The_King Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 SINGAPORE — A novel containing vulgarities was not part of the recommended text list from the Ministry of Education (MOE) but selected by a school for its "literary merit", the ministry said on Monday (Dec 9). On Saturday, a Facebook group called Singaporeans Defending Marriage and Family criticised the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which contains several swear words. It said the book uses "foul and blasphemous language" and claimed it "breaks Singapore's racial and religious harmony laws". The post, which did not identify the school, continued: “Do parents need to inspect every single (school's) material and sit inside every classroom to ensure our children are free from unacceptable immoral indoctrination and corruption?” The book, written by British author Mark Haddon, features a 15-year-old protagonist with Asperger's syndrome. It was selected by the school for its extended reading programme to complement its English Language lessons, said Mr Jeffrey Low, director of English Language and Literature at MOE. “The school has chosen the book for its literary merit, and how the story teaches good values such as honesty, perseverance in the face of difficulties, love between parents and children, and appreciation of youths with special educational needs,” said Mr Low. He said teachers are careful when selecting texts to ensure they are included in lessons for good reason, noting that texts of literary value “often deal with complex human conditions and reflect the imperfections in societies”. “The reading of this particular text has been closely guided by the teacher through class discussions, where the teacher sets out the context of the piece of writing, and engages students on drawing positive lessons from the book,” he added. AUTONOMY TO CHOOSE TEXTS At the lower secondary levels, schools have the autonomy to select texts from MOE’s recommended text list or choose texts not on the list if they think those books “better suit the learning profile of their students”, said Mr Low. MOE also provides a set of criteria for selecting texts outside of the recommended list. "This set of criteria includes the literary value, appropriateness and accessibility of the text in terms of themes and language for the target age-group of the students, the values the text promotes, and careful consideration of any areas of concern, such as social and cultural sensitivities," Mr Low explained. In 2015, the book made headlines after it was withdrawn from a Florida school's summer reading list following concerns from parents about swearing. In response, Mr Haddon told The Guardian his book was “not just a novel that contains swearing but a novel about swearing”. He also noted that the main character Christopher is “completely unaware of the offence that swearing is intended to cause and therefore it simply washes over him”. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time has won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book and was named 2003 Whitbread Book of the Year. It also took home the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize that year. Last year, MOE had clarified that a social studies textbook that was criticised for its description of people of "lower socio-economic status" was not on its list of approved textbooks. The guidebook, entitled Complete Guide to GCE O-Level Social Studies Volume 1 and published by MarketAsia Books, defined SES as a factor "that shapes a person's identity". CNA For more stories like this, visit cna.asia. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chamfer Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Aiyo why parents get angry over this incidents whereas i also every weekend can see parents allow their pri or low secondary kids to borrow adult comics books(marvel or DC comics) in the library. They don't seem to know that these comics books are not meant for kids as it contains certain violence/foul language/subliminal messages. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aaur4man Posted December 9, 2019 Share Posted December 9, 2019 Fucking Jesus how did anyone let this happen????!!? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sofero Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Eat too full sia 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 The curious incident of the dog in the night time is a good book that all young adults should read. The parents are overreacting. Tell them don't act holy innocent la... Their kids already knew those words long ago. I suspect its some religious fanatics unhappy over the appearance of the J name after a swear word. And these religious people are pushing their luck to force their influence over the local community. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ODACHEK Posted December 10, 2019 Share Posted December 10, 2019 Moi kid oredi knew the f word since moi kid became terrible two, three and so on... 1 1 TVB for life... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 (edited) I like this satki respond by a professor in NIe This debate is often heated as it concerns the shaping of values, attitudes and beliefs of students. More often than not, it reveals the values parents themselves have and whether they practise what they counsel. For those outraged by calls to take the book off the list, it’s worth calming down and remembering that the Ministry had decided against it. After all, the book is about compassion and empathy, and the same should be demonstrated when speaking to those calling for its removal. For those calling for its removal, it’s worth slowing down and remembering that requesting for the book to be removed without having read the book in its entirety and considered the book’s greater educational value beyond the bits they find personally objectionable, is effectively, judging a book by its cover. Jason Tan is associate professor at the National Institute of Education. Source: CNA/el(sl) https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/commentary/moe-book-vulgarities-facebook-curious-incident-dog-parents-read-12172406 Edited December 11, 2019 by meng.huat 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates469bc Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 i highly recommend this book by jin yong aka louis cha. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 2 minutes ago, socrates469bc said: i highly recommend this book by jin yong aka louis cha. 鹿鼎记 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates469bc Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 1 minute ago, meng.huat said: 鹿鼎记 u read the original language version???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 Just now, socrates469bc said: u read the original language version???? no. never appreciate reading novels when i was younger with more time. now i cant find enough time to finish a good book. i am a slow reader, need to digest every detail before i flip the page. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates469bc Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 10 minutes ago, meng.huat said: no. never appreciate reading novels when i was younger with more time. now i cant find enough time to finish a good book. i am a slow reader, need to digest every detail before i flip the page. if the book interests u, one can finish the book within a month. like this book i recommended, this is the only book i like by jin yong. it depicts human nature realistically without embellishments, much better than his other books. u always get inspired by a good book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 40 minutes ago, socrates469bc said: if the book interests u, one can finish the book within a month. like this book i recommended, this is the only book i like by jin yong. it depicts human nature realistically without embellishments, much better than his other books. u always get inspired by a good book. I finished this short book in a few days . the writing was quite biased la 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socrates469bc Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 33 minutes ago, meng.huat said: I finished this short book in a few days . the writing was quite biased la cant expect much from chinaman bizman. there r also many malaysian kgks who actually believe wholesale that robert is a true patriotic bizman not out to make a cent. if one is familiar with the biz environment of the 1960-70s, u will know that robert is not the saint he claims to be. i recommend u this 2010 third-party written biography, unbiased and balanced. but mostly becos the subject has been long dead since 1983. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huat Zai Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 If your kid doesn't know how to swear at that age, it's best to seek professional help. 1 1 Official Mugentech Minecraft server: Please see thread in Gamers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 13 minutes ago, Huat Zai said: If your kid doesn't know how to swear at that age, it's best to seek professional help. i remember at primary 6, after PSLE... we were not only swearing... and showing each other our LJ and CB... at the quiet corner behind the school hall... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManOfTheHour Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 1 hour ago, meng.huat said: i remember at primary 6, after PSLE... we were not only swearing... and showing each other our LJ and CB... at the quiet corner behind the school hall... Who you show your lj to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 16 minutes ago, ManOfTheHour said: Who you show your lj to? my bess friend Tan Meng Huat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManOfTheHour Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 2 minutes ago, meng.huat said: my bess friend Tan Meng Huat What kinda gay school you go? i studied in all boys school but never have such gay moments Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meng.huat Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 38 minutes ago, ManOfTheHour said: What kinda gay school you go? i studied in all boys school but never have such gay moments what school u from? moi friend went to a boy school for a competition. he says the toilet smells like sperm bank Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManOfTheHour Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 3 minutes ago, meng.huat said: what school u from? moi friend went to a boy school for a competition. he says the toilet smells like sperm bank SJI. St Patricks then smell like a sperm bank. Correct @HarrisY ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisY Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 4 minutes ago, ManOfTheHour said: SJI. St Patricks then smell like a sperm bank. Correct @HarrisY ? Wahaha I made it so coz.... fill in the blanks Ani kgk noe y? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManOfTheHour Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 1 minute ago, HarrisY said: Wahaha I made it so coz.... fill in the blanks Ani kgk noe y? Give bj to earn money to spend on atb and cai png? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarrisY Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 (edited) 2 minutes ago, ManOfTheHour said: Give bj to earn money to spend on atb and cai png? I mean I contributed to my sec sch toilet smelling rike sperm bank when I xdd time wahaha Chiu noe y? Edited December 11, 2019 by HarrisY 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManOfTheHour Posted December 11, 2019 Share Posted December 11, 2019 6 minutes ago, HarrisY said: I mean I contributed to my sec sch toilet smelling rike sperm bank when I xdd time wahaha Chiu noe y? I rather not know why. Mai chao ah gua lah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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