The purpose of education is to develop skills in order to get a job in the real world or develop life skills. Otherwise, education is useless. Education’s value comes directly from skills acquisition. Math courses serve a purpose by developing analytical thinking. The sciences provide a practical foundation for many jobs in the real world.

The litmus test to determine whether a book belongs in school is simple. Does the book provide value in skills acquisition? Sexually explicit content does not offer any educational value in public schools. Let’s take a look at a book called “33 Snowfish”. Below are screenshots of reviews of this book online from the Yavapai Library Network. After reading these reviews, why would anyone think this is a good book to have in the school system?

This has nothing to do with censorship. If an adult wants to read these books outside of public schools on their own time, that’s their business. As it applies to a child in public schools, the only relevant question is whether the book provides value for skills acquisition. 33 Snowfish clearly offers no value.

There are “educators” that argue that the book is ok in public schools because they were reviewed by people with master’s degrees, PHDs, or by experienced “educators”. Our response to that ideology is simple. I do not need a 7-year degree as an educator to know bullshit when I see it. So yes, let the sexually explicit books burn and hold Superintendent Scott Baker accountable for allowing these books to exist in the school division.