Abstract
Critical reading and critical literacy are skills that preservice teachers need to cultivate not only in their future students, but also in their own literacy practices. Picturebooks have the unique power to facilitate critical reading and critical literacy with preservice teachers. This chapter analyzes critical reading, critical literacy, and the power of picturebooks and then presents three approaches for using picturebooks to develop critical reading and critical literacy skills with preservice teachers: (1) field-based coursework with multicultural children's literature, (2) analyzing voices and perspectives in read-alouds, and (3) analyzing wordless picturebooks. Through intentional use of picturebooks in educator preparation programs, preservice teachers can gain the expertise necessary to use picturebooks to craft their own critical classrooms.
TopBackground
When used intentionally, picturebooks have the power to transform classroom instruction for all grade levels. In this section, the distinctions and overlaps between critical reading and critical literacy will be explained. In addition, the power of picturebooks as a unique genre that juxtaposes words and pictures will be explored, along with the specific relationship between picturebooks and principles of social justice.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Multicultural Picturebook: Highlights experiences and perspectives of marginalized groups based on race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, gender, sexuality, ability, etc.
Critical Literacy: Process by which a reader analyzes a text within the political, historical, and social contexts in which it was created or is being interpreted. Involves interrogating power structures, disrupting the status quo, and considering multiple viewpoints.
Wordless Picturebook: A picturebook that relies on images to relay a narrative. Words may be entirely absent or extremely sparse.
Educator Preparation Program (EPP): Programs affiliated with colleges/universities that provide coursework and field experience necessary for preservice teachers to complete teaching credentials.
Interactive Read-Aloud: An instructional model in which one reader (often a teacher) reads a book out loud to a group (often students), engaging readers in questioning and discussion throughout. Picturebooks can be used for interactive read-alouds, but do not have to be.
Critical Reading: Process by which a reader analyzes a text to discern the author’s intended purpose or message. Involves an analysis of literary elements such as theme, imagery, figurative language, word choice, etc.
Picturebook: A book juxtaposing text and images to relay a narrative. Usually contains 32 pages.
Multimodal Literacies: Applying meaning-making strategies to multiple types of messages (printed text, images, etc.). Also called multiliteracies.