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LITR 4332 American Minority Literature Model Assignments Research Project Submissions 2013 research post 2 |
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Karen Logan
Teaching Multicultural Literature in Classrooms Today
“Multicultural literature refers to works written by African
American, Asian American, Native American, and Latino authors. In the broadest
sense, multicultural literature also can refer to works that deal with issues of
race, gender, class, ethnicity, religion, sexuality, and nationality.”
In my first post, I talked about the
importance of teaching multicultural literature in our classrooms today.
I reported on how it helps our children
learn to understand and appreciate differences in every culture as well as
helping them to learn and be accepting of others who are different from
ourselves. While this all seems pretty
cut and dry, there are many challenges that come with trying to integrate
different cultures into our classrooms today. These
challenges come in many forms.
The first challenge that I would like to
talk about is the difficulty in the students’ ability to understand a
character’s point of view or practice.
This can be a roadblock if the students are not familiar with the
cultures that are depicted in the texts that they are studying. If a person has
not been exposed to diversity, they will have a difficult time making a
connection to any stories that they read that deal with other cultures.
There are also those students who come from a racist background and,
because they are unfamiliar with other cultures, they know only one thought
process and therefore are not allowing themselves to be open to learning and
understanding these different stories.
These situations can make it extremely challenging for teachers to do
their job when dealing with multicultural literature and, because of this, it is
important for educators to have a well-thought out strategy in what their goal
is when teaching multiculturalism through literature.
Educators must be very critical when it
comes to selecting multicultural literature for the classroom.
It is not good enough to choose literature because it portrays a culture
in a positive way. The selection
process should coincide with the way all literature is viewed, which is the
plot, setting, theme, and style.
The literature should be well-developed as well as accurate.
A challenge that teachers face during their selection process is whether
to eliminate old classics of the past because they are considered racist by
today’s standards.
Take Mark Twain’s The
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, many have tried to ban it from high school
reading lists because of the racist connotations that exist throughout.
Yet, the positive aspects that can be learned from this story have been
over shadowed by the negative.
Throughout the book, Jim is portrayed as stupid and ignorant.
He is stereotyped as a typical nigger for having these traits.
Jim and Huck go on a journey together allowing Huck to get to know Jim
for who he is as a person and not for the color of his skin.
The lesson to learn here is that people shouldn’t be treated differently
because of their race. Racism is
wrong and Huck comes to see Jim for who he is through their experiences with one
another while on their journey.
There are many lessons to be learned from other cultures if
our students are given the opportunity to do so through literature.
Jocelyn Chadwick, a Graduate School of Education professor and a Twain
scholar, promotes the importance of learning lessons of realism through reading
stories that show a more realistic view of how life was in our history. Chadwick
believes that Huck Finn is a great
read and feels that there are great lessons to be learned from reading and
discussing this novel. Learning is
an essential part of survival, which does not always take on a positive tone but
nonetheless an important one; and literature gives one the opportunity to
experience some familiar and some unfamiliar territories.
In order to be successful when teaching sensitive subjects, the teacher
should introduce the subject matter and allow an opportunity for discussion
before delving into the book. It is
important to make the students feel comfortable and take away the element of
surprise. When words, themes,
characters, and plots are discussed beforehand, students will be more at ease
when reading and discussing the subject matter.
It is therefore very important for multicultural educators to have a specific plan on how they are going to teach this very sensitive topic and this should include expressing and clarifying feelings. Many feelings can be hurt as well as embarrassment of one’s own race. In the article, "Guiding Principles For Teaching Multicultural Literature," Belinda Louie finds that it is important to “talk, write and respond throughout the reading of the multicultural texts,” because it “spurs” reaction to cultural issues. By allowing students to be open with their responses they form a connection among others through communication, understanding, expression and attitudes. This can be very challenging at first, but with careful planning and open communication, students can be put at ease with sensitive material that is addressed when reading multicultural stories. Louie also suggests that journal writing is a great way to break the ice and put students at ease with possibly writing conflict-resolution strategies, their feelings, or their inner struggles.
To sum my thoughts up on this topic,
classrooms with different backgrounds, nationalities and faiths can lead to
great topics and discussions based on tolerance and respect. I believe that it
is every person’s responsibility to do his part in supporting our educational
system so that we may have a smoother transition among our youth and their
families with integrating multiculturalism and diversity in our classrooms
today. If our students have not
been subjected to other cultures, then reading about them can be a very daunting
task for them to interpret the meaning of the text with reference to race,
class, and gender issues. Finding
that common thread that allows students to learn about other cultures without
feeling uncomfortable or angry is the main challenge that our educators face
today that creates an uneasiness when selecting materials as well as introducing
them.
Dong, Yu Ren. "Bridging The Cultural Gap By Teaching
Multicultural Literature." Educational Forum, The 69.4 (2005): 367-382.
ERIC. Web. 24 Apr. 2013.
Louie, Belinda Y. "Guiding Principles For Teaching
Multicultural Literature." Reading Teacher 59.5 (2006): 438-448. ERIC.
Web. 25 Apr. 2013.
Powel, Alvin. Fight
Over Huck Finn Continues: Ed School Professor Wages Battle for Twain Classic.
The Harvard University Gazette, 28 Sept. 2000. Web. Nov. 2012.
Smith, Robert William. "Preparing Teachers For Diversity: The
Challenges Of Teaching Multicultural Education." (1994): ERIC. Web. 25
Apr. 2013.
Tim Lensmire, et al. "High School Students' Responses To
Alternative Value Stances Associated With The Study Of Multicultural
Literature." (2003): ERIC. Web. 21 Apr. 2013.
