This is a portion of my book review for my graduate class over this text: Introduction: Teaching Literature to Adolescents is written in collaboration by Richard Beach, Deborah Appleman, Bob Fecho, and Rob Simon. All of these authors hold positions in higher education at universities teaching courses related to literacy. Each has also published multiple books and articles related to adolescent literacy, and they all seem quite qualified to discuss best practices in adolescent literacy. The opening chapter of the book is directed to teachers who are stepping into the classroom and might have some hesitancy about what they should be teaching and how to go about effectively teaching literacy skills in their classroom. According to the preface, the authors wrote the book to provide some guidance, best practices, and strategies to assist preservice middle and high school teachers as they navigate literacy instruction. Focus: In the preface of the book, the authors lay out the thesis and organization of the book as well as discuss the theoretical and philosophical rationale for the included content. The authors' basic thesis is to provide preservice middle and high school teachers with current methods of teaching literacy based on critical, social constructivist, and sociocultural theories of learning. The authors contend that the theories are based on engaging students through alternative perspectives of literature and giving them an opportunity to extend their knowledge and perspectives through writing, discussion, and drama. The book includes theoretical ideas as well as specific teaching strategies, and classroom examples and observations that are based on best practices and supported by data which is cited throughout the chapters and at the conclusion of the book in the references section. The book is divided into four sections: Why Should I Teach Literature?, What Texts Will Students Read and View in My Classroom?, How will I Teach Literature?, and We Make the Road by Walking. As the reader progresses through the book it steps the reader through why, how, and then ideas to sustain literacy instruction in the classroom in order to assist pre-service teachers with getting started and staying current on literacy instruction. Chapter one of the book lays the framework of the content by stating, "We believe that critical inquiry approach and the theoretical positions that inform the teaching we describe and advocate in this book are powerful and effective" (Beach et al. p. 5). The authors go on to discuss transmission theories and critical sociocultural theories with the emphasis being on the effectiveness of critical sociocultural theories, and through the chapters, the authors continue to build the case that students learn when engaged with literature through questioning and making text connections to the world and culture around them. As the chapters continue, the authors discuss how curriculum units can be planned through backward planning and setting essential questions that are tied to standards. Emphasis is given to extending literature beyond the traditional canon and allowing students to choose young adult literature that is interesting and engaging to them. Specific activities are suggested such as allowing students to demonstrate their understanding of literacy concepts through formative assessments such as paintings, poems, discussion, and with digital tools as well as with formal writing. Students are encouraged to respond to literature through multiple perspectives and specific examples are provided such as biographical perspective, gender perspective, and social class perspective. The final section focuses on professional learning and how teachers can continue to develop over the span of their teaching careers with the emphasis being research and critical dialogue. The authors advise that educators not become stagnant in their classroom and continue to interact with peers in order to discuss hard questions, learn new strategies, and work out difficulties encountered in the classroom. The ideas and strategies within Teaching Literature to Adolescents help pre-service teachers lay a firm foundation for effective literacy instruction and help those of us who have been teaching for multiple years, re-evaluate the instruction taking place in our own classrooms. The knowledge presented within the text echoes the theories, best practices, and strategies that have been presented in all of the texts and journals I have encountered thus far in my graduate studies. Response: To be honest, I found this text difficult to engage with due to the writing style. It read more like a textbook to me than some of the other books I have read so far in my graduate studies; that being said, the content covered within the text is important and is supported by data. I appreciated the best practices and the specific examples provided throughout the text and found the middle chapters to be much more helpful than the first few chapters which were more of an introduction, and may be very helpful to pre-service teachers, but were not super helpful to me as a somewhat seasoned teacher. I would recommend this book to my colleagues, especially chapters 3-11 which get more into the "meat" of literacy instruction instead of the theory.
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As far as textbooks go, I actually found this book to be pretty informative and easy to read. I enjoyed the topics discussed in the book which range from early literacy skills, reading comprehension, vocabulary, writing, and professional learning. I also appreciate that each chapter is divided into sections based on current issues in best practices, evidence-based best practices, best practices in action, reflections, and engagement activities. I found the best practices in action to be a very useful section because specific examples and strategies are discussed and readers are given a glimpse into classrooms. I would definitely recommend this book for teachers who are looking to review literacy skills and learn about best practices they can institute in their classrooms. |
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