GILROY
– The school board approved Gilroy High School’s reading list
for next year with the understanding that English teachers will
test out eight books by Latino authors in an effort to add more
diversity to the list.
GILROY – The school board approved Gilroy High School’s reading list for next year with the understanding that English teachers will test out eight books by Latino authors in an effort to add more diversity to the list.
The new books will be piloted – and possibly added to the list after the fall semester – to replace Victor Villaseñor’s “Rain of Gold” at the center of the book-list debate that simmered two weeks ago.
Discussion between two community members over adding diversity to the reading list turned contentious during a board meeting Thursday night.
Denise Apuzzo implied the board was acting with reverse discrimination by considering adding the Latino authors to the list at the behest of several Latino public speakers at the May 6 meeting.
“Now, I see how it works,” she said. If 12 Irish Americans were to ask the board for more Irish authors on the list, she said, that might work, too.
“Denise, don’t be racist,” Lupe Arellano shouted repeatedly from the audience as Apuzzo continued to speak.
Arellano, a former city councilwoman, continued to interject until Board President Jaime Rosso banged his gavel to bring the board room to order. Arellano had spoken to trustees just minutes before, asking them to keep “Rain of Gold” on the list until the piloting is complete.
“If you accept the core list like it is today, it does not have ‘Rain of Gold,’ ” Arellano said. “And therefore, you are looking at (a) list that doesn’t have anything past the freshman year that has any kind of diversity … and I really caution you toward that.”
English Department Chair Peter Gray said the book did not pass the necessary criteria – particularly that it have sufficient literary merit – to be kept on the list.
“I do appreciate the fact that you stuck to the criteria and haven’t compromised any of the criteria,” Superintendent Edwin Diaz told Gray. “And I knew there was an answer out there.”
Trustees, who discussed the list before the public comment period, praised Gray’s proposal to pilot the new books. The discussion during the May 6 board meeting centered around whether to keep the questionable “Rain of Gold.” but what was really at issue was a lack of diversity on the list as a whole.
“I think you hit the issue, as far as diversity and your criteria,” Trustee Jim Rogers said. “Your response has definitely satisfied my concerns, and I’ll be interested to see the results next May and see how the pilot went.”
“I want to be clear that I believe the answer is both rigor and diversity, and frankly, I don’t believe I heard anything different from other board members, either,” Trustee Bob Kraemer said. “So I think you’ve done that: You have the rigor and you have the diversity, and that’s what we asked for at the last meeting.”
Trustees unanimously approved the list and books for piloting, with David McRae absent.
“I’m very pleased to see that you did address this in a way that I think will be beneficial to our students in the district,” Rosso said.
Trustees also formally approved a standards-based textbook series to be used in all GHS English classes. A special advisory group formed to improve the book list recommended department teachers pilot textbooks this semester.
“The English Department is going through a lot of changes: You’re going to implement a whole new language arts adoption, there’s other site initiatives – common assessments, a writing focus – there’s some staff development going on. That’s a lot to bite off in any year, for any department,” Diaz said. “And now you’ve added on top of that, a pilot. … Is this doable?”
“Yes,” Gray said. GHS English teachers will be trained by the textbook publisher, and it likely will be master teachers who will pilot the new novels.
Diaz pointed out that more diversity that spans various cultures, ethnicities and both sexes can be found on the supplemental reading lists, and a summer list that is still being developed.
The textbook also will provide students with diverse literature, as well as Latino authors, although not at the 12th-grade level, which has traditionally been considered British Literature.
Based on what the College Board is looking for in students, Gray said he is looking to include more world literature and more non-British authors.
One way to add diversity to the English program, Trustee Tom Bundros said, is to offer more semester-long classes with a particular focus, such as science fiction, poetry, Shakespeare or fantasy. GHS does offer Chicano and Women’s Literature, both semester classes.
Gray said that is an option, although there was a schoolwide move away from semester-long classes.
