Hey, y’all! It’s Danielle from Nouvelle ELA.
I’ve seen a lot of y’all posting on social media recently and asking for help
diversifying and decolonizing* your curriculum. This is not work we’ll be able
to do overnight, but it is important that we start. I’ve asked Dr. Sheila Frye,
a Literacy Specialist from New Jersey who blogs at TeachingLiteracy.me, to help
me help you find some first steps.
[*NB: When Sheila and I talk about diversifying,
we mean adding more voices to the material aspects of our classrooms, like
updating our reading lists to include authors from backgrounds not currently
represented. When we use the term decolonizing, this is changing
material and immaterial aspects (such as discussion techniques) of our teaching
practices to de-center White European heritage.]
Most of us can easily recall some of the books
we were required to read in high school, no matter where in the United States
we grew up. Of Mice and Men? Check. The Scarlet Letter? Yup. Romeo
and Juliet? Us too. By now, we know that these texts serve to amplify white
voices. Given the dynamic plurality of the citizens of our country, it is safe
to say that a large portion of our students’ stories are being ignored or
muted, all for the sake of past practice. The good news is that we all have
access to tools to expand the canon and move it toward inclusivity and
intersectionality.
Before we dive into inclusive pairings for 10
commonly-taught texts, Sheila and I wanted to make some acknowledgements and
provide you with some resources for your anti-racist work. (You can read our full notes on these affirmations in this post.)
1. We acknowledge that representation
matters.
2.
We acknowledge that
diversifying the ELA curriculum is just one step.
3.
We acknowledge that
schools are under-funded.
4.
We acknowledge that
teachers may have little say in the texts they teach.
5.
We acknowledge that
talking about race may be new to many teachers.
Sometimes, curriculum decisions are made at a
district level, and it can be difficult or impossible to pivot in a single
summer. Sometimes, core texts are approved a year in advance, and there’s
little wiggle room. Within our recommendations, we’ll show you how to reframe
conversations around your “fixed” texts to increase empathy and critical
thinking in your students. Our goal is to help you use the tools you have to
disrupt racism. (And since you’re on a budget, here’s an
idea for how to get free books from
Danielle’s blog.)
With all this in mind, let’s jump into
discussing specific texts. We’ve chosen ten commonly-taught texts from
secondary ELA to reexamine with a goal of inclusivity. For each text, we’ll
share easy changes, like supplemental texts you could incorporate on a
budget.
We’ll also share more difficult changes, like curriculum updates you
could request in the future. We are not saying that you need to replace every
text -- we want to continue a dialogue on how to make our curricula more
inclusive.
Guiding Questions
For each text you teach, ask yourself:
- What themes will students consider?
- What essential questions will students explore?
- Which literary elements will students observe?
- Which voices are absent in the current unit?
- What other texts could students use to achieve these
goals?
The Texts
Romeo & Juliet
Supplement the text: Have you heard about the Harlem
Shakespeare Festival? When Debra Ann Byrd
started the company, she was tired of not being given the chance to play a full
range of roles in Shakespeare’s plays. Byrd said, “I decided that I am going to
start a theatre company where classically trained actors of colour get
opportunities to perform whatever classics they want to perform.” In addition
to adding Byrd’s interpretations to your students’ discussions, check out Akala’s
analysis of Shakespeare & Hip Hop. (I always use this TED talk to introduce my students to Iambic
Pentameter)
A curriculum update: What are your main teaching goals with this text? If you’re
looking for a lyrical tragedy that is character-focused, check out In the
Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez. If you like the star-crossed lovers
aspect, consider The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henriquez.
Both texts will engage your students and provoke deep conversations about
destiny, choice, and responsibility.
To Kill a Mockingbird
Supplement the text: If you’d like to keep teaching this novel, teacher Christina
Torres recommends
exploring tough questions that are still relevant to our students’ lives today. For example, Atticus fights for Tom because he is a
“clean-living” Black man. This is a great discussion starter! What does it mean
to be “clean-living”? Is a citizen’s life only valuable under certain
conditions? How does this ethos connect to the arguments various groups make today
about police brutality?
A curriculum update: Consider adding or substituting the book Just Mercy by
Bryan Stevenson. A lawyer, Stevenson shares the stories of those wrongfully
imprisoned and their fights for justice. His work has been adapted for young
adults and there’s also a new film adaptation. This would be the perfect way to
give a Black writer space to tell stories about justice for Black people.
The Odyssey
Supplement the text: Round out your teaching of The Odyssey by having it share
the stage with other myths and legends from around the world. As students meet
Scylla and Charybdis, have them research other mythological
creatures. You can also connect
the concept of xenia to current events, like the refugee crises in Syria
or in Malaysia. Stacey Lloyd recommends drawing in essays from “The Displaced,”
edited by Viet Thanh Nguyen. This is a collection of narrative nonfiction by
refugee writers. Be sure to check out Stacey’s post on adding a
global perspective for ideas on incorporating short stories, too.
A curriculum update: If you’re looking for a modern classic, The Marrow Thieves
by Cherie Dimaline is an excellent pick. The Marrow Thieves is a
coming-of-age dystopian about a young man on a journey. One of the beautiful
things about this novel is that students can read it quickly for the adventure,
and then return to it for deep discussions. You can
listen to our YA Cafe Podcast discussion on the book here.
The Outsiders
Supplement the text: Highlight the relevance of themes by pairing the novel with other
voices. “We Real Cool” by Gwendolyn Brooks is a classic poem with themes of
identity tied in with delinquency. “What Love Isn’t” by Yrsa Daley-Ward
underscores themes of love and loyalty. (Daley-Ward is a great addition to your
curriculum in general because she is an “Instagram poet” and her work is very
timely and accessible) You could also pair this novel with a modern YA tale,
like Ghost by Jason Reynolds. Lastly, consider tying in the news article
“Healing
‘Brick City’” to explore themes of
heroism and home in a new mode.
A curriculum update: This is a great opportunity for literature circles on identity and
belonging. Literature circles are one way to decolonize your curriculum because
they center students’ experiences with a certain text. At the end of your
literature circles time, groups can present to the rest of the class on how
their book treats certain themes. You can also design “lit kits” around these
themes. Addie
Williams provides more on that approach here.
The Giver
Supplement the text: The core of any dystopian study is about external shaping of
individual liberties. This naturally leads to a discussion of who is included
in the utopian vision and who gets left out. Did you know that Thomas Jefferson
dreamt of making the United States an Agrarian Democracy? Very quickly, students will point out that Jefferson enslaved
people to work his lands. Does enslavement fit our notion of utopia? You can
also draw in seven real-life
utopias as students pursue these discussions.
A curriculum update: This is a great opportunity to pair The Giver with a more
recent text. I love Jinxed by Amy McCullough, a Chinese Canadian author.
It is about a young engineer living in a techy utopia. She gets the opportunity
to go to a sleek high school that feeds into the major tech corporation. Once
there, she realizes that not everything is as it seems. Jinxed is
high-tech and features Battle Bots-esque scenes that will complement The
Giver’s slower, rural setting well.
Lord of the Flies
Supplement the text: One way I’ve supplemented this text in the past is with literature
circles. Students have read Libba Bray’s Beauty Queens (a feminist
retelling of LotF), The Maze Runner, Hunger Games, and The
Grace Year. Honestly, still a pretty White view of dystopian lit. Next time
I teach this text, I’ll pull in contemporary voices on leadership and terror,
such as Farida Nabourema’s TED Talk “Is Your
Country at Risk of Becoming a Dictatorship?” I’ll ask students to
connect points of Nabourema’s talk to the events of the novel.
A curriculum update: Because Lord of the Flies is an allegory, you could meet
many of the same teaching goals by using another allegory. One notion that
comes up with the novel is that perhaps only boys and men have the capacity to
abuse power. The Power by Naomi Alderman imagines a world in which
teenage girls have the biological ability to shoot electricity from their
fingertips. Alderman explores the implications of this in her dystopian
setting. You could also replace the novel with shorter stories, like any of the
dark fairy tales in The Merry Spinster by Daniel M. Lavery (as Mallory Ortberg). This would be
a great opportunity for students to work in groups to present one tale and
examine how different tales explore different archetypes.
In terms of centering student expertise and
experience, students can write their
own short stories. They can begin from
“What if… (teenage girls had the power to shoot lightning)?” and imagine the
answers. This is the core exploration in any dystopian novel.
Death of a Salesman
Supplement the text: When discussing Willy’s role as a tragic hero, students can
explore the character traits that bring about his demise. He’s well-liked, yet
struggles. In a 2015
interview, Audie Cornish and
Shankar Vedantam talk about a study that links childhood emotional skills to
future success. Center student experience through discussion. Do they believe
the American Dream is still relevant and achievable? If so, why? This could
take the form of class discussions or an argumentative research presentation.
A curriculum update: This is another one you could replace with “A Raisin in the Sun,”
particularly if you want to touch on elements of genre or compare the text with
adaptations for the stage or screen. For 11th and 12th graders, you could also
use Louise Erdrich’s LaRose as a countertext to the American Dream. It
really questions who has access to this notion (hint: it’s not Native
Americans). Additionally, this book touches on similar themes of betrayal,
loss, and familial relationships.
The Great Gatsby
Supplement the text: Make sure you’re truly teaching about the era before students jump
into the text. I’ve written before about
building context for this novel.
Students need to understand where the nation was after World War I,
particularly those people for whom the 20s weren’t exactly “roaring.” Black
Americans were migrating to Northern cities as part of the Great Migration and
White women had just won suffrage. Both of these inform the novel. Goin’ North is an amazing oral
histories project about the Great Migration, so you could easily integrate some
of these authentic voices.
A curriculum update: Consider replacing this novel with “A Raisin in the Sun” by
Lorraine Hansberry. Students can still explore themes of money and the American
Dream through this text. They’ll also still be able to discuss how gender
impacts access to this dream.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
Supplement the text: If you want to continue teaching either novel, I recommend
checking out the article “Teaching
Huck Finn without Regret.” Any
teaching of either novel MUST include a firm foundation in satire and an
acknowledgement of the historical context. You can draw connections to modern
satirists and comedians. Trevor Noah has some excellent examples. You can spend
time discussing Mark Twain’s life and his family’s evolution of ideas about
anti-racism. Lastly, be prepared to openly discuss with students whether this
book “holds up” for those reasons, or not. This is a great part of a larger
literary debate -- when do we need to let a work of art go?
A curriculum update: One argument for keeping Twain’s novels is exposing students to a
realistic depiction of the era. If this is one of your teaching goals, consider
replacing the novel with Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass,
American Slave (1845). This is a first-hand account and definitely brings
the realism! Moreover, students don’t experience racism and poverty through the
eyes of a young White boy -- they hear from Douglass himself.
The Scarlet Letter
Supplement the text: Add more perspectives on these themes. In Lewis Sawaquat’s essay,
“For My Indian Daughter,” he touches on many of the same feelings Hester
expresses for Pearl. You can also include Sarah Kay’s slam poem “If I
Should Have a Daughter” and have students discuss parents’ hopes, dreams, and sacrifices
for their children. This is also a good chance to draw in current events. In
this #MeToo world, it’s hard to imagine reading this book without connecting it
to the women who have bravely spoken up against the men of power existing
without consequences. The novel tells a story about power, and we can still see
those struggles today.
A curriculum update: If you’re looking for an engaging replacement, consider Speak
by Laurie Halse Anderson. You could use either the novel or the graphic novel
to get students talking about what ostracization looks like in a modern
setting. For a more complex novel exploring societal norms, family drama, and
betrayal, check out Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones.
What's Next?
However you are planning to include more voices
in the curriculum this year, we’re here to support you. Diversity in the texts
we share with students is just one step in our work to be anti-racist
educators. Sheila and I are also making extended lists of supplements and updates, so check those out!
Also, be sure to check out our full notes on our affirmations and let us know if you have any questions.
Also, be sure to check out our full notes on our affirmations and let us know if you have any questions.
Happy teaching!
-Danielle and Sheila
