In this letter, Conroy discusses how students and teachers are being set back because of the banning of books that are about the same visuals and sayings they hear on a daily basis.
In the book Diversity in America by Vincent Parillo, the notion of multiculturalism of being a threat to society in the United States is challenged. In order to define the differing viewpoints of what multiculturalism is advocating, Parillo identifies the “three umbrellas of multiculturalism” and explains how each mindset approaches the topic. The Inclusionists promote school curriculums to include non-white accomplishments so that minorities can feel that their background also had great significance in contributing to success of the United States. The Separatists believe that different ethnicities should not conform to assimilating to the mainstream culture.
The cuneiform text of the “Legend of Sargon of Akkade” tells of a baby hidden in a basket coated with pitch and placed in the Euphrates River. As the basket carried down the river, the basket was opened by Akki, a royal gardener, who adopted the child and raised him as his own. Favored by the goddess Ishtar, the boy grew up and eventually became the ruler of Akkade, called Sargon, conquering lands near and far. While Sargon was late in reign, he commissioned the “Legend of Sargon of Akkade” for the future to read to preserve his military and leader accomplishments, as well as establishing the source of his legitimacy both to secure his legacy as a form of afterlife.
In the article,”How Banning Books Marginalizes Children” the author Paul Ringel brings attention to an event called, “Banned Books Week” which has been occurring every year since 1982. This week gives prominence to “literary works frequently challenged by parents, schools and libraries” (Ringel 1) due to the context that relates to violence, religion, offensive language or the mentioning of drug use. 52 percent of the books that are obliged to be challenged in Ringel's opinion includes material that delivers “diverse content--which explores issues such as race, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, mental illness, and disability” (1). Ringel believes books that create controversy and forces the reader to explore should not be banned, because it “end(s) up marginalizing the lives and experiences of many young readers, rather than protecting them” (2) from diverse content.
Different types of literature open new doors through which students’ can explore the unknown and expand their knowledge of controversial topics. The great examples found in literature have been the subject of much debate, as school boards wrestle with whether children should be allowed to read such difficult, harsh topics, as said in the article “How Banning Books Marginalizes Children” (Source F). There are so many brilliant works of literature spanning a wide variety of genres and topics, and a single school board should not determine what students learn. No one is proposing that second graders read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, but rather that we intentionally choose literature that will expand, rather than limit, children’s options and minds. Not only do these great works lay the groundwork for our future generation, but they also serve to diversify students’ writing and analysis skills.
The United States of America is often referred to as a melting pot of different cultures and heritages, so as a country we have an ongoing awareness of the idea to include people of all cultures and backgrounds and treat them as equals. But we have not reached that point in our country's history yet. To encourage everyone to treat all others as equals, authors create multicultural books in order to show young children that although we might all look different we are all valuable and should be treated as equal members of society. In order to create a more culturally accepting society, teachers, parents and authors are introducing children to Multicultural Children's Books. Multicultural books allow the readers to understand and appreciate people
Books about culture, religions, disabilities etc can be a way of showing a group of children different elements to each child’s life & the differences between individuals. This can help any confusion children have & can help prepare them for future situations they may come
Celebrating a Diversity day in our Committee can be very important. It can bring us together as a committee. A few reasons why it could benefit our committee is that it can teach people about different cultures around the world. It can bring us together for one day without any conflict. It can solve conflict.
I did not foresee myself gaining as much knowledge on the concepts of diversity as a whole from a children’s literature course. Understanding that diversity impacts the world in positive and negative (when diversity is lacking) ways, it motivates me to create diverse lesson plans. I would be doing my students a disservice if any of them felt as though they are an outcast, or that their race/cultural/disability is completely unacknowledged. As a result, “reading against the grain” has made me more cognizant of the need for diversity in literature, especially children’s
Growing up we 've read picture books that have introduced us to literature, wildly funny characters and taught us how to use our imagination. However, have you ever thought maybe these children books aren 't just for entertainment? What if they have hidden messages with racist undertones or represent political movements. Sometimes what we see is not always what you get so I 've studied two popular children 's figures, Curious George and Babar the Elephant.
(p.185). This relates to my call for action because everyone should be able to read what book they want without being judged. “The goal is to encourage lifelong readers, and the more we try to tell kids which books are for them, the more reluctant the kids are to
Summary: How Diversity Make Us Smarter In this essay, “How Diversity Make Us Smarter,” Katherine Phillips illustrates how diversity functions effectively in a group, organization, and society. Philips states diversity has several advantages, such as enhancing creativity, evoking more thoughts, changing behavior, and promoting hard work. Philips supports the advantages by showing the positive outcomes come from different university researches and studies.
Students can use books to grow their knowledge about our everyday day life. “It is important to help students see that everyone 's view counts” (Scales). By allowing students to see different points of views they’re able to experience situations unfamiliar to them and learn about different cultures and societies. If they don’t have the opportunity to read these books then they might miss out on these vital lessons. Children need to know about sensitive topics and strong ideas.
These lessons are not only vital in childhood but are needed throughout life. ‘‘Inclusion, multicultural, and non-sexist children’s literature also gives students in the "majority" an understanding of their "minority" peers struggles, triumphs, and contribution to our culture and society’’(Pirofski). Being exposed to people from different parts of the world or have special needs is very important in child development, hand in hand with them grasping new concepts. Children's literature gives students an understanding of what struggles and issues that goes in their society. This helps children know the full spectrum growing up and now growing up to be ignorant or misinformed of situations around them that are not hardcore taught in society.
They have a significant influence on children’s socio-cultural development outside the family environment. Klein ( 1976) postulates that everything we read affects the way we think, considerably, the texts children are exposed to have a big influence on their thoughts and attitudes. Therefore writers should consider excluding stereotypes such as gender and racial stereotypes, from texts for children because the presence of stereotypical views can cause problems throughout children’s development. According to Sutherland (1997) children’s literature has been used to improve language literacy and inventive thinking skills.
