Culturally Relevant Literaure:
Resources for Educators
What does culturally relevant mean?
"A pedagogy that empowers students intellectually, socially, emotionally, and politically by using cultural referents to impart knowledge, skills, and attitudes" (Ladson-Billings, 1994, p. 18).
Ladson-Billings (1994). The dream keepers: Successful teachers of African American children. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Why is it important?
- Acknowledges the impotance of students' home culture
- Helps students to learn about their possible selves
- Assists students with being culturally literate
- Allows individuals to envision how their home culture blends with the overall mainstream culture
The Impact of Illiteracy
"The link between academic failure and delinquency, violence, and crime are welded to reading failure."
- 85% of juveniles in jail are functionally illiterate.
- 60% of prison inmates are functionally illiterate.
- Over 70% of inmates have less than a 4th grade reading level.
Diversity in United States Schools
The schools in the United States are becoming more diverse. It is important to acknowledge all cultures.
National Center for Educational Statistics. (2015). Racial/ethic enrollment in public schools. Retrieved from http://nces.ed/gov/programs/coe/indicator_cge.asp
The Culture of Students in the Regions of the United States
The distribution of student cultures in public schools in the United States vary by regions. Each educator should be aware of the cultures that are represented in their schools.
National Center for Educational Statistics. (2015). Racial/ethic enrollment in public schools. Retrieved from http://nces.ed/gov/programs/coe/indicator_cge.asp
Articles About Culturally Relevent Literature and Cultural Responsiveness
Connecting Students to Culturally Relevant Texts by Yvonne Freeman & David Freeman- http://www.sikana.com/Docs/Personalizing%20Literacy-CulturallyRelevantReadings.pdf
Culturally Relevant Texts and Reading Assessment for English Language Learners by Ann E. Ebe- http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1016&context=reading_horizons
Cultural Responsiveness, Racial Identity and Academic Success: A Review of Literature by Mary Stone Hanley & George W. Noblit by http://www.heinz.org/UserFiles/Library/Culture-Report_FINAL.pdf
"I Want to Read": How Culturally Relevant Texts Increase Student Engagement in Reading- by Mary-Virginia Feger- http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ759630
Toward a Conceptual Framework of Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: An Overview of the Conceptual and Theoretical Literature by Shelly Brown-Jeffy & Jewell E. Cooper- http://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ914924
Finding Authors that Write Culturally Relevant Literature
These websites have information about authors that write culturally relevant literature.
AASL- Multicultural Resources: A Selective List: http://www.ala.org/aasl/sites/ala.org.aasl/files/content/aaslpubsandjournals/knowledgequest/docs/Multicultural%20Resources%20Appendix.pdf
ALA EMIERT Roundtable Multicultural Resources: http://www.ala.org/emiert/usefullinks/links
American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award: http://ailanet.org/activities/american-indian-youth-literature-award/
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature: http://www.apalaweb.org/awards/literature-awards/
Colorin Colorado: http://www.colorincolorado.org/article/40003/
Cooperative Children's Book Center- Multicultural Literature: http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/books/multicultural.asp
Coretta Scott King Book Awards: www.ala.org/emiert/cskbookawards
The International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY): http://ibby.org
Learning First Alliance: http://www.learningfirst.org/node/3511
Reading is Fundamental: http://www.rif.org/us/literacy-resources/booklists/multicultural-books.htm
Pura Belpré Award: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/belpremedal
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