Abstract
This chapter describes the development of an undergraduate course focused on exploring children's literature using a critical lens. Descriptions of course assignments and activities are provided to illustrate how pre-service teachers engaged in learning how to identify and evaluate diverse books. Additionally, reflections provide insights into the lived experiences of the students enrolled in the class and the faculty member who created the course. The course framework emphasizes the importance of providing culturally relevant texts that reflect the cultures and identities of readers ages 3-12. This framework aligns with the seminal work of Bishop's “Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors” that described the importance of children accessing books that are windows into other experiences, books that mirror their own lived experiences, and sliding glass doors that children can walk into the other world created by the author.
TopBackground
Bishop’s Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors
Children’s literature presents a myriad of rich learning experiences for children. In addition to literacy skills, children gain knowledge of their own world and the bigger world around them (Short & Tomlinson, 2018). Therefore, quality children’s literature that accurately represents children and the world around them requires teacher intentionality. The importance of intentionality has been researched for several decades. Jipson and Paley (1991) asserted teachers’ personal preferences influence the books they select for their classrooms. Such preferences can include hidden biases. Hartsfield (2021) noted if teacher perceptions and biases are understood, more nonfiction books can be placed in the hands of children.
Donovan and Smolkin (2001) described this phenomenon as teachers being “the gatekeepers for the text children actually encounter in classrooms” (p. 418). This gatekeeping, including teacher bias, limits the texts children access, including books with diverse representations. The International Literacy Association (2018) noted the critical nature of having books that represent diverse experiences and perspectives. They stated such literature can “transform students’ identities and the narratives they carry about the people they encounter” (p. 7). Because of this, teacher’s intentionality in choosing diverse children’s literature is essential.
Bishop (1990) coined the expression, “windows, mirrors and sliding glass doors” as a metaphor for the various worlds children’s books represent in terms of culture and perspective. As windows, books offer children the opportunity to see into real or imaginary worlds, either familiar or strange. These windows reveal sliding glass doors enabling children to step into the world created by the author. Children also need books that mirror their worlds, creating a reflection of their experiences and inciting the self-affirmation of their own lives.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Stereotype: A widely held, oversimplified or exaggerated idea about a particular person or group of people.
Tokenism: The practice of including minority characters to give the appearance of inclusion.
Anti-Bias Education: An approach to teaching designed to challenge prejudices of varying identities including race, culture, age, gender, sexual orientation, abilities, and religious belief.
Critical Literacy: A framework or lens for reading and analyzing texts that grew out of the theory of Freire (1970) and often focuses on the examination of texts through multiple perspectives and issues of power and social justice.
Windows, Mirrors, and Sliding Glass Doors: A metaphor created by Bishop (1990) to describe how children and the larger world around them are represented in books.
LGBTQ+: An acronym standing for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (or questioning), and other gender identities and sexual orientations.
Invisibility: Lack of representation in literature and other media.
Culturally Relevant Pedagogy: A theory created by Ladson-Billing (1995) AU27: The in-text citation "Ladson-Billing (1995)" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. that recognizes the importance of including children’s cultural references in all aspects of learning.
BIPOC: An acronym that stands for Black, Indigenous, and people of color.