Never Let Me Go Page 2

• Rationale

             I chose Never Let Me Go because it connects so well to students lives. It is a coming of age tale that most young high school students can relate to. I would probably teach it to 10-11th grade students. They would most likely identify with the characters and their inner-struggle to remain close friends through the troubled years of puberty and sexual discovery. I also find that the book is quite complex; it leaves a lot of from for students to be asked some serious ethical/philosophical questions which could spark great conversation if prompted correctly.

• Obstacles

            There is quite a bit of sexual discovery in the text. Although their are not overt pornographic scenes that are descriptive in nature. The characters often talk about sex casually, the speak about partners, looseness, they browse pornographic magazines, etc. These themes would be very troublesome for parents. I would like to say that I could persuade them by saying their students are going through the same issues, however this could get me in a lot of trouble since most parents want to ignore that aspect of their child's lives. It also may be difficult to talk about the issue of cloning and the ethics of it. Although this debate has left mainstream medium for the time being undoubtedly many parents will still have an opinion on the issue and I am sure a good amount will be negative. Due to the sexual themes I don't think this book will ever pass a school board, administrator, or parents to become part of curriculum, although it is an amazing modern piece of literature. At least not in the districts I am familiar with.

• Teaching Ideas

           1) My first teaching ideas was to have students to an anticipation guide with the story. The first section is very ambiguous about what is actually going on in the world. Students could attempt to analyze that as best as they see fit with the minimal amount of information the author gives. This would open up to good discussion about why students think the author omitted parts of the novel from them when we begin discussing the harsh themes of the book.

          2) I would create a structured controversy for students to discuss the ethics of cloning. Placing students into groups of four I would make them role-play as medical researchers, organ transplant patients, religious protesters, and human rights activists. This would spark great discussion about the rights and wrongs of cloning. Leading students to argue for or against it. They will build arguments based on articles they have read about cloning and then have a discussion between the two for groups and two against. Finally, it would culminate with a debate between the 2 sides.

         3) My final thought was to have a simple film analysis. The film is both good and bad for the book. It omits quite a few things that are very important to the story, but it portrays the human emotion of the characters in an amazing manner. Having students analyze, compare and contrast, and write a summary of which they think is better and why, would be a great way to help them develop multiple interpretations of a work of fiction. It would also show that movies aren't always worse than the book and vice-versa allowing students to give an opinion on either work.

In short, I would love for each of you to read Never Let Me Go Kazou Ishiguro is an amazing author who has a way with language I have had yet to encounter. It is one of the best books to come out of the 00's and I think there is a place for it in the classroom. It connects with students lives better than most books I can think of which will keep them engaged and wanting to read, but it also has incredible themes that will make readers question their own beliefs and philosophy. Truly, a great piece of literature is one you can connect with on a personal level, but one that also forces you to be critical of yourself.