NCTE

J. N. Hook’s article on the development of English education over a ninety-year span was very enlightening. While it was just a synopsis of major changes that had happened during that time, it still gave one an idea of the evolution of education. Hook states that if not for the formation of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), English literature would have had more difficulty trying to establish itself as a sound, necessary discipline.  He discusses the choices for canonized texts being instituted as part of a “framework of courses” thereby unifying English literature across universities and colleges. According to Hook, "Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton, and others" were the first to be canonized. Hook does not say what criteria are involved in choosing a text for such worthy status, but as we know, these texts remain the staples of English literature today, along with many others.  

He goes on to say how over the years significant changes occurred to keep English teaching alive and evolving to meet the students’ needs across high school and college levels. With that said, many of the other articles we were assigned discuss the difficulties in meeting the ever-changing needs of students. Ken Donelson states that we need to know our history in order to better meet our students’ needs. He says, “We need that perspective to insure that we don’t hang onto the old because ‘we’ve always done it that way’ or grab onto the new because ‘everyone’s doing it’” (229). Donelson believes we need to understand what worked in the past and what did not in order to gauge what will work with students today. Granted he is arguing his case from the early 1980s, but have any of the arguments really changed?  Teachers still debate what the best techniques for teaching English literature are. Many contend that some of those canonical texts need to be set aside and more contemporary and relevant texts of today (non-British) should take their place. I am not sure about the criteria that go into making a canonized text, but I am sure there are several texts out there that fit the bill and are not British in origin.  I too would like to see more contemporary texts become canonized. What do you think?