Critical Pedagogy

I like how national literature texts like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn are looked at not as something out of date but a timeless aspect of literature that teaches different ideologies to students and looks at how history has changed. This also made a good point about how to use literacy theories and multicultural readings to show students perspectives throughout literature that they can easily identify with. This chapter reminds me of the Common Core article about how the teacher had to teach the “Dead White Guy” series in her American Literature class that did not at any depth of multiculturalism into her class. I believe that many of the literature that is involved in that series is a very important aspect of the historical literature we need to teach. I also think that even if you are in a school that is not multicultural based then you still need to teach about authors of different races and cultures. I am in my practicum within a school that has 88% Caucasian students. To me it is even more closed minded to not teach students authors of different cultures and backgrounds because it gives students who are not prominently around another race different than theirs. I also think that the lessons they learn in the context of literature can also draw things that they can connect with like bullying or poverty. The aspect of critical pedagogy is part of the reason I want to be an English teacher because I’m not teaching to teach but to have my students gain a perspective on things they connect with and things they are not familiar with because this is what causes them to critically think and become career and college ready. I think that creating an environment where a student can truly connect with an old text in literature then that is creating a critical thinking environment.