Dialoguing for Diversity in Secondary ELA Classrooms: Questioning the Canon

1. Dialoguing for Diversity in Secondary ELA Classrooms: Questioning the Canon By: Abbey Graham NCETA Conference October 10, 2014

2. Introductions Survey: http://tinyurl.com/lbwxnkf

3. Today’s Purpose and Outcomes: • Identify different ways to foster dialogue in the classroom. • Explore ways to incorporate diverse literature into the classroom.

4. Importance of Problem

5. What Are Students Currently Reading? • Teaching the same books as we were 50 years ago (Applebee, 1992; Wolk; 2010)

6. What Students WANT to be Reading • Books they choose • Adolescent characters • Common problems

7. Framework for the Problem • Reading primarily classic canonical literature in high schools (Applebee, 1992) • Students have a lack of knowledge and understanding of the diversity of their peers (Hurtado, Milem, Clayton-Pedersen, & Allen, 1999) • Many students lack difficult dialogues before college (Watt, 2007)

8. How do you foster a “safe” space for talking in your own classroom?

9. Common Classroom Goals

10. Talking About Diverse Issues in the Classroom • Listen respectfully to different perspectives-let people finish sentences before responding; • Respond to what has been said, not the person saying it-responses should not be personalized; • Use "I statements" (such as "I believe that . . ) rather than generalizing • Speak for themselves and not for others (including groups to which they belong);

11. Situate Yourself in Identity and Culture Activity Idea: • Create a list of 5-10 things about yourself – (everyone in class) and share with each other to see similarities • Discuss how we are different, how we are the same – take this to explore the multitude of factors that make up an individual identity • How influential is our language in creating and maintaining stereotypes and prejudices? Pick a group that you belong to, for example: Parent Blonde Athlete Wears glasses • What phrases or descriptions are associated with the group you selected? Do they carry positive or negative connotations? How do they make you feel when somebody uses them? What effect might these words have on children’s ideas about you? Discuss your results in small groups. Would you want to change some of the language used?

12. Classroom Setup:Benefits? Drawbacks?

13. Reading with a Purpose Purpose (noun): something set up as an object or end to be attained, an intention • Best shaped as a question, but it can be a clear statement that defines the readers goals moving forward.

14. Literature Circles

15. Literature Circles:Diverse Literature Examples • What do multiple perspectives show us about ______. • How do you as a teacher get the group to move the discussion past stereotypes? Reading Purpose: What’s the reality for the character in your book?

16. Using Diverse Literature in the Classroom • Book suggestions for the classroom? • How could you use each book to promote awareness and acceptance of diversity? • How could you use each book to discuss the destructiveness of stereotyping?

17. How do we get our students to… Avoid Killing Conversations? But Rather, Say Something Substantial?

18. Asking the Right Kind of Questions • Questions that start conversations, not ones that end conversations • Best types of questions to ask: • Evaluate • Brainstorm • Problem solve • Debate • Reflect

19. Socratic Seminars • Student Generated & Lead • Follow up with written reflection • Revisit the text, draw meaning, & make connections • Share their personal thoughts and feelings • Set goals for future reading experiences

20. Recommendations for Practice • Using YA Lit: • Fosters critical discourse • Liberates students’ perspective about others, increases empathy • Exposes students to literature that inspires and empowers them • Connects home culture and school culture • Reject the status quo associated with teaching classic, canonical literature in schools. • Teachers and schools can raise cultural climate in US • Prepare students to be career and college ready (CCSS)

21. Last Thoughts?

22. “Doors open, eyes see, and minds grasp, as young adolescents encounter self within other – a kaleidoscope of opportunity.” - Susan M. Landt

23. References • Applebee, Arthur N. “Stability and Change in the High-School Canon.” The English Journal 81.5 (1992): 27–32. JSTOR. Web. 30 Sep. 2013. • Bean, T.W., & Moni, K. (2003). Developing students' critical literacy: Exploring identity construction in young adult fiction. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy 46(8), 638-648. • Goodson, F.T. (2004). A pinch of tobacco and a drop of urine: Using young adult literature to examine local culture, using local culture to enrich schools: An ALAN Grant Research Project. The ALAN Review, 32(1), 50-55. • Greenbaum, V. (1994). Expanding the canon: Shaping inclusive reading lists. The English Journal, 83(8), 36-39. • Hurtado, S., Milem, J., Clayton-Pedersen, A., & Allen, W. (1999). Enacting diverse learning environments: improving the climate for racial/ethnic diversity in higher education. ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report 26(8). Washington, DC: The George Washington University. TESOL, 2013 • Landt, S. M. (2006). Multicultural literature and young adolescents: A kaleidoscope of opportunity. Journal of Adult & Adolescent Literacy, 49(8), 690-697. • Louie, B. (2005). Development of empathetic responses with multicultural literature. Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, 48(7), 566-578. Dio:10.1598/JAAL.48.7.3 • Moss, Barbara. “The Common Core Text Exemplars – A Worthy New Canon or Not?” Voices from the Middle 21.1 (2013): 48-52. Google Scholar. Web. 3 Oct. 2013 • TESOL International Association. (2013, March). Overview of the common core state standards for ELLs. Alexandria, VA: Author.  • Watt, S.K. (2007). Difficult dialogues, privilege and social justice: Uses of the privileged identity exploration (PIE) model in student affairs practice. College Students Affairs Journal, 26(2), 114-126. • Wolk, S. (2010). What should students read? The Phi Delta Kappan, 91(7), 8-16.