New York City Department Of Education Wants Certain Words Banned From Tests

April 4, 2012 by Bryan Nash

New York City wants to eliminate the words “hunting” and “terrorism” from standardized tests.
The New York City Department of Education (NYCDE) issued a list of words and topics that it wanted to omit from the questions of standardized tests. The list, which the NYCDE believes is “sensitive to student backgrounds,” is meant to prevent “unpleasant emotions.”

Shael Polakow-Suransky, the city’s chief academic officer, decided that omitting the words and topics is unnecessary at the present time.

“After reconsidering our message to test publishers and the reaction from parents, we will revise our guidance and eliminate the list of words to avoid on tests,” Polakow Suransky wrote.

The words and topics the NYCDE wanted to expel include the following:


  • Abuse (physical, sexual, emotional or psychological)
  • Alcohol (beer and liquor), tobacco or drugs
  • Birthday celebrations (and birthdays)
  • Bodily functions
  • Cancer (and other diseases)
  • Catastrophes/disasters (tsunamis and hurricanes)
  • Celebrities
  • Children dealing with serious issues
  • Cigarettes (and other smoking paraphernalia)
  • Computers in the home (acceptable in a school or library setting)
  • Crime
  • Death and disease
  • Divorce
  • Evolution
  • Expensive gifts, vacations and prizes
  • Gambling involving money
  • Halloween
  • Homelessness
  • Homes with swimming pools
  • Hunting
  • Junk food
  • In-depth discussions of sports that require prior knowledge
  • Loss of employment
  • Nuclear weapons
  • Occult topics (i.e. fortune-telling)
  • Parapsychology
  • Politics
  • Pornography
  • Poverty
  • Rap Music
  • Religion
  • Religious holidays and festivals (including but not limited to Christmas, Yom Kippur and Ramadan)
  • Rock-and-roll music
  • Running away
  • Sex
  • Slavery
  • Terrorism
  • Television and video games (excessive use)
  • Traumatic material (including material that may be particularly upsetting such as animal shelters)
  • Vermin (rats and roaches)
  • Violence
  • War and bloodshed
  • Weapons (guns, knives, etc.)
  • Witchcraft, sorcery, etc.

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