English 583 Allen Carey-Webb / Debbie LaCroix

Multicultural Literature for Adolescents 723 / 622 Sprau Hall

Winter 1995 M 2-4, W 2-4 /

Tuesday 6:30-9:00 387-2605 / 387-3586

This class is designed to enhance teachers' knowledge of the literature, culture, and history of American ethnic minorities and changing global societies. Emphasis will be on materials and strategies for today's secondary English classroom.

After our introductory meeting the next nine class sessions will focus on three minority cultural areas, Native American, African American, and Latino. We will then reflect on the emerging multicultural movement and consider diversity in a broad perspective touching on a variety of writers from traditionally marginalized groups including women, Asian American, gay/lesbians, Third World people, etc. These last weeks of the course will address ways that teachers can rethink traditional curriculum from a multicultural perspective.

The exchange of perspectives and ideas and informed dialogue will provide a basis for learning in this class, thus doing the reading, coming prepared and ready to share is important. Each week students will be expected to write 1-2 pages of handout-ready teaching materials pertaining to the week's reading. During the last two weeks students will be asked to make a brief presentation on a book or books they read on their own. The final project for the class will involve drawing on our learning in 583 to development of curriculum and materials for a specific course of the student's own choosing. Portions of the final project will be due as the semester progresses (see the syllabus).

For the grade conscious: the final grade will be based 50% on participation (7 pts for each of the 13 written assignments , 9 pts for the presentation, 100 pts for in-class participation, total of 200 pts for participation) and 50% on the final project (25 pts for each of the portions handed in, 100 pts for the final project, total of 200 pts for the project). Missing more than two seminar meeting will lower the grade; missing four or more may lead to failing the class.

Strategies to deal with the cost of the extensive reading list for this course will be discussed at the first class meeting. Publications such as Teaching Tolerance and Rethinking Schools are directly relevant to the issues explored in this class and all students are urged to subscribe and read these journals regularly. Also all students are encouraged to join the professional organizations, NCTE and MCTE, and follow their professional publications such as the English Journal or In The Middle and attend professional conferences.

Zinn, Howard. People's History of the United States (1980)

Wallis, Velma. Two Old Women

Momaday, N. Scott. Way to Rainy Mountain

Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven

Walters, Lee Ann. Talking Indian

Trafzer, Cliff. Earth Song, Sky Spirit

Native American Testimony: Chronicles of Indian-White Relations from Prophecy to Present 1492-1992

Armstrong, Jeannete. Slash

Gates, Henry Louis Jr. The Classic Slave Narratives (1987)

Hughes, Langston: Collected Poetry and Short Stories

Cade Bambara, Toni. Gorilla My Love

Scott, Cody. Monster

Walter Dean Myer, Scorpians

Wright, Richard. Native Son (1940)

Galazara, Ernesto. Barrio Boy (1974)

Gonzalez, Ray. Currents fromt the Dancing River (1994)

packets

African American Literature, Harcourt Brace

Mexican American Literature, Harcourt Brace

The Big Aieeeeh!

Yep, Lawrence. Amercian Dragons: 25 Asian American Voices

Trask, Haunani Kay. From a Native Daughter: Colonialism and Soverignty in Hawaii

Riley, Patricia. Growing up Native American

Bruchac, Joseph. Survival This Way: Interviews with Native American Poets

Swann, Brian and Arnold Krupat, I Tell You Now: Autobiographical Essays by Native American Writers

Momaday, N. Scott. The Names

Champagne, Duane. Native America: Portrait of a People

Barakat, Halim. Days of Dust

Allen, Paula Gunn, Spider Woman's Granddaughters

Walker, Margaret. Jubilee

Bouer, Dane Ed. Am I Blue?. Harper Collins. 1994.

Garden, Nancy. Annie on My Mind

Tan, Amy. Joy Luck Club

Whaley, Liz and Liz Dodge. Ed. Weaving in the Women: Transforming the High School English Curriculum. Boynton.

Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart

Markandaya, Kamala. Nectar in a Sieve

Garcia Marquez, No One Writes to the Colonel

Hurlburt, Mark. Social Issues in the English Classroom. NCTE 1993.

Jan. 10: Introductions

Jan. 17: Oral Tradition and Cultural Translation

Required:

Wallis, Velma. Two Old Women

Momaday, N. Scott. Way to Rainy Mountain

Jan. 24 Contemporary Individual and Tribal Experience

Required:

Alexie, Sherman. The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fist Fight in Heaven

Walters, Lee Ann. Talking Indian

Jan. 31 Tribal Diversity and Similarity

Due: Final Project: Description of class and audience, statement of theme and objectives, some ideas about materials. (minimum 3 pages).

Required

Trafzer, Cliff. Earth Song, Sky Spirit

Feb. 7 A History of the Present

Required:

Native American Testimony: Chronicles of Indian-White Relations from Prophecy to Present 1492-1992

Armstrong, Jeannete. Slash

Zinn, "Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress," "As Long as Grass Grows or Water Runs"

Feb 14 Slavery

Required:

Zinn, "Drawing the Color Line" "Slavery w/o Submission"

from Equiano, Olaudah. Narrative

Douglass, Narrative, Classic Slave Narratives

Brent, Incidents, Classic Slave Narratives

Gray, "The Confessions of Nat Turner" (1831)

Optional:

Prince, Mary. History

Stowe, Harriet Beecher. Uncle Tom's Cabin

Hughes, Langston. "Mullatto"

Walker, Margaret. Jubilee

Feb. 21 Black Aesthetics

Due: Final Project: Tenative bibliography annotated for teaching. (minimum 5 pages).

Required:

Langston Hughes: "The Negro Writer and the Racial Mountain"

Walker, Alice. "In Search of Our Mother's Gardens"

Hughes, Langston: Collected Poetry and Short Stories

Cade Bambara, Toni. Gorilla My Love

Feb. 28 Spring Break

Mar 7 Social Justice Crisis

Wright, Richard. Native Son

Scott, Cody. Monster

Walter Dean Myer, Scorpians

a "gangsta" film (eg. "Strapped," " Boys 'n the Hood," "Menace II Society," "Juice," "South Central")

rap lyrics

Optional:

Haley, Alex. The Autobiography of Malcolm X

"Letter from the Grass Roots" Malcolm X

Zinn, Howard. "Or Does it Explode?"

"Eyes on the Prize"

Mar. 14 Colonialism and Migration

Due: Final Project: Semester plan and sample of teaching materials (minimum 8 pages).

Required:

Acuña, "Legacy of Hate: The Conquest of the Southwest" from Occupied America

Zinn, Howard. "We Take Nothing by Conquest"

Galazara, Ernesto. Barrio Boy

"El Norte"

Mar. 21 Resistance: Movimiento, Aztlán, Barrio Culture, 184

Required:

"El Plan Espiritual de Aztlán"

"Salt of the Earth" (video)

Valdez, Luis. "Los Vendidos"

from Currents From the Dancing River

Optional:

Cisneros, Sandra. The House on Mango Street

Alarcón, Norma. "Chicana Feminism" from Understanding Others

Anzuldua, Gloria. Borderlands

Mar 28

Required:

Reed, Ishmael, "America: The Multicultural Society" (1983) in Multicultural Literacy (1989)

Banks, James A. "Multicultural Education Progress and Prospects" in Kappan 10/93.

Banks, James A. "Multicultural Education: Development, Dimensions and Challenges" in Kappan 10/93.

Garcia, Jesus. "The Changing Image of Ethnic Groups in Textbooks" in Kappan 10/93.

Howard, Gary. "Whites in Multicultural Education: Rethinking Our Role" in Kappan 10/93.

McGee Banks, Cherry A. "Restructing Our Schools for Equity: What We Have Learned" in Kappan 10/93.

Hu-DeHart, Evelyn. "The History, Development, and Future of Ethnic Studies" in Kappan 10/93.

Freire, Paulo. "Chapter 2," Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970)

Applebee, Arthur. "Stability and Change in the High School Literature Course," English Journal (Sept. 1992)

Carey-Webb, "Homelessness and the Language Arts," "Third World Autobiography," "A Multicultural Tempest," "Racism and Huck Finn"

Optional:

Giroux, "Resisting Difference: Cultural Studies and the Discourse of Critical Pedagogy," Cultural Studies (1992)

Lauter, Paul. "The Literatures of America: A Comparative Discipline" Redefining American Literary History

Totten, "Educating for the Development of Social Consciousness" Social Issues in the English Classroom

Hurlbert, "Rumors of Change" Social Issues in the English Classroom

Apr. 4 Due: Final Project: Ten pages of teaching materials.

Apr. 11

Apr. 18 (Finals Week) Final Project Due

Weaving in the Women

The Big Aieeeeh!

Yep, Lawrence. Amercian Dragons: 25 Asian American Voices

Tan, Amy. Joy Luck Club

Garden, Nancy. Annie on My Mind

Jack

Am I Blue

Hart, "Writing in the Margins" (Social Issues)

Kutzner, "A Ghostly Chorus" (Social Issues)

Lankewish, "Breaking the Silence" (Social Issues)

Achebe, Chinua. Things Fall Apart

Markandaya, Kamala. Nectar in a Sieve

Garcia Marquez, No One Writes to the Colonel