Chicano Children's Literature: Using Bilingual Children's Books to Promote Equity in the Classroom

Promising Practices Chicano Children’s Literature Using Bilingual Children’s Books to Promote Equity in the Classroom the Academic Success of Diverse Student Populations Laura A. Alamillo & Rosie Arenas Introduction learner placed into settings that neither Because of the lack of alternative forms empowered them nor encouraged them of children’s literature, authentic forms of As a child growing up in California, my parents raised my sisters and me in a to be proud of their heritage. In the few multicultural children’s literature are not traditional Mexican Spanish-speaking classrooms that did have literature books commonly used in classrooms. home, always acknowledging the Ameri- those books did not authentically depict This situation was noted in Alamillo’s can culture that surrounded us, in our the Chicano culture but rather stereotyped 2004 study. It was found that bilingual, neighborhood, our schools, and in our it, both in text and in illustrations. Chicano children were not given access to daily lives. It was a combination of these It is because of this lack of authentic children’s literature that connected them to two cultures that determined my identity, bilingual children’s books and our own per- their communities, traditions, and experi- knowing that I could switch back and forth sonal experiences that we are committed ences because the teacher was mandated to between Spanish and English, Mexican and American, while I was in the comfort- to promoting equity through the use of lit- use the scripted reading program. Specifi- ing presence of my family at home on our erature in the classroom. This article first cally, during the 2002-2003 academic year, ranch. However, it was very different at sets the context by recalling a study con- when the mandated reading program was school. I was one of only two dark-skinned, ducted by Alamillo (2004) at a California observed, the focal teacher could not utilize Spanish-speaking students during my elementary school. That study examined children’s books written by Chicano/a writ- elementary school years and there was culturally and linguistically responsive ers during reading and language arts time. nothing at my school to validate either my pedagogy in the classroom through the use This teacher expressed concern about not culture nor my identity. (R. Arenas, personal of Chicano children’s literature. Both the being able to use her selection of bilingual anecdote, 2007) text and the illustrations found in recent literature, stressing, My parents made a conscious choice to publications and the role they played in speak to me in Spanish and English. Other books are used during free reading the socio-cultural development of children time or when students finish their work. Because of my parent’s desire to make me were considered. bilingual, I was afforded the opportunity Otherwise, I spend almost two hours per to speak to my grandparents, aunts, and day teaching the program. I have to use uncles, and later in life I could speak to The California Context the selected literature. bilingual children and families. My lan- Alamillo (2004) reported that not only did guage and culture were affirmed at home, An analysis of the California context not at school. I cannot remember reading reveals that federal and state educational the teacher not have access to authentic a book in Spanish at school let alone books policy limits the use of bilingual children’s forms of bilingual children’s literature, but with characters who looked like me or my literature in the classroom. This lack of the required literature used in the program siblings. It was not until my adult years inclusion is examined in an elementary did not match the children in the class- when I began to seek out literature that classroom in the Bay Area. The focal teacher room, either culturally nor linguistically. reflected my experiences as a Chicana. (L. described here sees a mismatch between Alamillo then spent time analyzing Alamillo, personal anecdote, 2007) what the literature in the prescribed cur- the literature used in the mandated read- During the past few years, we have riculum presents and the cultural and lin- ing program over a one-month span. The heard similar stories from Chicano educa- guistic experiences of the Mexican-descent literature from the program was thor- tors, authors, illustrators, and others about students in her class. oughly analyzed through a critical lens. their experiences in school as a bilingual California public schools are under a This lens allowed Alamillo to investigate tremendous amount of pressure to improve how language and culture were repre- Laura A. Alamillo is an associate professor reading and language arts scores. As a sented in the literature. The authors of the and Rosie Arenas is a retired assistant professor, result of these pressures, such as the No literature were investigated with respect both in the Department of Literacy, Early, Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandate, schools to their cultural and language background, Bilingual, and Special Education use scripted reading programs with pre- connections to the text, and how they por- of the Kremen School of Education selected children’s literature. In addition, trayed language and culture throughout and Human Development school-mandated reading programs such as the theme of the book. at California State University, Fresno, Accelerated Reader1 have taken the place Table 1 provides an analysis of the lit- Fresno, California. of authentic forms of children’s literature. erature in the mandated program. The table SUMMER 2012 53 Promising Practices was created based on Rudine Sims-Bishop’s experiences out of the classroom instruc- was not appropriate for, nor were the il- (1994) criteria for culturally authentic lit- tion and discussion. What message are lustrations descriptive of, the children in erature. The analysis of the language used we sending Chicano children who are not our U.S. classrooms. in the mandated children’s literature re- seeing themselves, their communities, Alamillo (2007) categorizes Chicano vealed that the literature represented Cas- families, experiences, and languages in children’s literature as distinct from Latino tilian Spanish or a version of Spanish from the text they read in their classrooms? Are children’s literature. In order to make the other Latin American countries. The focal we indirectly questioning the validity of distinction between the two, it is crucial teacher found this mismatch problematic, their language use, the language use in to understand the term Chicano. The term seeing a disconnect between the Spanish their homes, and their experiences living Chicano, grounded in the Chicano Move- used in the text and the Spanish spoken in the United States? ment of the 1960s, addresses the issues by her students of Mexican descent. Our presentation of these issues at of identity and civil rights. It is a word As shown in the table, the language, the National Association for Bilingual meant to identify Mexican Americans racial, and/or ethnic background of the au- Education annual conference in 2006 with their indigenous heritage while at thors and/or illustrators did not match nor drew interesting feedback from our audi- the same time seeking to eliminate racism represent the Mexican-descent students in ence. That audience, comprised mainly of (Rosales, 1996). So it is fitting that Chi- the focal classroom. It is important to note Chicano/a teachers, indicated that they cano children’s literature today stresses here that an author’s racial and ethnic never had the opportunity to read Chicano issues of social justice, as did the Chicano background should not be the sole indicator children’s literature in school. Similar to movement when it was initiated in order of whether a piece of literature is authentic; our experiences and those of the authors to achieve racial equality in society and however, the racial and ethnic background and illustrators selected in this research, higher education. of the author is a starting point for inves- it was not until college that any of us had Therefore, the authors of Chicano tigating cultural authenticity. access to Chicano literature that reflected literature address topics of social justice, The majority of the students in this our language and culture. such as immigration, racial discrimination, first grade, bilingual classroom were language prejudice, and other concepts tra- either born in Mexico or were first gen- Theoretical Background ditionally not found in children’s books. This eration born in the United States. The Chicano literature presents issues that call information revealed in Table 1 clearly Children’s literature intended for La- for social action in our society. In addition conflicts with prevailing research on tinos first appeared in the United States to addressing issues of social justice, Chi- multicultural children’s literature since to meet the needs of Spanish language cano children’s literature presents themes it indicates that an author’s language, speakers during the late 1960s and early which aim to affirm and validate Chicano racial, and ethnic background does matter 1970s, but it soon became evident that experiences in the United States. While when children identify and/or relate with although the literature was in Spanish, these might appear to be similar to issues a book. These connections are especially it was not representative of the major- that other Latinos face, they are unique in important when children of color engage

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