Transnational And Community Literacies Provide A Large Of Material For Weekend School Classes

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Similarly, some educators and parents might object to having students collect and analyze samples of community and transnational literacies on the grounds that the content and messages of some texts are inappropriate for teens. For example, in the same Nashville neighborhood where we collected the texts we describe here, we also observed texts advertising alcohol, cigarettes, and pawn shops. Teachers who are uncomfortable viewing and discussing such texts with students may wonder if it is possible to focus learning on the more positive images.

Although these objections are to be expected and are even reasonable in some cases, we strongly believe that the benefits associated with integrating transnational and community literacies greatly outweigh the costs. Moreover, there are strategies to overcome or offset possible complications. First, as we have described, teachers could explore their students' communities in pairs or small groups so as Tag Heuer Carrera Replica not to feel uncomfortable. They could also involve the students and their families ...
... as insiders in particular locales. A school—community liaison could accompany the class. These strategies could also alleviate teacher concerns about students choosing potentially inappropriate texts for analysis. It is obvious that teachers need to know their students, and making community visits to identify local literacies is a great way to work toward this goal. Second, teachers could collaborate (both content area teachers working with ESL specialists, or content area teachers teaching in different languages) to plan lessons and thematic units that incorporate these kinds of texts. Furthermore, students could be asked to bring in examples of community texts (Early & Gunderson, 1993), taking some of the extra effort from the teacher. Third, because transnational and community literacies do not replace but rather supplement traditional, school-based literacies, we do not envision problems regarding standardized testing. To the contrary, we anticipate students becoming more engaged and interested in content and literacy learning given that the texts and practices with which they are already familiar are becoming part of classroom instruction (Kist, 2005). Although it remains a testable proposition, this approach may even increase the test scores that are so highly emphasized in public institutions. We think this is a promising area for research, including action research by high school teachers.

Finally, not all instruction and learning takes place during the regular school day. We encourage teachers and other educators to consider alternative spaces for the use of transnational and community literacies. Summer school programs, for example, typically feature relaxed demands on curriculum and assessment (Goldstein, 2002). After-school programs are another possibility for students to explore alternative curricular content. In addition, many immigrant communities provide native-language instruction (both oral and written) for children from particular linguistic Breitling Bentley Replica Watches backgrounds. Transnational and community literacies provide a large body of material that might be usefully considered for weekend school classes, as texts are often printed in the languages of the community as well as bilingually. Because many parents already recruit their children to help them navigate these texts (Orellana, Reynolds, Dorner, & Meza, 2003), we imagine that they could provide linkages that both parents and youth would find useful.