NCTE Conference, San Antonio, Texas
It is not enough to just include multicultural literature in our reading programs. Which books are you using? How are you using them? This session challenged participants to take a critical look at some favorite multicultual books and instructional practices.
This was one of the most AMAZING sessions I have ever participated in because it really challenged the teachers in the room to look at some favorite books in our classroom libraries and delve into the details of the texts that are positively or negatively representing various cultures. An interesting article to look at is "The All White World of Children's Books" by Nancy Larrick, where she talks about a lot of the issues that will follow...
If we look at the publishing trends of books with main characters from various cultures we notice that of the 50 thousand books, between 1991 and 2007,
- African American: 70 books went to 15o books
- Asian/Asian American: 65 to 68
- Latino/a: 90 to 59
These figures are startling but not shocking. I found that the decrease in the publication of books that represent Latinos/as is fascinating given the immigration challenges at the political level of the country.
The speakers really delved into the good, the bad, and the ugly of representation. Over the break, I'll write up the list of books and their characteristics, but for now, what is important to take away is that teachers must look carefully at the books we use and have in the classroom. It's okay if books are controversial -- but let's talk about them! When looking at text, be sure to look at the text itself, the quality, the illustrations, and research the culture itself to verify the validity of the presentation.
Happy Reading!
2 comments:
Is it just me or is this site acting up...big time, anyway this is the second time I'm writing this.... your event sounds very interesting. Of course books do matter and the types of books that children read or are read can influence them for life. If they are exposed to a certain steriotype at a young age and not taught to examine it or think critically then they can be the foundation of prejudice. As educators it important for us to learn about the culture of a group before choosing a particular book to share with our students because we may just be filling them with a bunch of wrong information it is because of this that the event that you went to is so meaningful because it provides teacher with a wealth of resources and ideas. Happy Reading to you too!
That sounds like an intriguing event! I love examining children's literature - it is so interesting (and sometimes very shocking) to see how different cultures are portrayed through children's books. It is also extremely important to be aware that many of these books portray certain groups of people in a negative light, which could be very harmful to some children.
I think it's so important that you said "Let's talk about it!" It is too often that teachers will put books in their library that talk about different cultures and issues surrounding race but do not TALK about them with their students. This is almost worse than not having these books at all because it leaves children feeling confused with too many unanswered questions. These books can lead to such rich conversations - we should really USE them!
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