Cultural Literacy Project

1. Cultural Literacy Project

2. Some Expectations • All work must follow the guidelines • Profession demeanor is not only expressed in listening and discussion obligations but in writing obligations as well. All work must be grammatically correct. Multiple errors will result in a lower grade. • Think of your personal writing style as a way to express yourself as an educator, role model and leader

3. What Are Your Variables?

4. Abstract Many schools have become increasingly culturally diverse, as has our society. It is important for educators to recognize that their students have different backgrounds and needs when it comes to educational materials, such as books in the classroom library. It is ideal that a classroom library mirror the cultures and backgrounds of the students within the classroom and within the school system. This study aims to look at one classroom’s library and evaluate the distribution of texts in terms of guidelines set by ten categories. In the case that there aren’t enough texts to meet the needs of the students, new texts will be suggested based on the demographics of the students within the classroom. Abstract In schools throughout the country, there are classroom libraries filled with different books for students. At first glance, it may seem to be a library that reaches out to students, but if one takes a closer look, it is evident that the library may be lacking a critical piece: various cultural representations. Students should have meaningful, quality texts available to them. These quality texts should also be books that students can relate to in some way. When teachers make a library available to students with the necessary types of books, they allow for a greatly positive impact on children and their reading experiences.

5. Ten variables were chosen to focus on before taking the inventory of one hundred books. The ten variables selected that were closely looked at when selecting one-hundred books in the classroom were: -Gender of the Protagonist -Format of book (picture, chapter, etc) -The gender that the cover of the book appeals to -Biographies -Fiction vs Nonfiction -Authors of color (African American, Asian, Hispanic, etc.) -Characters (protagonist) of color -Bilingual/native language books -Setting (urban, rural, international) -Contemporary Realistic Fiction

7. An inventory was taken on a classroom library in Fulton* County at Glendale Elementary School. The purpose of this inventory was to obtain an understanding of how a lack of culturally representative literature in the classroom can have an impact on students. Some of the variables that were closely looked at when the inventory was taken pertained to: the gender of the protagonist, the format of the books, which gender the cover of the book appealed to, biographies, fiction and nonfiction people of color (author- African American, Asian, Latino, etc.), characters of color, bilingual/native language books, the setting, and contemporary realistic fiction. The classroom library contains roughly 300 texts. There is one large bookshelf in the back of the classroom labeled with different genres of books for students to see. There is a small shelf at the front on the classroom containing books that relate to what is being learned in the classroom at the time. There is a third bookshelf in another area of the room for curriculum related texts.

8. Demographics of the School System East Side Elementary School is an elementary school within the Topper County Public School System. East Side Elementary School is a Title 1 school that educates 1086 students between pre-k and the 5th grade (NCES, 2012). 144 students are in pre-k, 175 students are in kindergarten, 161 are in 1st grade, 133 are in 2nd grade, 167 …

11. III. The variables that were focused on when completing this inventory were significant to this particular class as well as the school. Looking at these variables collectively, one is able to see that the presence of each variable is important to have in a classroom library. Each classroom should have different types of books because This variety of books with cultural representations is significant to students reading and has a major positive impact on their reading experiences. In an article titled, “Libraries Working to Bridge the Cultural Divide”, author Starr LaTronica, President of the Association for Library Service to Children, stated, “Unfortunately too often children in the United States are not exposed to print or digital materials that reflect themselves or their culture. This can have harmful effects on a child, as such an absence impacts self-esteem. Similarly damaging is a child's lack of exposure to other cultures, which fuels intolerance and cultural invisibility” (LaTronica, 2014).

12. References Alvarez, J. (2009). Return to sender. New York, NY: Random House Publishing. Education.com. (2012). Easton Elementary School: 2012 data [Data set]. Retrieved from http://www.education.com/schoolfinder/us/maryland/easton/easton- elementary/#overview Freeman, D., & Freeman, Y. (n.d.). How to make your ELL students feel at home. Scholastic: Welcome ELLs. Retrieved from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/welcome-ells Hennessy, M. A. (n.d.). Common core standards and the fiction vs. non-fiction debate. Retrieved from http://lessonplanspage.com/common-core-standards-and-the-fiction-vs- non-fiction-debate/ Kiefer, B. Z., & Tyson, C. A. (2014). Charlotte Huck’s children’s literature: A brief guide (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw Hill. Miller, W. (2001). Zora Hurston y el arbolsonador. New York, NY: Lee & Low Books. National Center for Education Statistics. (2012). Easton Elementary: 2011-2012 data. [Data set]. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/globallocator/sch_info_popup.asp? Type=Public&ID=240063001244