Early adolescents go through developmental changes which are also mediated through social and structural forces that reproduce stratifying hierarchies around race, class, gender, and sexuality. Despite the intersection of early adolescent development with social and institutional forces, critical concepts such as race are often omitted in general discourses of middle level education. It is important that the leading body for middle level education, the Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) and their doctrinal text, This We Believe, explicitly address the nexus of race, early adolescent development, and schooling. In this article, we draw upon critical race theory as a conceptual framework and critical race discourse analysis as methodology to examine how This We Believe negotiates the social construction of early adolescent development as rooted in whiteness in addition to the racialized realities of middle level education for students of color. Findings indicate This We Believe utilizes colorblindness alongside racialization discourses to create majoritarian narratives of middle level education and early adolescent development. In conclusion, we offer three alternative philosophical statements to This We Believe critical educators can adopt that are attentive to the intersection of race, adolescent development, and middle level education.

This article examines the role of play-based early childhood programs in perpetuating or interrupting messages of white supremacy which murder the spirits of Black children while reinforcing a sense of entitlement in white children. We ask educators to consider what children's play might look like if pro-Black teaching and anti-racist teaching that develops children's critical consciousness around race were explicit, foundational, and daily in ECE classrooms - in contrast to the norm that is Eurocentric and uncritical. We do this recognizing that early childhood settings can be spaces where learned anti-Blackness can be either interrupted or, in our silence, allowed to grow, influencing children's play as well as the dispositions they take into adulthood. In contrast to free-play as a universalized "gold-standard"? in ECE, we propose playwork as a means for educators to engage with children during play--and within the context of an activist and critical curriculum--to support children's growing abilities to understand and respond to justice and injustice in a racialized world.

This article is a collective narration of our work in a prekindergarten and its curriculum, designed to employ student choice as a connection-making mechanism. We describe a series of "boundaries," social constructions, recognitions and physical barriers to illustrate the movement of the students within the curriculum, their negotiation of these boundaries, the meanings made, and our negotiated storytelling.

This article focuses on a teaching–research relationship between a teacher and a university professor who are a married couple. The article highlights how we navigated our relationship during a project with second graders with the hope of opening Third Space for students to engage in collective storytelling in an environment that interrupts mainstream hierarchies of power and authority and centers the Afrocentric pedagogy of communal responsibility. The story of the dyad relationship is woven into the stories of and from the children in what we view as nepantla literacies fostering collective agency and classroom consciousness.

This article highlights an adaptation of Vivian Paley’s storytelling and story acting curriculum to promote collaborative revision and co-authorship.

On a sunny Texas morning a prekindergarten class serving a diverse group of students, including those who are learning English as a second language (a pre-K ESL class), has left the glossy floors and artificial light of its classroom to explore in the dappled sunlight beneath a leafy tree. This public elementary school class has just finished listening to their teacher read a colorfully illustrated book titled Leaves. Following the directions of their teacher, they leave the circle and dart about the grassy space in groups of two, collecting specimens in plastic baggies, eyeing them with magnifying glasses, describing the features of each to one another. One student holds up an interesting leaf to show his teacher. The teacher says, “Hey, look at this! This one has tiny hairs on it. It’s a furry leaf!” He turns back to the 4-year-old who found it. “You make sure you tell us about this when we’re talking about them together, OK?” The boy nods vigorously, and they all turn simultaneously to see what other leafy marvels grow beyond the confines of the school’s walls.

AT PRESCHOOL in Central Texas, USA, the following scene unfolds. Without a soundtrack, the scene would look very familiar to almost any early childhood educator in the US: A teacher and his five-year-old students, in a circle, on a rug. They are singing in a daily, pre-nap ritual, prior to taking their places on their blue and red vinyl mats. The mats are already laid out for them with "softies" neatly arranged, symbols of their individuality - tiny pillows, stuffed animals, plush blankets - first names etched in Sharpie®. But as we turn up the volume on the animated vocalists, we become more aware of their clinched fists pumping in the air to the rhythm of their a capella rendition of a song by the 80s punk band, Black Flag. The song is called "T.V. Party":We're gonna have a T.V. party tonight! (All right!)We're gonna have a T.V. party all right! (Tonight!)We've got nothing better to do than watch T.V. and have a couple of brews......I wouldn't be without my T.V. for a day! (Or even a minute!)Don't even bother to use my brain anymore! (There's nothing left in it!). (Ginn, 1982, Side 1)The teacher leads them through the original lyrics of the song, which include the names of several television shows once popular in the U.S., but that were canceled decades before his students were born: "Hill Street Blues!" He sing/chants as his students dance/stomp around the room. "The Jeffersons!" He continues. "Dallas!"His students, who have sung this song many times, know that their teacher is recalling television shows from when he was young. They "piggyback" the song's original content the next time the chorus comes around (Warren, 1984), calling out TV shows they currently watch: "Sponge Bob!" a boy calls out. "Dora!" chants a girl. "Ben 10!" "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse!!"IntroductionThis article is an attempt to contribute to the conversation about the actions and the thoughts of teachers who are interested in critical media literacy (Kellner & Share, 2007) and the potential for this type of literacy as a tool of critical pedagogy (Kincheloe & McLaren, 2007) in early childhood settings. As part of a larger research project on early childhood educational practices, this article investigates the notion that there can be a recognizable and describable mindset that a teacher can have in order to prepare the type of learning environment in early childhood educational settings -and take actions in those environments- that creates a "curriculum space" for critical pedagogy involving media texts (Cary, 2006). The opening vignette involves such a teacher. And the scene described, where young students sing a 30-year-old punk song with a middle-aged man about drinking beer and spending all evening watching television, is the unlikely starting point for this discussion. In this case we investigate the words and actions of a teacher who we identify as a practitioner of a version of "critical pedagogy" that itself bears explicitly describing. We call that pedagogical mindset "Wide-awake, critical connoisseurship." We argue that this teacher's framework of thoughts, as employed in his classroom, complicate the conversation about what it means to be a facilitator for students engaged in critical media literacy episodes.In the coming paragraphs, we will attempt to situate this teacher and his actions within the current conversation on critical media literacy. In order to do so, we will first describe our methods for collecting the data and narrating it. We will then take a large section of our allotted pages to describe Mike as a person. We will juxtapose his words describing himself with our own words, describing him through an interpretation possible by current work in early childhood education (Bloch, Holmund, Moqvist, & Popkewitz, 2004; Cannella, 1997; Kessler & Swadener, 1992; Soto & Swadener, 2005; Tobin, 2000). We will then describe part of the current state of scholarship in critical media literacy and present a framework for addressing how a teacher can bring a certain philosophy to this pedagogy. …

This article explores issues of critical media literacy with middle school students in an urban setting in the United States. The author focuses on data from a qualitative study engaging students in the reading and writing of video texts. The article examines intersections of issues relating to the “crisis of representation” in social science research and critical media literacy pedagogy. The middle school participants involved in this media literacy project proved to be quite articulate in regard to their critique of mainstream media. In addition, the students resisted teacher‐centered approaches to critical media literacy that would have them creating counternarratives based on the “politics of the mundane.” The author argues for the importance of a critical media literacy pedagogy that is careful to make curricular space for students' discussions and explorations of issues of representation in media texts.تستكشف هذه المقالة قضايا التعلم النقدي في دراسة وسائل الإعلام مع طلاب المدرسة المتوسطة في موقع مدني في الولايات المتحدة. ويركز المؤلف على معطيات مأخوذة من دراسة نوعية شغلت الطلاب في قراءة نصوص الفيديو وكتابتها. وتفحص المقالة تقاطعات القضايا المتعلقة بـ((أزمة التمثيل)) في أبحاث العلوم الاجتماعية وعلم أصول التدريس بشأن التعلم النقدي في دراسة وسائل الإعلام. وإن طلاب المدرسة المتوسطة المشتركين في مشروع دراسة وسائل الإعلام هذا عبروا عن أنفسهم تعبيراً دقيقاً بصدد نقدهم بوسائل الإعلام الرئيسية. بالإضافة إلى ذلك قاوم الطلاب المنهاج المتركز على المعلم في التعلم النقدي في وسائل الإعلام وهو منهاج يخلق الطلاب فيه الحكاية المضادة القائمة على ((سياسة الملل والكلل)). إذ يحتج المؤلف لأهمية منهاج التعلم النقدي في دراسة وسائل الإعلام الذي يحرص على تكوين مكان منهاجي لمناقشات الطلاب واستكشافاتهم في قضايا التمثيل في نصوص وسائل الإعلام.本文探讨在美国城市学校教授中学生批判式媒体读写文化的问题。作者聚焦于从一项定性研究所得的资料，其研究是有关令学生投入阅读与写作视频文本的教学。本文考查与社会科学研究中的「表征危机」及批判式媒体读写文化教学法相关而两者相交的问题。根据所得资料的显示，该媒体读写文化研究计划里的中学参加者，对主流媒体的批判，相当能言善辩。资料亦显示，学生抗拒以教师为中心的批判式媒体读写文化教学方法，该等教学法要学生按照「世俗政治」来创作他们的对抗叙事语篇。谨慎设计课程，给予学生课程空间，让学生讨论及探索有关媒体文本表征的议题，这样的批判式媒体读写文化教学法，本文作者肯定其重要性。Cet article explore la question de la littératie critique des médias avec des élèves de collège dans un milieu défavorisé aux Etats‐Unis. L'auteur se centre sur les données d'une étude qualitative qui met les élèves en situation de lecture et écriture de textes vidéo. L'article examine l'intersection entre les questions relatives à la « crise de la représentation » dans la recherche en sciences sociales et la pédagogie de la littératie critique des médias. Les participants d'un collège impliqué dans ce projet de littératie des médias ont semblé très au clair en ce qui concerne la critique des médias de masse. De plus, les élèves ont résisté aux approches centrées sur le maître vis‐à‐vis de la littératie critique des médias qui leur aurait fait créer des contre projets basés sur « la politique ordinaire ». Les auteurs plaident en faveur de l'importance d'une pédagogie critique de la littératie des médias qui prenne soin de faire place aux discussions des élèves et à une exploration de la question des représentations dans les textes des médias.В статье исследуются вопросы становления критической медиаграмотности учащихся средней возрастной группы в городской школе США. Автор рассматривает данные качественных исследований, посвященных участию школьников в чтении видеотекстов и их создании. Автора особенно занимают аспекты исследований, находящиеся на стыке того, что в социальных науках называется “кризисом представления” – с одной стороны – и преподаванием критической медийной грамотности, с другой. Учащиеся средней школы, участвовавшие в этом проекте, весьма членораздельно выразили свое критическое отношение к господствующим в обществе средствам массовой информации. Кроме того, учащиеся сопротивлялись подходам к критической медиаграмотности, исходящим из представлений учителя, который неизменно предлагал им создавать контрнарративы, основанные на реальной мировой политике. Автор уверен, что критическую медиапедагогику необходимо выстраивать, тщательно формируя учебный план, позволяющий учащимся обсуждать и исследовать интересные для них вопросы репрезентации в медиатекстах.Este artículo explora temas de conocimientos críticos de los medios de comunicación en estudiantes de escuela intermedia en una ciudad estadounidense. El autor se enfoca en data de estudios cualitativos que involucraban a los estudiantes en la lectura y la escritura de textos para videos. El artículo examina la intersección de temas pertenecientes a la “crisis de representación” en la investigación de las ciencias sociales y la pedagogía de conocimientos críticos de los medios de comunicación. Los estudiantes que tomaron parte en este proyecto supieron expresar bastante bien sus críticas de los medios de comunicación convencionales. Además, los estudiantes resistieron acercamientos a la crítica de dichos medios centrados en el maestro que los hubiera hecho crear contra‐narraciones basadas en la “política de lo trivial”. El autor insiste en la importancia de una pedagogía de conocimientos críticos de los medios de comunicación que se esmere por crear espacio en el currículo para que los estudiantes puedan discutir y explorar los temas de representación en los textos de los medios.

The websites and books reviewed in this column offer educators background, ideas, and classroom-based examples relating to critical media literacy and how to incorporate it into teaching practices. The Zinn Education Project website, created by Rethinking Schools and Teaching for Change, offer a wealth of ideas, materials, lesson plans, links and other resources for teachers interested in incorporating social justice themes into the curriculum. Media Literacy is Elementary: Teaching Youth to Critically Read and Create Media, a book by Jeff Share, provides background on theory and practice relating to critical media literacy pedagogy in the elementary level. In addition to the book, an accompanying website provides additional resources and examples from classrooms. Captura: Digital Storytelling Toolkit is a website created by the Llano Grande Center. This multimodal text weaves print, video, and still pictures providing step-by-step instructions on how to create digital stories for community change. The detailed discussions on how to create such texts are supported by links to many outstanding examples created by students involved with the Llano Grande Center. Finally, Media Literacy: New Agendas in Communication, edited by Kathleen Tyner offers a diverse array of chapters providing ideas and insights generated from media literacy research in both formal and informal learning environments.

Our interview with Yuyi Morales revealed the thoughts, emotions, and critical perspectives of a children’s book author and artist. Our conversation with Yuyi kept her voice central to our discussion. Readers will discover how Yuyi relies on her background to write about cultural themes and to generate rich illustrations that embellish the text she crafts. As a professional, Yuyi continuously seeks ways to advance her creative talents, which include writing, art, creating puppets, and her expanding use of technology. Yuyi is captivating, and the information she shared will undoubtedly spark interest and enthusiasm in all readers.

ing mentality. The preservice teachers that participated in Marx’s study viewed their Mexican students as having deficits in culture, language, families, intelligence and esteem. What Marx reports in her study is very likely to happen when preservice teachers have not had exposure to other cultures and languages. This is why we feel compelled to provide these preservice teachers with experiences and learning opportunities to examine their belief system about teaching in general and specifically about teaching ELLs. Some research studies have attempted to measure and/or demonstrate the type of psychological transformation that should occur in teacher candidates so that they will become more aware of social inequity based on race, class, and gender (Cochran-Smith, Davis, & Fries, 2004; Hollins & Guzman, 2005). This attitudinal transformation then should lead to new ways of addressing curriculum and pedagogy that are more just and inclusive of all students. We are interested in the potential for curriculum and pedagogy in teacher education programs for producing such transformations. Grant and Gillette (2006) define teacher effectiveness through the punctual description of issues such as culturally responsive teaching, self-knowledge (understanding, acceptance, and willingness to change), a well constructed philosophy of education, pedagogical content knowledge, educational psychology, multicultural knowledge, and making connections to the world outside of the school. When teachers lack preparation to address specific needs of culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) populations, these students can become curriculum casualties (Mathes & Torgesen, 2000). Thus, it is important to analyze how pre-service teachers construct their understanding of learning and teaching this population of students. One point that is overlooked in many of the studies in this important area of reBut I teach Math. It is not my job to teach English as a second language.

The authors describe technology-infused classroom activities inspired by a concept from hip-hop culture.

In this article, we describe the parent literacy project and highlight the potential of efforts to involve parents in meaningful ways with their children's literacy development. Through our work with Latino immigrant parents, we found that parents, even with low literacy skills and not much formal schooling, have the desire and capacity to help with their children's literacy development. The parents were eager to help; they just needed tools.

Popular media texts such as advertising give teachers the opportunity to bring to their classrooms dialogic instruction that focuses on critical media literacy.

What teacher would not like to hear this sort of request from a student? Alba, the woman who asked for the extra readings, was involved in a parent literacy project at her children’s elementary school in a city in the Southwestern United States. The class for parents that met one evening a week was designed to invite Spanish-speaking parents’ involvement in school-based literacy. The above entry from Alba’s reflective journal signals to the fact that she was highly motivated and even wanted more than the one reading per week that was assigned in the class. This type of request is a far cry from the stereotype of the Latino immigrant parent that is prevalent in media and even educational literature. Commonly held assumptions based in deficit thinking posit that parents like Alba are not interested in their children’s education, do not have literacy skills necessary to help their children with schoolwork, and do not spend time reading with their children at home. Through our interactions with the twelve parents involved in this after-school literacy project we found that regardless of their level of formal education, parents were highly motivated to read with their children, to engage with related assignments, and they even requested more readings, sometimes—as in the case of Alba—more than we were prepared to offer! In our experience, the key to such high levels of engagement related to matching parents with culturally and personally relevant reading material, what we are calling: texts that matter.