The classic American novel, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck will be taken off the GCSE curriculum in Wales starting from next September. This comes amid concerns over the racism and racial slurs in the novel. The novel by Steinbeck, set during the Great Depression in the 1930s, has been a part of the English literature qualification for many years.
The Welsh Children’s Commissioner, Rocio Cifuentes has praised the decision, saying that some books in class were “psychologically and emotionally” to some black pupils. The WJEC Exam board said that it has chosen a “wide range” of more “appropriate and inclusive texts” as part of its new English language and literature GCSE.
Ms Cifuentes said that many black children “specifically mentioned this text and the harm that it caused them” after she spoke to them as part of research into racism in secondary schools.
It was important, she said, to have “opportunities for positive, constructive, informed discussions on race and racism,” but added that there were “alternative texts available, which could still offer the same opportunities but in a less directly harmful way.”
She added that it is “not censorship” but rather “safeguarding the wellbeing of children who have told us how awful those discussions have made them feel in those classrooms.”
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