TE 448 Reflection

Taking the course Issues of Diversity in Children's and Adolescent Literature has really opened my eyes to issues of diversity that will be important to consider when thinking about what types of literature to include in my future classroom. While I feel I have always been aware of the importance of including a wide range of diverse texts in the classroom, this class has made me more confident in my descisions about being able to judge which books are positive representations of diversity, and which ones reinforce negative stereotypes or reflect different underrepresented groups in a negative way. After reading the articles assigned in class I have developed a greater awareness and appreciation for the importance of including diverse literature into the curriculum and finding a place for it in the classroom. It is important for all children to feel like they are represented. Children should be able to find a text that has characters like them so that they do not feel like they are alone, and can see that other people have struggles similar to their own. It is also important for students to have positive representations of others that are different from them. By inlcuding texts into the curriculum that represent a variety of different cultures and backgrounds, students may be more willing to accept others that are different from them and come to see their similarities. Diverse literature can work as both a mirror and a window when it comes to children's acceptance of diversity. I am more aware now of the power that the images presented to children have on their forming beliefs about people who are different from them, and it is important to counter act the negative images by providing them with positive examples. After reading several books focusing on different issues of diversity and coming up with questions regarding their representation of a particular underrepresented group, I feel that I have gained important insight that will help me judge the quality of other books that may appear in my classroom. It is an important role of the teacher to provide students with literature that will help them form opinions that lead to acceptance and understanding, and remove texts that reinforce negative stereotypes. TE 448 was a positive experience for me, and the knowledge that I gained will be very beneficial to me when choosing which books to include as a future teacher in my classroom.