A Controversial Debate

Especially after reading these four articles, I never imagined how controversial the debate between writing literature as an insider or an outsider could be. I consider multicultural literature covering a wide variety of culture and exploring the experiences of people with different backgrounds. But who has the right to write about these? As an insider, the author of literature has personal experience "inside" the cultural group. While those considered an outsider don't have personal experience within a cultural group but can also be experts on the subject. According to Sims Bishop, outsider writers frequently bring their fiction about a cultural group that is not well informed as those who have been acculturated. Writers have to know a culture intimately if they are going to reflect it accurately. I believe this is true, except I also believe that is entirely possible for an outsider to accurately reflect multiculturalism in writing. By excluding writers that are outsiders, we are excluding a lot of great literature in the classroom. That does not mean that all outsider literature is accurate--it would have to be studied to make sure the evidence is factual. But who is to say that insider authors portray accurate information either. Just because a person has a specific background from a cultural group does not necessarily mean that they can correctly portray a culture.

Basically, I believe that it is the teacher's responsibility to look at literature with an extensive eye. That means that I, as a teacher who wants to incorporate multicultural literature in the classroom, have to make it is my responsibility to use the resources available (like book reviews, critique’s opinion, general responses to the book) to determine if the book is appropriate for the schools. I should not include a book that is written by anybody that does not portray culture in an accurate light.

My Introduction

Hi everybody! My name is Molly and I am a fifth year senior. My major is Elementary Education with a concentration in Language Arts. I am also interested in the TESOL program as well. I will be graduating this spring and, after five years here, it will be quite sad to leave Michigan State behind.

I am interested in diverse literature because it can teach a child so much about the world we live in today. Also, literature provides an intriguing way to promote diversity within communities. Children become exposed to the similarities and differences of multiculturalism through reading choice literature. As a teacher, it is important to introduce books that have diversity represented in order to reflect the diversity of the classroom, schools, and society.

I am looking forward to gaining knowledge from this class that I will be able to apply to my own future experiences in the classroom. Powerful literature can fuel so many different feelings, and it will be interesting to see what issues it digs up in me.