LEARNING THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA- Take a new perspective

Literary Equity Through Windows & Mirrors

By Caitlin Kane

What is literary equity?

Literary equity is the ability to provide literature that represents different groups of people, experiences and traditions or cultures. A concept that although seems fairly simple and easy to implement in our classrooms, is more complex and more important than it appears. 

As teachers, our goal is to create life-long learners that are eager to actively participate in the world around them. Life-long learners are avid readers; from reading the news with a critical lens, to an article related to their profession, or deciding between which hotel reviews claim to have the best vacation experience. Students need to develop a love of language and literature from an early age to encourage positive reading habits, which includes learning how to pick out texts that are engaging. 

Let Students Choose!

Purves and Beach (1972) found that children preferred to choose books with subject matter that related to personal experiences and readers looked for characters that were identifiable and relatable (Collier, 2000; Harris, 1990, Purves & Beach, 1972). As adult learners and readers, we are more likely to choose a book that we can apply to in our daily lives or a book we share a common experience with. By allowing children to select books that they prefer, it provides a space that shows that we, as classroom teachers, respect their choices, decisions and their preferences. Which helps support a culture of collaboration, student independence and mutual respect. 

Windows & Mirrors

Students being able to ‘see themselves’ depicted in texts provides opportunities for linking cultural knowledge and experience to text (Brooks, 2006). Which introduces us to the concept of ¨Windows and Mirrors¨. Rudine Sims Bishop, referred to as the ¨Mother of Multicultural Children's Literature¨, is a professor at The Ohio State University, has published articles and books about the importance of multicultural books in elementary classrooms, and created the concept of Windows and Mirrors. Windows and Mirrors is the idea that readers should be able to see themselves in the books that they read, (as mirrors), and it should also be a lens to look into other cultures and experiences to learn from (as windows). The belief is that books can lend themselves to be windows and mirrors to create a room of empathy and understanding for one another (O’Donnell, 2019). 

Why is it important?

Creating literacy equity in elementary classrooms can enhance engagement, performance and achievement for all students (Collier, 2000; Harris, 1990). Allowing students the ability to find books that characters have similar interests, and life & familial experiences, helps establish a deep background knowledge and understanding of the text. Which creates a space for students to think critically and deepen their comprehension. 

This is also seen in books that are perceived as Windows to students. By explicitly teaching students about different perspectives and cultures, it will create a culture of empathy, acceptance and compassion for others. It is equally as important for a classroom with a high population of Hispanic students to read a book with a Hispanic main character as it is for a classroom with a high population of White students. The same book allows for both groups of students to experience the text in a different way, while still actively engaging the student's learning. The more active we can make the reading experience the more students will comprehend and remember (Ziemke & Muhtaris, 2020). 

How can technology improve literary equity in our schools?

The amount of resources, applications and websites that are now available to educators are incredible, but also overwhelming. Websites can include Epic, Raz Kids, Read Works, or Storyline Online. In one building alone, a school can implement several reading programs, math programs, typing websites and countless others. The access that we have to a multitude of resources can be overwhelming. However, I feel that now, more than ever, educators have the advantage of utilizing technology and internet access to increase our student´s literary equity in our classrooms and at home. 

Ziemke & Muhtaris stated that ¨reading alone was not enough: it is art, music, architecture and modes of communication that influence one's perspective and comprehension of life (2019). Technology is able to fill that gap and provide access to enhance background knowledge of a topic, to deepen comprehension and increase student engagement. Educators now have access to an almost unlimited amount of books, and can assign books so students can see themselves, and share common interests and experiences. That means we also have the responsibility to assign books that expose students to different cultures, holidays and experiences. 

References

Brooks, W. (2006). Reading representations of themselves: urban youth use culture and 

african american textual features to develop literary understandings. Reading Research Quarterly, 41(3), 372-392. Retrieved July 19, 2020, from www.jstor.org/stable/4151751 

Collier, M. (2000). Through the looking glass: harnessing the power of african american 

children's literature. The Journal of Negro Education, 69(3), 235-242. doi:10.2307/2696234   

Harris, V. (1990). African american children's literature: the first one hundred years. The 

Journal of Negro Education, 59(4), 540-555. doi:10.2307/2295311

O’Donnell, Alina. (2019). Windows, mirrors, and sliding glass doors: the enduring impact 

of Rudine Sims Bishop’s work. Literacy Today (2411-7862), 36(6), 16–19. 

Purves, A. & Beach, R. (1972). Literature and the reader. Urbana, IL: National

Council of Teachers of English. 

Sims Bishop, R. (1983). What has happened to the 'all-white' world of children's books? 

The Phi Delta Kappan, 64(9), 650-653. Retrieved July 11, 2020, from

www.jstor.org/stable/20386841

Ziemke, K., & Muhtaris, K. (2020). Read the world: rethinking literacy for empathy and 

action in a digital age. Heinemann.