Critique and Analysis of Curriculum Materials

Jan Krueger & Lori Urbas

Critique and Analysis of

Literature and Society: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, Nonfiction

By Pamela J Annas and Robert C Rosen

Published by Pearson Prentice Hall (2007)

Recommended for college prep courses in high school

Can be purchased from sellers through Amazon.com

Summary of Materials

For our critique and analysis we’ve chosen to use Literature and Society, though we were only able to acquire the student edition of the book, and did not have access to the teacher edition.  This textbook is organized in five themes: Growing Up and Growing Older, Women and Men, Money and Work, Peace and War, and Varieties of protest.  These five major social issues or themes have selections from a variety of different genres (stories, poems, plays, and creative nonfiction).  There is also an alternate table of contents that is organized by genre, in case a teacher chose to organize her class by genre rather than by theme.

Each theme begins with a short synopsis of what the chapter will be about and essential question to think about while readings selections form the themed chapter.  The content of the textbook is arranged so that each selection of text has a brief biography of the author followed by the text, whether it is a poem, short story, novel, play, graphic novel, or non-fiction piece.  After the text there is a list of study and discussion questions, suggestions for further writing, and critical resources.  There are also short chapters on writing and reading specific genres.

Literature and Society is geared towards juniors and seniors and high school, but this textbook could be used for high-level freshman or as an introductory text in a first year college composition class.  The textbook has been used in a contemporary literature class, and could also be used in a general humanities course, American literature class, or even as a base text for a writing class.

Reasons for Selecting Materials

We selected these materials specifically because they were used in our fall placement school, so we’re familiar with the content because we witnessed them being used in a classroom, and got to test out using them ourselves in the classroom.  We thought it was very interesting to find a textbook organized by theme rather than by genre.  It allows students to more easily make connections between differing types of texts.

In critiquing the content of the textbook Literature and Society we hope to examine the versatility of the book.  We suspect that a teacher would be able to use this same textbook for a variety of classes.  Because there are varying themes, genres, and reading and writing skills the teacher could adapt any section of the textbook to use the selections provided to support student learning.  We also hope to discover the benefits of limitations of this textbook.  Because we both highly value student choice in our teaching, we will be examining how this textbook allows for multiple intelligences and varied learning styles.  The many genres and themes of this book should allow for students with diverse interests to find a selection that they both enjoy and can relate to.

We expect that through our examination of this textbook we will also gain an understanding of why the textbook is ordered the way it is, and the relationship between each section and the selections in it.  This includes trying to make sense of why the authors chose certain selections for each themed chapter.

Critique and Analysis

Teacher’s Perspective

Because we were not able to acquire a teacher addition of Literature and Society we will only be able to make educated guesses and assumptions about what the logic behind the organization of the textbook is.

Scope

Our particular target text includes a variety of language arts within each thematic chapter. Each thematic chapter contains four different sections: fiction, poetry, drama, and non-fiction. Within these categories, the text contains specific genres to exemplify the major themes within each chapter.  For example, the section on “Growing up and Growing Older” contains several short stories that focus on adolescents or young adults coming into adulthood through various experiences.

In order to aid students in better understanding the text the author’s have included a section of study questions to check for student comprehension after reading a particular text. These sections will assist students in further developing their reading skills and thinking deeper about the text.  Furthermore, there are writing activities at the end of each section to guide students in making a connection between reading literature and writing about literature in either a reflective or analytical manner.

Comprehensiveness

Unfortunately we were unable to get a teacher’s edition of this text; therefore we cannot discuss the range of ideas for teaching literature. However, the student copy includes supplementary resources at the end of each section and a Literature and Society webpage that can lead students and teachers in the direction of further reading. Ending each thematic chapter the text includes suggestions for final unit papers.

Flexibility

The preface of the text states that “though designed specifically for an introductory literature course, the book can easily be used in a writing course, for its five thematic sections and many suggestions for writing generate a wide range of formal and informal writing assignments; and its process oriented chapter, ‘Literature and the Writing Process,’ is detailed and thorough, even including a section on how to write essay exams” (p. xxix).

Support for Teacher Learning

On the Literature and Society webpage teachers can access a glossary of literary terms and learn about major schools of literary criticism. Teachers could use these materials to determine what would be the best manner in which to teach a certain selection or themed chapter as a whole.  While the materials are address to the students, the teacher can learn from these materials as well and scaffold their instruction in a student-centered manner.

Curricular Design Principles

The sequencing of this textbook is ordered by the concept of building bigger and bigger relationships in the world.  For example, the chapter “Growing Up and Growing Older” helps students to understand their relationship with themselves, or their self-identity.  As the chapters move on the relationships build to include interpersonal relationships between women and men, and how they interact in social situations, such as the workplace.  The idea of relationships continues to build when a group of people in relation to each other, a society, develops a relationship with another society.  This can lead to either war or peace.  After this interaction between societies people often push for a better world, leading to forms of protest crying out for equality.

Student’s Perspective

Appeal

We believe that students will find this textbook and its selections appealing because it begins with an examination of self.  That is appealing to them because it is easier to relate to than a large, overarching and complex subject, such as society.  The remainder of the textbook exposes students “to a wide and exciting variety of literature in a way that will consistently engage their interest and that will help them understand that literature is about the very things … that matter in their own lives.”

Appropriateness

It is appropriate material for the students in an upperclassman English Language Arts classroom because it not only contain canonical works, but also has selections from pop culture, and relevant and interesting non-canonical works that encourage high levels of thinking.  This is an appropriate textbook for college preparatory courses because it covers the themes and genres that will be required of freshman in college and provides writing opportunities that prompt an engaging literary analysis.

Variety

There are a variety of texts, authors, themes and activities provided in Literature and Society due to the way that the textbook is organized.  There are five thematic chapters and within each chapter there are at least four genres of text, including fiction, poetry, drama and non-fiction.  Each genre has any where from five to twenty different selections by different authors.  At the end of each selection there are opportunities for a study and discussion as well as a variety of writing prompts about the text.  This structure is sure to expose students to a wide variety of literature.

Student Choice

Because every chapter has a variety of different texts and genres of texts, and each selection has about five different writing prompts, there is an opportunity for student choice in both reading and writing.  Depending on how the teacher chooses to organize the course and how much freedom s/he chooses to give the students in their learning will determine how much student choice there actually is.    The range of writing prompts allows students to develop their own ideas and interpretations using a range of integrated writing assignments.

Logical Sequencing

The textbook is logically ordered through growing relationships between individual and societies.  The prompts for writing, however, don’t necessarily build on each other except for the final unit paper topics, which allow for the integration of multiple texts.

Conversational Topic and Design Principles

The discussion questions at the end of each selection of text provide opportunities for a compelling curricular conversation about culturally significant ideas and experiences.  They allow for students to reference their own lives in developing their understandings of the world around them.

Beginning

There are no beginning lesson in the student edition of the textbook; however the first chapter of the book introduces them to literature and writing process, which includes note-taking, exploratory writing, drafting, outlining, revising, editing, and other skills necessarily for introductory English classes.  Though this may not create any interest for the following units of study, it does provide students with essential tools for succeeding in the classroom.

Endings

At the end of each thematic chapter there are a selection of writing prompts that will give students the chance to integrate what they have learned throughout the chapter and discuss connections between multiple texts.

Conclusion and Recommendations

Overall, we think this Literature and Society is a well-organized textbook that offers the freedom for teachers to adapt it for a variety of classes.  Because it has both canonical and contemporary literature selections and is organized in a coherent, thematic fashion, we think both students and teachers would find this textbook to be a pleasure to use in the classroom.  We would suggest using it for upperclassmen in a high school setting to give them the tools they need to succeed in college level writing courses.  We cannot comment on how the materials for teachers could be improved upon because we did not have access to the teacher edition of the textbook.

Critique of Curriculum Materials Powerpoint

Annotated Bibliography for Maus

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Dir. Mark Herman. Perf. Asa Butterfield, Jack Scanlon, David Thewlis, and Vera Farmiga. BBC Films, 2008. DVD.

This movie is about the young son of an SS officer in charge of a concentration camp, who meets, through the fence, a young Jewish boy who is in the camp.  The movie tells the story of how the two boys develop a relationship, despite their different situations, leading to a gruesome conclusion. .  It is a valuable source for this unit because it provides yet another viewpoint for learning about the Holocaust.  This point of view is through the eyes of a German child, which will help students to develop new understanding about the horror of the Holocaust and the lack of knowledge that surrounded it by many Germans at the time.

Social Justice SADD Unit Plan

Unit Title: Persuading Students Against Destructive Decisions Grade Levels: 11 & 12

Subject/Topic Areas: Persuasive Writing & Speaking

Key Words: persuasive, writing, speaking, research, SADD

Designed by: Jan K. Time Frame: 4 weeks

School District: Westerville School: Westerville Central High School

Brief Summary of Unit (including curricular context and unit goals):

Students will be learning to communicate persuasively and gather information.  They will be performing at the school’s assembly that takes place before prom in order to help communicate the dangers surrounding destructive decisions.

Cultural Inclusion/Enlarging the Circle: (Who will your curriculum address? How are students’ perspectives incorporated into the unit? What concrete daily actions will occur to make your classroom more inclusive? How are students’ differentiated needs met?

The curriculum will address the students in relation to the community, because drunk driving affects the whole community.  In addition, the students will be gathering information from members of the community.  Students will also be encouraged to bring personal experiences and opinions into their work.  On a day-to-day basis I will be presenting many different forms of material to address differing learning profiles and strategies.  There will also be many different roles and assignments available for students to choose from to reflect their different needs.  Students will be given options to work in different groups or individually, allowing students who need more help to flourish, and those who prefer to work alone to excel.  They will also work with a variety of texts, including letters, essays, novels, visual media, and audio-visual media.  This will encourage multi-modal learning.  There will be also be some choice in the final tasks (letter or essay, writing & visual, speech or skit).

I have structured my unit plan so as to be very clear with my students what is expected of them, reminders of due dates for projects, and class time to work on projects.  The clear expectations and due dates will help them to plan accordingly in order to manage their time.  The time available in class to work on projects will help those students who don’t have the time or resources after school to complete the assignments.

1. 1. Enduring Understandings: These statements define how students will move from knowledge to understanding. Each statement defines a “big idea” of the unit, the concept students will really remember years from now. “An idea is “big” if it helps us make sense of lots of confusing experiences and seemingly isolated facts. It’s like the picture that connects the dots or a simple rule of thumb in a complex field.  Enduring understandings should be 1 or 2 sentences maximum.

Understanding who the target audience is helps to shape and guide communication strategies, and effective writers use varying strategies to generate, format and organize their ideas in order to successfully communicate their ideas allowing them to persuade, entertain, or simply reach their audience.

There are many sources of information and just as many ways to gather information.  Researchers begin with questions that inform the resources they seek and use research to support and expand their own ideas.

1. 2. Essential Questions: These questions are geared to help students take an inquiry approach toward the various learning experiences. Look at the enduring understandings and develop 1-3 essential questions that cover them. There may be one “overarching” essential question or a series of related questions that will cover the full range of the enduring understandings. Good essential questions have the following criteria in common:

• Open-ended questions that resist a simple or single right answer
• Deliberately thought-provoking, counter-intuitive, and/or controversial
• Require students to draw upon content knowledge and personal experience
• Can be revisited throughout the unit to engage students in evolving dialogue and debate
• Lead to other essential questions posed by students.

• What is the best way to engage your peers and provide them with valuable and relevant information?
• What information is relevant to my peers?  Why should they care about this information?  How can I make them care?

1. 3. Standards: What national, state and/or local content standards & indicators are addressed during the unit?

• Reading Applications: Informal, Technical & Persuasive Text
• Writing Process
• Writing Application
• Writing Conventions
• Research
• Communication: Oral & Visual

1. 4. Knowledge – Students will know…

• Persuasive strategies
• Criteria for credible sources
• Research strategies
• Restrictions and regulations for event planning

1. 5. Skills – Students will be able to…

• Write a persuasive text.
• Read between the lines to understand and analyze an author’s bias and point of view.
• Speak passionately and persuasively about a topic.
• Conduct interviews to gather information.
• Gather information about a topic from credible sources.
• Plan and organize an event.

1. 6. Assessment Evidence: To what extent do the assessments provide fair, valid, reliable and sufficient measures of the desired results?

• Are students asked to exhibit their understanding through authentic performance tasks?
• Are appropriate criterion-based scoring tools used to evaluate student products and performances?
• Are a variety of appropriate assessment formats used to provide additional evidence of learning?
• Are the assessments used as feedback for students and teachers, as well as for evaluation?
• Are students encouraged to self-assess?

I will have checkpoints throughout the unit to determine where students are in their work, as well as to determine if they understand the concepts thus far in the unit.  This will serve as a formative assessment that will allow me to make adjustments throughout the unit in order to better guide my students.  One of the challenges will be that there is a set deadline for the end of the unit, because of the assembly.

Students will be given the opportunity to reflect on their research and learning through their book journals, where they will synthesize their research, ideas presented in their book, and views into a cohesive opinion.  They will be given the opportunity to revise and change this opinion during the book groups when they write chat.  They will self-assessing their work when they peer-edit and when they present their speech or skit to the class.

Students will have rough drafts of their tasks due before the final assembly, where the majority of feedback from me, their peers, and themselves will come, giving them ample time to adjust and polish their final piece.  A portion of their grade will be based on these assessments and on the revision that results from them.

The culminating task for the class will be to perform at a SADD type assembly for Prom.  The students will have an opportunity to present their piece for the assembly before the final performance at the assembly.  This will be when the majority of the grading on their final task takes place in order to reduce the stress of speaking in front of a large group of their peers.  The tasks for the final assembly will include:

• gathering information and synthesizing it into understandable and relevant chunks for the rest of the school,
• outlining and/or writing speeches to present during the school assembly,
• creating a presentation or skit to convey information and persuade their peers not to make destructive decisions (specifically during Prom).

1. 7. Learning Activities: To what extend is the learning plan effective and engaging? Consider the following when defining the learning activities. Will the students:

• know where they’re going (the learning goals), why the material is important (reason for learning the content) and what is required of them (unit goal, performance requirements, and evaluation criteria?
• be hooked — engaged in digging into the big ideas (e.g. through inquiry, research, problem solving, and experimentation)?
• have adequate opportunities to explore and experience big ideas and receive instruction to equip them for the required performances?
• have sufficient opportunities to rethink, rehearse, revise, and refine their work based upon timely feedback?
• have an opportunity to evaluate their work reflect on their learning, and set goals?”

Learning activities for students (in mostly chronological order) will include:

M: Day 1:

-       overview of unit explaining goals

-       Examine previous statistics and speeches that have to do with drunk driving, drug/alcohol abuse, and/or destructive decisions on SADD website

-       Brainstorm what could fall under the category of “Destructive Decision”

-       Assign Book Groups choosing from the following novels:

• Inexcusable by Chris Lynch
• Prom by Laurie Halse Anderson
• The Absolute True Life Story of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie
• Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

-       HW: read first third of book by Day 6 and complete Book Journal for discussion use

T:Day 2:

-       Lecture on criteria for credible research sources and research strategies

-       Brainstorming for search terms relating to drunk driving, drug/alcohol abuse, and/or destructive decisions

-       Assign research groups

-       Exit slip on lecture strategies

W:Day 3:

-       Explain persuasive paper assignment and requirements

• Must include a text and a visual display (cartoon, graph, etc)
• Visual Display will be posted in the school the week before Prom (Day 16)

-       Lab day to conduct preliminary research on drunk driving, drug/alcohol abuse, and/or destructive decisions

R:Day 4:

-       Discuss interviewing strategies

-       Develop interview questions

-       Exit slip on interview strategies

F:Day 5:

-       Give groups list of interview contacts (members of the community and school, possibly some contacted through the SADD website)

-       Conduct practice interviews and interview note taking within the group

• Notes collected at end of class

-       HW: Make contact with interview candidates & set up interview time before Day 11.  May conduct actual interview individually or in pairs.  Reminder that notes must be taken during interview.

M:Day 6:

-       Book Group discussion

• Write-chat on book journals
• Answer discussion questions that were posed in journals by peers

-       Any extra time to read ahead in book

-       HW: read second third of book by Day 10

T:Day 7:

-       Lecture discussing persuasive strategies and organization in writing

-       Read and discuss as a class some examples of persuasive writing

• Newspaper editorials
• “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift
• “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine

-       Exit slip on persuasive strategies

W:Day 8:

-       Brainstorm in research groups for persuasive topics relating to drunk driving, drug/alcohol abuse, or destructive decisions

-       Outline individually a persuasive essay or letter using discussed strategies

• Include possible sources from preliminary research

R:Day 9:

-       Draft Persuasive Essay/Letter in writing lab

-       HW: Complete rough draft by Day 11

F:Day 10:

-       Book Group discussion

• Write-chat on book journals
• Answer discussion questions that were posed in journals by peers

-       Use any extra time to work on Rough Draft

-       HW: read final third of book by Day 19

-       Reminder: Interviews should be completed by Day 11.  Must take notes during the interview.

M:Day 11:

-       Meet with research group to compile information from interviews.  Pose some new questions that were raised in the interview, or that group has.

• Compiled list and questions will be collected at end of class.  Individual/pair notes from the interview will also be collected.

-       Peer revision of Persuasive Rough Draft

-       HW: Final Draft due Day 14

T:Day 12:

-       Lab to conduct focused follow-up research on interviews (list handed back, with possible feedback or additional questions)

-       Use any free time to revise persuasive essay/letter

W:Day 13:

-       Lecture on Persuasive speaking strategies, organization, and outlining

-       Watch and discuss some examples of persuasive speeches

• JFK Inaugural Address
• “I Have a Dream” MLK Jr.

-       Exit slip on persuasive speaking strategies

R:Day 14:

-       Give requirements for persuasive speech/skit

• Full and Speaking Outline
• 4-6 min
• Uses sources from research

-       Fully outline persuasive speech/skit individually(for speech) or in groups of 2-4 (for skit)

-       Create speaking/skit outline/note cards

-       HW: finish speaking/skit outline/note cards for Day 15

F:Day 15:

-       Rehearse and peer-critique speech/skit with a partner/another skit group (rotate to rehearse 3x each)

-       Assign speech/skit days (Days 16 &17)

• Student will turn in full and speaking outline, and give prepared speech
• Assign partnered students to go on different days

-       HW: practice speech at home.

-       Teacher: put up Visual Displays for Day 16

M:Day 16:

-       Explain to class that they will be casting a secret ballot after everyone has gone, and the top three speakers/skits will give their speech at the Prom Assembly

• They should take notes and complete peer assessment worksheet during the speeches/skits (it will be collected at the end of each class period)

-       Speeches/Skits

T:Day 17:

-       Speeches/Skits

W:Day 18:

-       Any overflow speeches

-       Cast secret ballot

-       General critique and overview of assembly

R:Day 19:

-       Book Group discussion

• Write-chat on book journals
• Answer discussion questions that were posed in journals by peers

-       Use any extra time to rehearse or watch top three speakers/skits

F:Day 20:

-       Assembly prep & Assembly

8. Resources: List the resources needed. These may be linked to websites, handouts, etc.

• Texts
• Newspaper editorials
• “A Modest Proposal” by Jonathan Swift
• “Common Sense” by Thomas Paine
• Speeches
• JFK Inaugural Address
• “I Have a Dream” MLK Jr.
• Novels
• Inexcusable by Chris Lynch
• Prom by Laurie Halse Anderson
• The Absolute True Life Story of a Part-Time Indian Sherman Alexie
• Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
• contacts of interview candidates
• SADD website (http://www.sadd.org/)

LGBT Resources (Books, etc)

Resources for Students

Elementary School Students

Elwin, R. & Paulse, M. (1990). Asha’s mums. London: Women’s Press.

De Haan, L., & Njland, S. (2002). King and king. Berkeley, CA: Tricycle Press.

Parr, T. (2001). It’s okay to be different. Megan Tingley.

Raschka, C. (1999). Like likes like. New York: DK Publishing.

Richardson, J. & Parnell, P. (2005). And Tango makes three. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Simon, N. (1990). Families: A celebration of diversity, commitment, and love. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Willhoite, M. (1990). Daddy’s roommate. Los Angeles, CA: Alyson Wonderland.

Middle School Students

Bauer, M. D. (1994). Am I Blue? Coming Out From the Silence. New York: HarperCollins.

Cofer, J. O. (1995). “White balloons” in An Island like you: Stories of the barrio. New York: Penguin Group.

Dupre, J. (Director). (1998). Out of the past [Motion picture]. United States: Unipix.

Homes, A. M. (1989). Jack. New York: Vintage Books.

Kerr, M.E. (1998). Hello, I lied. New York: HarperTrophy. (original published in 1997).

Lantz, F. (2001). “Standing naked on the roof.” In D. R. Gallo (Ed.), On the fringe. New

York: Penguin Putnam Books.

Peters, J. A. (2004). Luna. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

Rose, L. (Director). (2000). The Truth about Jane [Motion picture]. United States: Starlight Home Entertainment.

Ryan, S. (2001). Empress of the world.  New York: Penguin Group.

Watts, J. (2001). Finding H. F. Los Angeles: Alyson Books.

Wittlinger, E. (2001). Hard love. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks.

Woodson, J. (1995). From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun. New York: Scholastic.

Woodson, J. (1997). The House You Pass on the Way. New York: Random House.

High School Students

Baldwin, D., Carey,  A., Hope, T.,  & Katz R. (Producers). Kaufman, M. (Director). (2003). The Laramie project [Motion picture]. Unites States: HBO Home Video.

Brown, R. M. (1993). Rubyfruit jungle. New York: Quality Paperback. (Original published 1973).

Campo. R. (1996). What the body told. Durham: Duke University Press.

Daldry, S. (Director). (2000).  Billy Elliot [Motion picture]. England: Universal.

Dupre, J. (Director). (1998). Out of the past [Motion picture]. United States: Unipix.

Freymann-Weyr, G. (2002). My Heartbeat. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Garden, N. (1982). Annie on my mind. Farrar Straus & Giroux

Hughes, L.  (1951). Montage of a dream deferred (1^st ed.). New York: Holt.

Naylor, G. (1983). The women of brewster place. (reprint ed. June 30, 1983). New York:

Penguin (Non-classics).

Rose, L. (Director). (2004). Jack [Motion Picture].  United States: Showtime Entertainment. (DVD version: ASIN B0004z2zQ8)

Kerr, M. E. (1994). Deliver us from Evie. New York: HarperCollins.

Plum-Ucci, C. (2002). What happened to Lani Garver. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc.

Sanchez, Alex. 2001. Rainbow Boys. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Walker, A. (1992). The color purple. New York: Harcourt (reprint ed. May 22, 1992).

Walker, K. (1993). Peter. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. (Original work published 1991)

Winterson, J. (1994). Written on the body. New York: Vintage. (Original published 1992).

Yamanaka, Lois-Ann. 1999. Name me nobody. New York: Hyperion.

Resources for Teachers

Blount, J. (2005). Fit to teach: Same-sex desire, gender, and school work in the twentieth century. State University of New York Press.

Campos, D.. (2003). Diverse sexuality and schools: A Reference Handbook. Abc-Clio Inc.

Day, F. A. (2000). Lesbian and gay voices: An annotated bibliography and guide to literature for children and young adults. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.

Fraticelli, R. (Producer) & Fernie, L. (Director). (1997). School’s out! Confronting homophobia in high schools [Motion picture]. (Available from the National Film Board of Canada).

Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network. (2005, July 27). GLSEN: Welcome to booklink! Retrieved October 1, 2005, from

http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/educator/library/record/1736.html

Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network. (2005, June 28). GLSEN: The GLSEN training of trainers program for educators and community-based organizers. Retrieved October 1, 2005, from

http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/educator/library/record/1817.html

Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network. (2005, February 7). The GLSEN lunchbox 2, revised edition: A comprehensive training program for ending anti-LGBT bias in schools. Retrieved October 1, 2005, from

http://www.glsen.org/cgi-bin/iowa/educator/library/record/1748.html

Gray, M. L. (1999). In your face: Stories from the lives of queer youth. New York: Harrington Park Press.

Harris Interactive and GLSEN (2005). From teasing to torment: School climate in America, A survey of students and teachers. New York: GLSEN.

Kissen, R. M. (2002). Getting ready for Benjamin: Preparing teachers for sexual diversity in the classroom. New York: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Kumashiro, K. (Ed.). (2001). Troubling intersections of race and sexuality: Queer students of color and anti-oppressive education. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Lipkin, A. (2004). Beyond diversity day: A Q & A on gay and lesbian issues in schools. New York: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, Inc.

Lobban, Marjorie, and Laurel A. Clyde. 1996. Out of the Closet and Into the Classroom: Homosexuality in Books for Young People. Port Melbourne: Thorpe.

Mitchell, L. (Ed.). (1999). Tackling gay issues in school: A resource module. GLSEN Connecticut and Planned Parenthood of Connecticut.

National Education Association. (2002-2005). Safety, bias, and GLBT issuestraining program. Retrieved October 1, 2005 from https://www.nea.org/takenote/glbtsafe0507.html

Owens, R. E., Jr. (1998). Queer kids: The challenges and promise for lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth. New York: Harrington Park Press.

Rofes, E. (2005). Status quo or status queer. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Sears, J. T. (2005). Gay, lesbian, and transgender issues in education. New York: Harrington Park Press.

Walton, P. (Producer/Director). (1998). Gay youth [Motion picture]. Boston: AMASS Stonewall Center.

Elementary School Teachers

Cohen, H. S. (Producer) & Chasnoff, D. (Producer & Director). (1997). It’s elementary: Talking about gay issues in school [Motion picture]. (Available from Women’s Educational Media, San Francisco, CA)

Epstein, D. (2000). Reading gender, reading sexualities: Children and the negotiation of meaning in ‘alternative’ texts. In W. J. Spurlin (Ed.), Lesbian and gay studies and the teaching of English: Positions, pedagogies, and cultural politics (pp. 213-233). Urbana, IL: National Council of Teachers of English.

Letts, William J., and James T. Sears, eds. 1999. Queering Elementary Education: Advancing the Dialogue about Sexualities and Schooling. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.

Schall, Janine, and Gloria Kauffmann. 2003. “Exploring Literature with Gay and Lesbian Characters in the Elementary School.” Journal of Children’s Literature 29, no. 1: 36-45.

Sumara, Dennis, and Brent Davis. 1998. “Telling Tales of Surprise.” Pp. 197-219 in Queer

Theory in Education. Edited by William F. Pinar. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Middle School Teachers

Cohen, H. S. (Producer) & Chasnoff, D. (Producer & Director). (1997). It’s elementary: Talking about gay issues in school [Motion picture]. (Available from Women’s Educational Media, San Francisco, CA)

Hamilton, G. (1998). Reading Jack. English education, 30 (1), 24-43.

Sumara, Dennis, and Brent Davis. 1998. “Telling Tales of Surprise.” Pp. 197-219 in Queer

Theory in Education. Edited by William F. Pinar. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

High School Teachers

Athanases, S. Z. (1996). A gay-themed lesson in an ethnic literature curriculum: Tenth graders’ responses to “Dear Anita.” Harvard Educational Review, 66 (2), 231-256.

Cart, Michael. 1997. “Honoring Their Stories, Too: Literature for Gay and Lesbian Teens.” The ALAN Review 25, no. 1: 40-45. Accessed June 12 , 2003. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/ALAN/fall97/cart.html.

Jenkins, Christine. 1998. “From Queer to Gay and Back Again: Young Adult Novels with Gay/Lesbian/Queer Content, 1969-1997.” Library Quarterly 68, no.3: 298-334.

Lipkin, Arthur.  1994. “The Case for a Gay and Lesbian Curriculum.” The High School Journal 77, nos. 1 and 2: 95-107.

St. Clair, Nancy. 1995. “Outside Looking In: Representations of Gay and Lesbian

Experiences in the Young Adult Novel.” The ALAN Review 23, no. 1: 38-43

Singer, B. L. (Ed.) (1994). Growing up gay/ Growing up lesbian: A literary anthology.

New York: New Press.

Unks, G. (Ed.). (1995). The Gay teen: Educational practice and theory for lesbian, gay, and bisexual adolescents New York: Routledge.

Walling, Donovan. R. 2004. “Gay- and Lesbian-Themed Novels for Classrooms Reading.”

Journal of Gay and Lesbian Issues in Education 1, no. 2, 97-108.

LGBT Themed Literature

Aarons, L. (1995). Prayers for Bobby: A mother’s coming to terms with the suicide of her gay son. New York: HarperCollins. The book tells the story of Mary Griffith grappling with her son’s coming out, his suicide, and the role of religious intolerance, including her own, in his life and death.

Bauer, M. D. (1994). Am I blue? Coming out from the silence. New York: Harper Collins. This anthology, among the first of its kind, includes fifteen lesbian and gay-themed short-stories written by some of the best authors of young-adult fiction in the field.

Babcock, J. (2002). The tragedy of Miss Geneva Flowers. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers. Erick leaves his Catholic high school and family and experiments with drugs, alcohol, sex, and gender before maturing into a confident gay man.

Bechdel, A. (2006). Fun home. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. This graphic-memoir focuses on the author’s coming out as a lesbian and coming to terms with her father’s death in rural Pennsylvania.

Capote, T. (1975/1948). Other voices, other rooms. New York: Vintage International. When Joel Knox is twelve years old he moves from New Orleans to an isolated Louisiana community where he encounters a cast of characters fitting for a southern gothic novel, in this case, a semi-autobiographical one.

Chbosky, S. (1999). The perks of being a wallflower. New York: MTV Books/Pocket Books. Written as a series of letters from the main character, Charlie, this popular young adult novel chronicles Charlie’s life in high school, including his friendship with Patrick, who is gay, and his sister, Sam, with whom Charlie falls in love.

Chopin, K. (1976/1899). The Awakening. In B. H. Solomon (Ed.), The Awakening and selected short stories of Kate Chopin (pp. 1-137). New York: Signet Classics. Edna Pontellier embodies her womanhood in unconventional ways, relative to the social norms of the late 19^th century U.S. south, by rejecting her roles as wife and mother and embracing a younger lover.

Dole, M. L. (2008). Down to the bone. New York: HarperTeen. Laura creates her own family after she gets kicked out of her Catholic high school and her family’s home because she is deeply in love with another girl.

Flagg, F. (1987). Fried green tomatoes at the whistle stop café. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. This novel is both a love story between two women in the 1920s and the story of a burgeoning feminist in the 1980s, both in Alabama.

Goldman, S. (2008). Two parties, one tux, and a very short film about The Grapes of wrath. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. This young adult novel is told from the perspective of Mitchell Wells, a straight high school student, as he comes to terms with his best friend’s coming out as gay.

Hartinger, B. (2003). Geography club. New York: HarperTempest. A group of high school students who feel like outsiders because of their sexual orientations form an after school club where they can socialize without being vulnerable.

Levithan, D. (2003). Boy meets boy. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. The book is about what the world might be like if homophobic values were greatly diminished and how the friendships and romantic relationships of Paul, a gay high school student, unfold in such an imaginary world.

Moore, P. (2007). Hero. New York: Hyperion. Thom Creed struggles with his special powers, his infamous father, and his sexuality in this fantasy novel.

Newman, L. (1988). A letter to Harvey Milk. A letter to Harvey Milk: Short Stories, (pp. 25-28). Ithaca: Firebrand Books. Harry, an elderly Jewish man, writes a letter to his friend the late Harvey Milk and a love story about two men in a concentration camp.

Peters, J. A. (2003). Keeping you a secret. New York: Little, Brown, and Young Readers. Holland loses her boyfriend, friends, and family when she falls in love with Cece, an out-and-proud lesbian.

Plum-Ucci, C. (2002). What happened to Lani Garver? Orlando: Harcourt, Inc. Lani Garver, a gender variant high school student, moves to the isolated Hackett Island and becomes friends with Claire McKenzie, a popular girl at the school. Lani is subject to devastating abuse.

Sanchez, A. (2007). The God box. New York: Simon &Schuster. This young adult novel is a rather didactic exploration about the relationship limitations and possibilities between Christianity and homosexuality as it is embodied by two teenage boys.

Sedaris, D. (1997). Holidays on ice. New York: Little, Brown, and Company. This is a collection of short stories related to Christmas. Many of the stories are autobiographical accounts by the out gay author.

Smith, B. (2007). Selfish & perverse. New York: Carroll & Graf Publishers. An aspiring writer in Los Angeles, Nelson Kumker, and a fisherman and student from Alaska, Roy Briggs, fall in love in this novel.

Tamaki, M. & Tamaki, J. (2008). Skim. Toronto: Groundwood Books. This graphic novel is set in a Catholic girls high school in Canada and focuses on “Skim,” an Asian, goth, Wiccan who develops a crush on one of her female teachers.

Walker, A. (1982). The color purple. Orlando: Harcourt, Inc. This highly acclaimed epistolary novel centers around Celie, an African American woman in rural Georgia in the 1930s, and includes her intimate relationship with another woman.

Wallace, K. (2004). Erik & Isabelle: Freshman year at Foresthill High. Sacramento: Foglight Press.

Wallace, K. (2005). Erik & Isabelle: Sophomore year at Foresthill High. Sacramento: Foglight Press. These are the first two in a series of four books about two best friends, both of whom are gay. Erik is academic, athletic, and being raised in a homophobic household. Isabelle’s family, in contrast, is open and accepting of her lesbian identity. Across these two books, Erik and Isabelle support each other as they endure homophobia and fall in and out of love.

Watts, J. (2001). Finding H.F. Los Angeles: Alyson Books. H.F. lives with her very loving, Christian grandmother; and Bo, her best friend, lives in an overtly homophobic household in rural Kentucky. Both teenagers come to understand themselves as gay in this novel.

Winterson, J. (1992). Written on the body. New York: Vintage International. This British novel tells the love story between the narrator, whose gender is never revealed, and a married woman.