Reading the world: Reading and identity practices in the context of globalization
This paper examines scholarship and empirical work on the use of multicultural literature in the English Language Arts classroom in the U.S. in the context of globalization. Studies in the U.S. tend to focus on diversity within the nation to the neglect of diversity beyond the States. Beyond multicultural perspectives as it is framed in the U.S. context, a global/local perspective that recognizes diversity within and beyond the nation is a more relevant construct for examining the literature curriculum in this globalized postmodernity.
Multicultural texts in contexts: Comparing the use of multicultural texts in the literature classroom in the United States and Singapore
The need to bring culturally relevant material into English Literature classrooms has long been considered important from academic and intellectual as well as societal and personal perspectives. More recently, scholarship and educational policies are encouraging the use of "multicultural" texts that reflect the polyphony of voices in the world as being culturally relevant, and having the potential to engage students in fertile discussion about their identity and the world around them.
This paper takes a close look at scholarship, research, policy and practice in the U.S. and Singapore in the last 20 years, and gives insights into how practice is being contextualized in both countries. While certain terminology seem to be the same, close examination of the data show that there are notable differences in scholarship, policy, and practice in both countries. Particularly important to this discussion is the notion of what counts as "multicultural" and how that has impacted upon curriculum choice and instruction.
Talking about talk: Oral communication in the secondary classroom
The current trend in the teaching of English in Singapore tends towards emphasis on written competency rather than oral fluency. Guided by the marks allocation in a system where the Oral component constitutes a small percentage of the summative assessment, teachers spend more time and resources in teaching comprehension and writing skills. In light of the recent changes in the Singapore education landscape to allow schools greater autonomy in curriculum planning and assessment, some Integrated Programme centres are shifting more focus to developing oral communication skills as well as teaching language awareness in oral communication. This paper seeks to argue that it is a necessary move that prepares students for a fast-changing world where both quality talk and thought are essential. To reflect the change in priorities, authentic assessments that prioritise forms of talk should be deliberately included in the curriculum. As a case study, we explore how explicit teaching of discussion skills in Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) has facilitated greater language awareness as well as achieved the aims of improving language, cooperative and thinking skills.
Reading the world: Reading Red Scarf Girl in a 9th grade English language arts class
This study examines how one teacher implemented the study of a multicultural literary text in a rural 9th grade English Language Arts classroom. Specifically, it examines the kinds of classrooms conversations that arose as a result of the study of Red Scarf Girl (1997), a memoir set during the Cultural Revolution in China. The findings show that the choice of a culturally distant text from another nation encouraged conversations about what it meant to be an American, and provided potential discursive spaces for discussion about self, nation, and world. However, there were also tendencies towards non-critical readings and thinking in problematic binaries. Implications for rethinking multicultural literature to include conversations about self, nation, and world are discussed. In thinking about text choice, I suggest that we need to begin to think about students both as Americans and global citizens in order to bring culturally relevant conversations into the classroom.
Examining the cognitive task potential of writing in the literature classroom: Case studies of two 12th grade students’ written work
This case study is part of a larger study, the National Study of Writing Instruction. Through the examination of the written work and interview data of two 12th grade High School English students from two different classes in the same school, I seek to paint a picture of the kinds of writing the students do in their English classrooms, and what the writing reveals about what teachers value and what students learn in particular classrooms. The analysis reveals how teachers use writing as a learning tool to shape students’ knowledge of particular ways of thinking and knowing within and about the discipline. Additionally, it shows how they inculcate students into discipline-specific ways of writing in each particular classroom. Teachers in both classes taught students to write in line with their idea of “good” writing within the context of the discipline, school policy, and high stakes testing. I argue that the teachers’ awareness of their own expectations, the potential of a task and student expectations will allow for more deliberate design of written tasks that encourage general and discipline-specific learning.
Reading the world: Reconceptualizing reading multicultural literature in the English language arts classrooms in a global world
This paper examines scholarship and empirical work on the use of multicultural literature in the English Language Arts classroom in the United States in the context of globalization. Studies in the United States tend to focus on diversity within the nation to the neglect of diversity beyond the States. Beyond multicultural perspectives as it is framed in the U.S. context, a global/local perspective that recognizes diversity within and beyond the nation is a more relevant construct for examining the literature curriculum in this globalized postmodernity.