Using Critical Book Clubs to Transform Literary Practices
When I hear the term "Book Club"...
...I think of getting together with a group of friends after reading a fictional, escape-from-every-day-life, easy-reader book, casually throwing out why we liked/disliked a character...and drinking some adult beverages. Perhaps the conversation could spur a more serious debate or cause deeper thinking about the plot, but the purpose of our meetings would not be social action or critically responding to the text.
I have seen book clubs in action at elementary schools. Obviously, wine was absent. But curiously enough, so was student-led discussion/activities and critical thinking. I didn't see students "interpreting, debating, and constructing meaning from complex texts"...I saw students answering predetermined questions, participating in teacher-led discussions (or Q & A about factual parts of the book), and filling out worksheets after reading simple texts (Jocius & Shealy, p. 691). Yes, they split into small groups and met at stations, but after the reading was complete and the activity was explained, students worked by themselves at their desks; Collaboration wasn't encouraged. And "empower[ing] readers and writers to critique the world around them and advocate for social change" (p. 691)? Definitely not. What have been your experiences with book clubs, either personally or seen in the classroom? What type of tasks did you observe? What types of goals for learning were apparent?
So...Why Do Educators Stop Short?
Some arguments against critical book clubs are time constraints, test preparation, or students not being ready. But are these valid excuses to NOT teach our students to be more? As we teach literacy, we are also responsible for helping "students become strategic inquirers and inspired participants as they interact with diverse groups of others" (Bomer & Bomer, p. 156). We are empowering students to question and act when they see something that is unjust...an idea that is met with some push back.
In searching for applicable memes or multi-modal pieces to add to my blog, I ran across a blog by the International Literacy Association, which hosts events, meetings, and panels about "Inspiring Social Justice and Activism Through Literacy". However, when I got to the end, I saw this comment from a reader:
"It is not the duty of teachers and schools to teach or to encourage student activists!!!"
This comment may reflect how a parent or even fellow educator views teaching for social action, causing an educator to stop short and teach in the traditional sense (as described above). This attitude may come up when we incorporate book clubs in a critical way. What would be a proper response to a parent or fellow teacher who reflects this attitude? How could we advocate of this way of teaching while still maintaining a good rapport with parents/fellow educators?
Project ONEE: Looking Beyond Traditional Book Clubs
In "Critical Book Clubs: Reimagining Literature Reading and Response", Jocius & Shealy share an different take on how book clubs can be implemented. They used book clubs to develop critical literacy, giving students the opportunity to “discern the inequities present in various text types, deconstructing them in their conversations and writing” (Bourke, p. 311). Their book clubs incorporated the goals of Project ONEE:
- Create authentic literacy experiences that support elementary students not only as readers and writers but also human beings.
- Use literature to engage students in conversations about disabilities, difference, and stereotypes.
- Provide interactive, hands-on experiences for students to apply new understandings.
- Encourage students to take social action. (p. 693)
Overall, critical book clubs offer a unique way to teach literacy (engaging students in collaborative discussions, reflections, and activities) while encouraging critical thinking and social action. In what way(s) would you incorporate critical book clubs in your classroom? Think about time: would you have book clubs daily or every other day, during the full literacy/reading block or for a small amount of time?
Lingering questions:
- How can we modify/scale down the idea of critical book clubs for younger ages (K-2)?
- How can we use critical book clubs to encourage participation and growth in African-American male readers?
- How can we hack standards and scripted curricula to accommodate critical book clubs?
Sources:
Bomer, R., & Bomer, K. (2001). For a Better World: Reading and Writing for Social Action. Portsmouth, New Hampshire: Heinmann.
Bourke, R.T. (2008). First graders and fairy tales: One teacher’s action research of critical literacy. The Reading Teacher, 62(4), 304–312. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.4.3
Jocius, R., & Shealy, S. (2018). Critical Book Clubs: Reimagining Literature Reading and Response. The Reading Teacher, 71(6), 691-702.
Bourke, R.T. (2008). First graders and fairy tales: One teacher’s action research of critical literacy. The Reading Teacher, 62(4), 304–312. https://doi.org/10.1598/RT.62.4.3
Jocius, R., & Shealy, S. (2018). Critical Book Clubs: Reimagining Literature Reading and Response. The Reading Teacher, 71(6), 691-702.
I really liked your blog post! I do agree that reading and having book clubs in classrooms should develop critical literacy. I think choosing critical texts for the students is the first step of this. Looking into my own experience with book clubs, it made me reflect back to sixth grade. We were placed into groups of four or five. As a whole class, we were given a list of titles we could choose from, and we choose as groups what books we wanted to cover throughout the year. Each person in the group would choose one book, and we would read each book with the facilitators being the student who chose the title. Looking back, I don't remember the specific titles we read, but I remember liking the books and it being an enjoyable experience. We took our role as facilitator very seriously and would come with worksheets and discussions prepared for our weekly book club meetings. I think what I liked most about this process was that we felt we were in charge and felt open to talk about the book freely with such a small group. It allowed us to find our voice and understand as a facilitator what was important in the chapters we read to talk about with the group.
ReplyDeleteI would like to take this method into my future classroom, but make sure the books are all critical texts. I think it would be beneficial to do one book as a whole class for the students to see a model of a book club before they are set on their own. I also would include how to find the critical message in the books given and what they mean/why I choose those specific books for them.
It's so interesting how teachers incorporate book clubs differently. Your experience in school was much different from how I've seen it incorporated as a Title 1, and sounds far more beneficial. I love how you said that you and your classmates "took your role as facilitator very seriously". When book clubs are done right, I think it will cause students to take ownership of their learning, just as your experience did - not just merely sitting during teacher "discussions" (or lectures) or filling out easy worksheets.
DeleteI also appreciate your ideas on how you would incorporate book clubs in your own classroom. I agree that this would be a great way to incorporate critical texts, and through modeling during the first book (as you mentioned), you could teach students how to question and look for how a text is critical. Such a good idea to establish how you want the clubs to run before you break off into groups. Thank you for the suggestion!
I really liked your post! When you talked about your experience working in a classroom and how book clubs generated no interpretation, debate, or construction of meaning, it reminded me of my experience in school. When I was in elementary school, we had similar book clubs. They were teacher led discussions with predetermined questions and filling out worksheets. Most of the time one or more people in the group didn't read the text and one person filled everyone in on what happened. Book clubs are such a great way to engage students and to promote literacy and enjoying to read. But we have to find ways like Project ONEE that will engage our students and encourage them to take social action.
ReplyDeleteI also like your question about how can we use critical book clubs to encourage participation and growth in African American male readers? The statistics about African American male readers are eye opening, and this quote by Tatum sums it up "National reading achievement data continue to indicate that as a group, African American males...are not performing well" (p. 44). In Rachel's blog, she posted a Ted Talk by Alvin Irby, who suggests finding texts that young black boys will actually enjoy reading. No matter who you are or what your reading skills are, no one wants to read something that they have no interest in or relates to them. Getting to know your students and asking them what they would like to read is such an easy thing to do that can encourage young black boys to read.
Finding texts that young black boys like to read through getting to know them and ASKING THEM. Investing time in wanting to hear your students speak...hear their likes/dislikes. I feel like the answer to so many of our "How do we..." teacher questions is to simply get to know our students. And not just on a surface level. It seems so simple, yet teachers miss the mark constantly. Why do you think that is? Are we too busy focusing on the standards and our day-to-day, that we forget to LISTEN when our students speak or tell us about themselves?
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ReplyDeleteGood blog Priscilla! I really liked how you brought up your experience with book clubs. Especially how you did not see anything of value in the way it was conducted. I remember my experience with book clubs, especially at the elementary level. The clubs were always conducted by a teacher or definitely an adult figure. Like you said, questions were always involved around the plot and characters. No critical thinking. I know the main reason some kids did the book club was for the pizza party at the end of the year.
ReplyDeleteWhen I read the article “Critical Book Clubs: Remaining Literature Reading and Response,” it mentioned that previous research demonstrated elementary book clubs can support students thinking critically. It continued to say, ”However, and perhaps more important, we believe that student-led book clubs can empower readers and writers to critique the world around them and advocate for social change.” (Jocius Shealy 2017, pg. 1) Being a new educator, I believe Project ONEE’s goals will help me choose the right type book club to conduct but will I really know what to do? With so many extra-curricular activities, how does a white male teacher like me encourage kids from all diversities to attend the book club? With younger elementary students, what kind of questions would I ask to younger students in the k-2 level? How much guidance is appropriate at the elementary level?
I feel like you echoed a few of my own thoughts, especially since I have a feeling I may end up with younger grades (K-2). I'm thinking with younger grades, we could incorporate book clubs in a small group rotation style, with some pre-thought activities that would challenge them to think critically. Book choice will be important in this - I want to find books that interest my class, but also challenge them beyond just questions about plot/characters. I think it will take some extra work on our part, for sure!
DeletePriscilla, I really enjoyed your thoughts on book clubs in the classroom. I think book clubs could be a critical component to becoming active readers and critically conscious learners. I would love to incorporate this concept into my own class but encourage multimodality instead of Q&A led by me. I related this to our literacy circles in science. As may have said the fact that we are free and open to any discussion and using our visual representations to lead a discussion. I think this is more beneficial than having guided questions that could sway a conversation away from critical thinking and towards automated answers. Furthermore, I think its most important to provide culturally relevant texts that allow for these conversations and person/intellectual growth. In response to your question of how I would address a parent or fellow teacher who believe its not our place to teach and encourage student activists would be to provide articles from Ladson-Billings and talk about the benefits of critical consciousness. I think I would say that my beliefs are cultivating a classroom that encourages my students to take stands and have meaningful conversations regarding social injustices in order to better the next generation and society. I don’t believe we’re ever too busy to encourage this and its an essential part of our job as educators.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Priscilla! You bring up a lot of good points about the reality we might be faced with when we try to implement book clubs in the classroom. I find that it's interesting that not having enough time is often an excuse that it thrown out. I completely understand that there is not a lot of time carved out in the day for subjects and the requirements we must meet for assessments, but can't those requirements come organically when students do read in class and they do have time to share questions and thoughts with others? Can't we just build off of that to teach them character traits, the elements of a story, or figurative language? And the response part of book club during the reading or after they finish reading is so important! Whether we ask students to keep journals, drawings, videos, posters, interactive games, all of this helps them to make sense of what they just read, to interpret, debate, or construct meaning. This is important because "opportunities to create meaning using a variety of sign systems (drawing, writing, play) allow students to think and reflect creatively to position themselves as meaning makers and inquirers" (Jocius, Shealy, 2018, pg. 698). And maybe book clubs aren't something that fits in to the schedule everyday, but what about once or twice a week? That gives students time to also read at home on their own if they'd like and not just in class, so I think I would definitely like to implement in my future classroom at least once a week!
ReplyDeletePriscilla, my idea of a book club mirrors your description. While I have read books at the same time as my sister or partner and discussed aspects of the book with them, it was guided by whatever jumped out at us and took a very free form. I did join a book club that claimed it had a social activist agenda. However, the man that organized it always picked Sartre, Foucault, Nietzche, etc. Which-ok fine, but could we give some attention non-white thinkers and philosophers? I didn’t accomplish much other than feeling like I was engaging in performative “wokeness.” After a few meetings, I gave up.
ReplyDeleteAs far as what to tell parents that operate from the perspective that it is not up to schools or teachers to encourage student activists, I would say that we are developing critical thinking skills by identifying a problem and developing solutions. I would invite them to join our classroom while we are undertaking social activism. Perhaps they could contribute to the cause. As we have been instructed, we must have a justification or rationale behind everything we do with the students. Bomer states, “Our shared political life, a long tradition of inching towards democracy, a struggle for more humane, more meaningful, more just world-if we can’t justify our practices in these terms, we had better keep thinking (Bomer, 2001, p.168).” I would want to ask parents and other teachers that disagree with encouraging social activism to consider what kind of world they want and what kind of world school is creating for students.