quite. Some people are so fixed in their opposition to religion that they will let even this pass.

The Lord's Prayer is sacred to Orthodox and Protestant people too. When can we expect the author's pornographic take on the Quran?

‘The Lord's Prayer is sacred to Orthodox and Protestant people too. When can we expect the author's pornographic take on the Quran?’

I’m sure that’s in the publishing pipeline. Not.

Our academy has just put book vending machines in. I think the idea is to get books dotted over the school and encourage use. So if the book ends up in there any child 11 to 18 could loan it.

‘Our academy has just put book vending machines in. I think the idea is to get books dotted over the school and encourage use. So if the book ends up in there any child 11 to 18 could loan it.’

And it’s a beautiful thing to see kids using vending machines to get books out. It’s not hard to make sure no book in a selection of 30 (or however many it is) is grossly inappropriate for the younger kids.

Jesus Christ. When i was 11 we read Kes

Times have changed

Kes is a beautiful book. It’s also true that kids need books that include representation of them as they see themselves. So I would be against a whole library of ‘Kes’, and I think it’s so important that some books contain gay and bisexual characters.

But that can be achieved without the porn references and general adultification (sugar daddies FFS?).

So I bought this book. So far I’ve only had a quick flick through. I’ve found references to sex all the way through, including orgies and incest (not descriptions of those things). The main character calls his mum and crone and a hag but that’s another issue. I’ve hardly turned a page without finding something about sex or genitalia.

The person who wrote this book presented it as containing a bit of kissing and suggested anyone who was concerned about giving it to 12/13 year olds was a homophobe. Teachers at this school are now on strike to secure the ability to give Y8 kids this book.

Please check what your kids are being given to read in school. Don’t listen when people tell you - some of them aren’t telling the truth.

Sexually explicit content does not have a place in secondary schools. I would object to the content if it were heterosexual. I would in fact argue it was grooming, especially for KS3. It sounds like a 'dirty book' (i.e. erotica.). It is not all appropriate for children to read. The same applies for this, yes even though it's homosexual. Somehow boundaries and safegaurding don't magically disappear if you stick a rainbow on it.

It has nothing to do about the character being gay, it has to do with the sexual content that wouldnt be appropriate regardless of whether or not the main character was same sex attracted.

It’s really smutty all the way through. I’m not even slightly shockable with adult books. This isn’t a kids’ book.

What book is it? I think I missed that bit.

Noah Can’t Even