educ 553

ClassroomSession 3

EDUC 553

Multicultural Literature: African-American Culture, Awards,

and Perspectives on Cultural

Authenticity

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Benedictine University 2

Introduction Teachers include literature in programs in a variety of ways,

ranging from: Teacher-led, whole-class experiences with a

teacher-selected book Teacher-selected books, to independent reading of

self-selected books Each of these patterns of instruction contributes to and is

necessary for effective literacy instruction (Hiebert and Colt, 1989)

All bullets in Introduction slides referenced from Hiebert, E., & Colt, J. (1989); Jacobs, J. S. & Tunnell, M. O. (2004); and Yopp, R. H. & Yopp, H. K. (2001).

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Introduction Teacher-led, whole-class experiences provide students with:

Guidance needed to become expert readers and Opportunities to gain alternative points of view

– Necessary for building and revising understandings of text Small student-led group experiences provide students

with opportunities to participate and attain social and interpretive authority In a setting that is safer than a whole-class experience

Individual reading of self-selected books Respects student interests and choice Helps students develop the independent reading strategies

that underlie lifelong reading

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Introduction Teacher responsibilities critical to successful use of

literature in the classroom: Familiarize yourself with a wide variety of children’s

literature and keep abreast of newly published works Spend time in libraries and bookstores, explore Web sites

that provide lists of award-winning literature, review children’s literature Think about (and experiment with) ways of using literature

Prior to engaging students in a literature experience, you must read the entire book yourself It is impossible to plan meaningful experiences or respond to

students’ explorations without being familiar with the book

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Introduction Teacher responsibilities critical to the successful use of

literature in the classroom (Cont): Identify and understand themes in children’s literature Plan activities for three stages of exploration:

Before… During… After

…reading the book Establish an atmosphere of trust…

Students will honestly communicate their feelings, experiences, and ideas only if there is an atmosphere of trust in the classroom

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African-American Literature & History

“Resisting human tyranny… dedicated to human dignity”

(Gates, et. Al. 151)

6Benedictine University

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African-American LiteratureTime Periods

Slavery and Freedom (1746-1865)

Reconstruction and New Negro Renaissance (1865- 1877/1918)

Harlem Renaissance (1919-1940)

Realism, Naturalism, Modernism (1940-1960)


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Before slavery


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Slavery – What does it mean?


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Blacks in America:Colonialism,

Reason and Revolution, Slavery and Freedom

(1746-1865)


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A Brief History• 1441 - First African slaves imported to Portugal• 1517 - Plantation slavery begins• 1619 - African slaves arrive at the English colony

of Jamestown• 1777 - Vermont abolishes slavery• 1793 - Congress passes the first fugitive Slave Act


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1807 - Congress outlaws the African Slave trade1861 - The Civil War begins1863 - Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation1865 - Civil War ends1866 - Former Confederacy passes “Black Code” laws

State governments in the South enacted laws designed to regulate the lives of the former slaves and were actually revisions of the earlier slave codes


A Brief History

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1868 - The 14th Amendment of the Constitution is ratified, guaranteeing equal protection under the law

1870 - The 15th Amendment of the Constitution is ratified, guaranteeing the right to vote regardless of “race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”

1896 - Plessy v. Ferguson decision United States Supreme Court decision upholding the constitutionality of state

laws requiring racial segregation in private businesses (particularly railroads), under the doctrine of “separate but equal".


A Brief History

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Separate_but_equal

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African Slave Routes


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Middle Passage


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Human Chattel


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www.yale.edu/glc/harriet/15.htm


http://www.yale.edu/glc/harriet/15.htm

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Consider the following: How would studying this history in school affect

African-American students? How might African-American students feel about their past?

Would you anticipate reaction to this ‘black history’ would include some negative expression about the white majority’s role in it?

How would you feel as a teacher touching upon some of the issues contained in the African-American past?

How could you use African-American literature to bridge this culture?

Discuss Read Alouds, multicultural unit, literature circle, independent reading, and any other ideas…


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African-American Literature Includes both the literature from Africa and

the literature from the Americas

Foundation is African folklore

Strong values, beliefs, and themes

Norton Chapter 220Benedictine University

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African American Literature Issues From 1827-1967 portrayed as:

Not physically attractive Musical Having religious fervor with superstitious beliefs Being required to select life goals that ‘benefit’

African-American people Being dependent on white people for whatever

good things they could hope to acquire


ClassroomSession 3 “The All-White World of

Children’s Books” by Nancy Larrick (1965)

Larrick’s research disclosed that there was a lack of books about minorities

Stereotypes were found in the few available books

Many changes in U.S. social life and literature have occurred since this time


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Hazel Rochman (1993)

African-American literature is flourishing Autobiography, poetry, and

historical fiction Complexity in contemporary YA literature

Confront issues of color, class, prejudice and identity

No “band-aids” of self-esteem offered


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Nancy Tolson (1998)

African-American children’s literature Enables African-American children to

feel a sense of value and self-pride Helps white children understand and

appreciate the rich culture, history and tradition of African-Americans


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Authors 1920s

Harlem Renaissance 1940s-1950s

Strong African-American characters 1960s -1970s

African-American children’s literature 1990s

Modern African-American voices and values


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Harlem Renaissance The diverse literary

expression of the Harlem Renaissance was demonstrated through Langston Hughes’ weaving of the rhythms of African- American music into his poems of ghetto life, as in The Weary Blues (1926)

Langston Hughes

Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Collection, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-USF34-9058-C]


http://www.kuce.org/hughes/

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The existence of the large amount of literature from the Renaissance inspired writers such as Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright to pursue literary careers in the late 1930s and 1940s

New York, New York. Portrait of Richard Wright, poet

Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, FSA/OWI Collection, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-USF34-9058-C]


Harlem Renaissance

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Diversity was also demonstrated through Zora Neale Hurston’s novels such as, Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937). Hurston used life of the rural South to create a study of race and gender in which a woman finds her true identity

[Portrait of Zora Neale Hurston]

Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, Carl Van Vechten Collection, [reproduction number, e.g., LC-USZ62-54231]


Harlem Renaissance

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The writers that followed the Harlem Renaissance found that American publishers and the American public were more open to African-American literature than they had been at the beginning of the Twentieth Century

The outpouring of African-American literature in the 1980s and 1990s by such writers as Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, and Spike Lee had its roots in the writing of the Harlem Renaissance


Harlem Renaissance

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Awards High-quality African-American literature is

reflected in books that have won Newbery Medals of Honor Awards and Caldecott Medal or Honor Awards

These lists include authors and illustrators who are African-American and non-African American who write about the African or African-American culture and experience


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More AwardsCoretta Scott King Award:

One African-American authorOne African-American illustrator

Focuses on outstanding inspirational contributions to children’s literature


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Slave Narratives

http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/collections/voices/

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Characteristics of Slave Narratives Marked by religious/humanitarian appeals Emphasize the narrator’s movement from

innocence to greater understanding Serve as propaganda Detail cruelty of slavery Contrast slavery with Christian ideals Portray the narrator as a trickster

Chapter 2 pgs. 38 – 41 has an overview


http://memory.loc.gov/master/afc/afc9999001/5091b.wav

http://memory.loc.gov/master/afc/afc9999001/5091b.wav

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Why do you think that publishing slave narratives was an important step in changing attitudes and stereotypes that existed about African Americans?


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Venture Smith 1729-1805

• Royal African lineage• Born free • Enslaved as a boy• Figure of mythic proportions

in New England• Bought his and others

freedom


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Olaudah Equiano1745-1797

• Born in Africa• Only account of Africans’ pre-American

experience• Kidnapped by African slave traders• Enslaved several times in Africa• Sailor• Bought his own freedom• Converted to Christianity• Abolitionist


ClassroomSession 3Phillis Wheatley

1753(?)-1784• Brought to America as a child• Well educated by owners• Writings influenced by the British writers, esp. Alexander Pope

• First important poet of African descent in

America• Subjects primarily religious


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David Walker 1785-1830

• Son of a slave father and free black mother• Business owner• Christian• Outspoken abolitionist


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Maria Stewart 1803-1879

• Born free• Orphaned at 5• Served as a domestic• First black female political writer/lecturer• Influenced by David Walker


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Frederick Douglass1818-1895

• Born a slave of mixed race• Escaped slavery• Founded two antislavery

journals• Outspoken abolitionist


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Harriet Jacobs 1813-1897

• Born in NC• Uneventful life until 12• Pursued by owner**• Became a mistress of a

respected citizen***• Narrative about

psychological torments suffered by slaves

• Moral degradation suffered by slave women

• Questions of authenticity about the narrative***


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References http://www.nvcc.edu/home/cicooper/African%20American

%20LiteratureUnit1.ppt#256,1,African American Literature

http://www.glencoe.com/sec/socialstudies/btt/aahm/presentation/events_civil_rights_move.ppt#264,11,Harlem Renaissance

Norton, Chapter 2


educ 553

Documents

multicultural literature

literature experience

successful use of literature

class experiences

students explorations

atmosphere of trust

africanamerican culture

group experiences