Education Commons^™

“They Always Make It Right. We Can Do That For Everybody”: Young Adolescents Considering (In)Justice When Reading, Caleb Chandler, Kaitlin Wegrzyn

Middle Grades Review

This paper draws on Bakhtin’s (1981) notions of discourse and ideological becoming to investigate how adolescents’ experiences with young adult literature and other texts might inform their thinking around issues of social justice. We engaged in a number of activities with the young adolescent participants: thought maps, illustrations of poignant scenes, written accounts of personal experiences, and focus group interviews. Using these activities as our data for this paper, we explain how the young adolescent participants called upon discourses of social justice to engage in the process of ideological becoming. Thus, the paper concludes that texts have the potential to …

Critical Representation: Mattering & Belonging For Students Of The Global Majority, Rebecca E. Haslam

Middle Grades Review

Critical representation in literature and curricula requires an emancipatory agenda and examination of the ways in which people of diverse racial, cultural, linguistic, and other socially marginalized identities are portrayed, an assessment of how relevant, affirming, and accurate those representations are, and a consideration of the impact on a child’s sense of self and ‘other.’ This essay includes sample audit criteria for critical representation highlighting five sections: Storyline & Sense of Justice; Affirmation & Self-Worth; Relationships Among People; Author/Illustrator Background; and Language & Terminology, all with a focus on ‘mattering’ and holistic wellbeing of students of the global majority. Audit …

Master (Motivating, Acquiring, Searching, Triggering, Exhibiting, Reflecting) Learning Model In Terms Of Literacy Ability And Students' Mathematics Learning Motivation, Muhamad Sabirin, Akbar Hidayatullah, Rinda Azmi Saputri, Muh. Fajaruddin Atsnan, Maisea Ledua Nareki

Jurnal Riset Pendidikan Matematika

It is argued that mathematical literacy skills might be improved when learning motivation is high. This study aims to examine the difference in mathematical literacy skills between students who joined a learning model that stimulate motivation, the MASTER learning model (Motivating, Acquiring, Searching, Triggering, Exhibiting, and Reflecting) and those who attended conventional learning in terms of high, medium, and low learning motivation. This is a quasi-experimental study with a population of all seventh-grade students of an Islamic Junior School in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. The sample was selected using the purposive sampling technique with group VII A as the experimental class …

Strengthening Teacher Pedagogical Literacy After The Covid-19 Pandemic In Vocational Secondary Education In Banten Province, Sintha Wahjusaputri, Wati Sukmawati, Tashia Indah Nastiti, Via Noorlatipah

Jurnal Pendidikan Vokasi

The purpose of this study is to improve the pedagogic competence of teachers in implementing literacy in learning through lesson study, namely: socialization, training, self-evaluation, reflective pedagogical paradigm, exploration, simulation, documentation, group discussion, mapping, and practice at SMK Negeri 3 Tangerang Selatan, Banten Province, Indonesia. This type of action research consists of two cycles, each carried out in four meetings. The research procedure includes (1) planning, (2) implementing actions, (3) observing, and (4) reflection. The subjects in the study were productive teachers and normative teachers at SMK Negeri 3 Tangerang Selatan, opening 15 people. The results showed that the teacher's …

Unlocking Passion And Setting Students Free: The Impact Of Culturally Relevant Writing Instruction In A Middle School English I Classroom, Adam Whitaker, Trina J. Davis, Mónica V. Neshyba

Journal of Multicultural Affairs

Culturally relevant writing instruction has the potential to validate the voices of students often not heard. Documented disparities in student writing proficiency in grades K-12 indicate a pressing need to employ more effective approaches in facilitating writing instruction. This paper presents the findings of a mixed methods research study that explored eighth grade English I students’ middle school reading and writing preferences, writing experiences, and the impact of culturally relevant writing instruction. Data were gathered from 63 students via reflective journals, writing interest forms, learning logs, and writing artifacts collected throughout a 3-week writing unit. Our findings reveal that writing …

Poetry And Praxis: Lessons From An Activist Educator, Dr. Emmanuel Tabi

Journal of Multicultural Affairs

Drawing on data from a narrative multi-case study based in Toronto, Canada, this article discusses the lived experiences of one Black activist. Utilizing critical race theory, new literacy studies and the rhetoric of cultural production as theoretical frameworks, the article foregrounds the work of Ebele, a Toronto activist whose work supported the educational trajectories and emotional well-being of Black students, many of whom reported being marginalized in school. Through his creative labor, Ebele directly addressed the sociology of anti-Black racism that deeply influences the lives of Afrodiasporic people in Canada. This article continues the conversation about what it means to …

Digital Curation And Complex Decision Making: A School District’S Literacy Initiative, Sue Ann Sharma, Mark Edward Deschaine

Journal of Media Literacy Education

Schools are in the process of incorporating professional development activities to prepare technology-proficient educators to utilize information and communication tools to meet the pedagogical needs of 21st-century students and learners. This research addresses the challenges of and preservation possibilities for the digital work of learning communities across instructional domains and levels. The digital curation efforts that support a school district’s literacy and curriculum initiatives are examined. We conclude with suggestions for future research, professional development, and practice.

To Be Young, Black, And In The Academy: A Collection Of Lessons, Yetunde Alabede, Jessica Reed, Blake Thompson

Michigan Reading Journal

Literacy, a foundational tool that unlocks opportunities, can be viewed in both narrow and confining lenses. We, doctoral students at Michigan State University, center our own experiences in order to redefine such narratives of what literacy means, can mean, and should mean for students of color throughout the African Diaspora. We explore methods to disrupt, experiences to resist, and questions to challenge the ways that students and educators engage with various concepts of literacy. Though we come from various backgrounds, this manuscript seeks to push forward a dialogue that allows for the multiple literacies that Black children have, language and …

Cutting As A Literacy Practice: Exploring The Fractured Body, Desire And Rage Through Queer And Trans*+ Youth Embodiments, Bess Van Asselt

Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education

By attending to the ways in which cutting manifests in the life histories of three queer and trans*+ youth of color, I argue that cutting is a literacy practice. I focus on the life histories of three youth, Jay, Harper and Sam, who have different experiences, reasons for, and reactions to their cutting. With each story, we learn something new about the act and how it pushes us to the brink of literacy pedagogy. Jay’s narrative forces us to reckon with youth who refuse to or cannot maintain their bodily integrity. Harper’s story brings to the fore the violence of …

Defining Critical Literacy: A Challenge To A Power Structure, Matt Albert

Taboo: The Journal of Culture and Education

Defining the concept of critical literacy is a difficult task because of its inherently murky boundaries. As time has progressed in the last four to five decades, attitudes and perceptions of literacy have shifted in ways which necessitate a redefining of the concept. This paper presents a retelling of an actual task presented to a graduate student by his committee. In that task, the committee asked for a concise (150 words or fewer) construction of a definition of critical literacy. This article begins with a very brief reflection on the task itself followed by the execution that attempted to circumvent …

Reading Through The Pause: How Superintendents Viewed Literacy For Middle Grade Learners During The Pandemic, Dana Evans, Paige Paquette, Dionne Rosser-Mims, Terry Oatts, Brenda Coley

The Journal of Advancing Education Practice

This paper highlights the voices of two superintendents' lived experiences guiding teachers, parents, and students in their districts during the pandemic shutdown. The emphasis of literacy education showcases the ways in which middle grades learners were able to continue discursive practices through online platforms to share and engage with texts. This reflective piece describes the process of perseverance in literacy education through the pandemic pause.

Social Distancing: Closing The Gap Between Digital And Social Media Literacy Practices And Literacy Instruction, Rachel Besharat-Mann

New Jersey English Journal

As adolescents increasingly navigate texts through digital and social media, educators have the crucial task of understanding text production and consumption and bridging these literacy practices into classrooms. This article will discuss the different skill components for digital and social media literacy and application in the classroom.

A Spark Of Light In The Darkness: A Framework Of Habits And Routines That Grow Literacy Identities, Andy Schoenborn

Michigan Reading Journal

Using familiar and flexible classroom routines, authentic literacy habits, and encouragement, his students moved from "I hate reading and writing" to self-identifying as readers and writers in a matter of eighteen weeks.

Teaching Priorities As Both Durable And Flexible: Writing Pedagogy Classes Across International Contexts, Charlotte L. Land, Jessica Cira Rubin

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

This article developed from a year-long inquiry into our practices as writing teacher educators. As new university faculty in two different countries, we drew on a previous literature review project to identify enduring priorities for teaching writing pedagogy. We then analyzed our developing practices in these unfamiliar places, specifically noting what also felt flexible enough to work across contexts, leaving space for local adaptation. For each of our classes, we explore how we expressed those priorities: discussing teaching practices as connected with theories and discourses of teaching writing, supporting teacher-student experiences through a cycle of writing, and facilitating appreciative views …

Exploring Ungrading In An Elementary Writing Methods Course, Jen Mcconnel

Teaching/Writing: The Journal of Writing Teacher Education

In this reflective piece, I discuss what I learned when I began to implement ungrading practices in my institution's elementary writing methods course. Based on this ongoing experiment, I offer three suggestions for other teacher educators who are intrigued by ungrading but not sure where to start.

7 Hands-On Strategies For Struggling Readers, Elise Murray, Stacey Murray

Kentucky Teacher Education Journal: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Kentucky Council for Exceptional Children

Struggling readers are found in almost every classroom across the world. With differing learning styles and abilities, teachers are encouraged now, more than ever, to be innovative when teaching foundational reading strategies. Within this article, readers are provided with a literature review of research and educational literature that discusses how multisensory, hands-on activities promote engagement and active learning for all students. The recommended seven hands-on learning strategies that can promote learning and support for struggling readers during literacy instruction include Build the Words, Feel the Words, Whole Body Letters, Five Finger Retell, Sight Word BINGO, …

Teaching With The Genius In Mind: Enacting Literacy As A Civil Right, Katie Glupker, Pam Gower, Angela Knight

Language Arts Journal of Michigan

Because literacy is a civil right, educators are responsible for designing and implementing literacy education that is designed with the excellence of all students in mind. In order to learn about ways to ensure that literary practices are equitable for all students, the authors joined an educators’ book club to read Cultivating Genius: An Equity Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy by Gholdy Muhammad. Muhammad describes the Black literary societies of the past and challenges educators of today to enhance classrooms by upholding equity and excellence through a five-layered framework: Identity, Skills, Intellect, Criticality, and Joy.

We studied Muhammad’s …

Book Review Letting Go Of Literary Whiteness: Antiracist Literature Instruction For White Students, Jeremy Hyler

Michigan Reading Journal

Race, racism, and literary whiteness are at the forefront of many conversations in education today. In Letting Go of Literary Whiteness: Antiracist Literature Instruction for White Students, authors Carlin Borsheim-Black and Sophia Tatiana Sarigianides highlight what should be addressed in our classroom today to address race and racism.

Free To Read: Growing Elementary Students' Literacy In The Summer, Allison M. Nieboer

Michigan Reading Journal

This article describes the implementation of “Free to Read”, a summer reading program with three key components: free student-selected books, Little Free Libraries and one-minute parent videos. The author explains how these three components come together to form a summer reading program that provides access and choice to a community of readers. Recommendations on creating such a program are shared at the end of the article.

"I Felt Scared The Whole Time": On Emotional Responses To Sexual Assault Narratives, Amber Moore

Feminist Pedagogy

No abstract provided.

Relationships, Learning, And Motivation For One Virtual Literacy Camp During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Caitlin Spears, Heather D. Young

Educational Considerations

This article focuses on one university literacy camp for kindergarten through sixth grade students that shifted from traditional in-person instruction to a virtual setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. The change from an in-person camp to a virtual camp setting created an opportunity for research in investigating students’ attitudes towards literacy, literacy learning, and participation within the newly formatted virtual literacy camp. Twenty-six kindergarten through sixth grade students were interviewed at the beginning and conclusion of a semester-long literacy camp regarding their attitudes toward learning and participation in the literacy camp. Throughout the data, researchers noted the theme of relationships as …

Growing Literacy Skills With Visual Thinking Strategies On Virtual Art Museum Tours, Katie L. Nickel

Literacy Practice and Research

Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS) is an art curriculum and facilitation method developed by cognitive psychologist Abigail Housen and museum educator Philip Yenawine (Yenawine, 2013). Art museum educators employ VTS to support aesthetic appreciation through close looking and judgment-free discussions centered on works of art. In this article, I describe a virtual tour for K-5 students at the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota, Florida that employs Visual Thinking Strategies and intentional language while paraphrasing student comments. Students on virtual tours build visual and reading literacy skills through facilitated engagement with art.

Exploring The Changing Nature Of Teachers’ Pedagogic Identities During The Delivery Of Online Literacy Teaching, Deb L. Brosseuk, Lynn Downes

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper explores the interconnectedness between Australian teachers’ literacy practices and their pedagogic identity during the global pandemic. In doing so, the paper presents pedagogic identity as a dynamic, ever-evolving construct involving teachers and their teaching environment. Findings are reported from a case study of early years and primary teachers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect qualitative data. From teachers’ self-reported teaching experiences, we identify three orientations to pedagogic identity: The Driver; The Collaborator; and The Apprentice. Drawing on analytic work, the paper finds that the online delivery of literacy teaching brought opportunities for teachers to shift between pedagogic identities, …