Critical Literacy: So what?

In class we have been discussing the approach of analyzing reading from a different lens and thinking about all the different meanings in a text. As teachers, our biggest challenge is to give our students the tools to think in a flexible way and be able to have discussions about the topic. When I think about Critical Literacy, I always think about the phrase, "putting yourself in the person's shoes." My teachers always asked me to do it. When I think about it, remembering always feeling sympathy for the person/character, and moving on. This might sound like an easy task for students, but the part of critical literacy that encourages a reflective approach, requires more than stepping into the persons shoes and actually thinking of yourself as them. There is definitely an emotional connection that needs to be made in order to make the issue affect you as the person.



One of the biggest challenges I find with Critical Literacy, is the choice to present a topic with an unbiased approach. Furthermore, how to present a controversial topic without angering parents, administration, and students? As teachers, applying Critical Literacy, we have to, "encourage our students to challenge issues of power." These issues involve: race, sexual orientation, class, etc... I have always been a strong supporter of all forms of literature, and I belief that literature should never be changed regardless of what is states. The author had a purpose and we as readers must be respectful of what was written. We can not change what is stated.




Once the students have been exposed to Critical Literacy, there is the "so what?" component that I think is the most important. What actions will the students take now? How will they actively seek a solution or expose awareness to what is happening? This to me is the most important part of Critical Literacy. This encourages the students to take what they have been exposed to beyond the classroom, into their communities and the world.