Chapter 22: Reading Banned Books: Preparing Elementary Teachers to Navigate the Politics of Teachingand Learning

Legislation banning or censoring books and art not only greatly impacts teaching candidates’ future work by restricting discourse and knowledge about a range of issues, but it is also antithetical to the democratic ideals upon which the United States was founded. This chapter presents a single-case study in a multicultural children’s literature course for pre-service elementary teaching candidates in which they considered how state laws might impact teaching and learning in public schools. It describes a Novel Study Assignment for which participants read a banned young adult novel and engaged in pedagogical dialoguing. This study offers a theoretical framework and an assignment that can be adapted by other educators to help future teachers find creative ways to strive towards democratic ideals as they navigate the politics and legislation that impact their work.