School-based supports, such as LGBTQ+ -themed curriculum, invite opportunities for challenging oppression with respect to gender and its intersections with other identities such as sexuality and race. However, more understanding is needed regarding how literacy educators might leverage these opportunities. This article describes how intimacy,…

While culturally responsive texts have become more common in teacher education, too often, preservice teachers (PTs) are not asked to examine how to use these books pedagogically. To address this issue, in a young adult (YA) literature course, the Framework for Culturally and Historically Responsive Literacy (HRL) (Muhammad, 2000)…

Acts of sexual violence and rape, as well as the ensuing treatment of survivors and those who perpetuate the crimes, are pervasive in canonical texts that populate mandated reading lists in secondary English classrooms. Given the outsized role the literary canon places in English curriculum, we believe English teachers must develop practices that…

Purpose: This study aims to explore the perceived barriers that a secondary English teacher faced when attempting to discuss racial injustice through young adult literature in Mississippi. Design/methodology/approach: The authors rely on Critical Whiteness Studies and qualitative methods to explore the following research question: What are the…

This study explores the conditions that provide new opportunities for youth of color to develop civic agency, paving the way to enact change in their schools and communities. This article shares findings from a qualitative study of an after-school program designed and implemented by the authors, in which 15 middle school-aged youth--including a…

Purpose: Recognizing that hate crimes and antisemitic attacks are increasing, the purpose of this article is to discuss ways "The Assignment" by Liza Wiemer, a contemporary young adult novel that depicts curriculum violence and its effects on students, acts as a "disruptor" in young adult literature. The authors present a…

The framework of visual grammar (Kress and van Leeuwen, 2006, via Serafini, 2014) is used to examine the artwork of Laurie Halse Anderson and Emily Carroll's "Speak: The Graphic Novel," which tells through words and pictures the story of Melinda Sordino, a girl who is raped just prior to beginning her freshman year in high school. Three…

The Common Core State Standards' focus on nonfiction texts has prompted middle schools to include more historical nonfiction, including books that focus on the United States' racialized past (and present) such as "We Are Not Yet Equal" by Carol Anderson (2018) and "Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You" (2020) by Jason Reynolds…

This multiple case study traced how secondary preservice social studies teachers grappled with understanding race/racism in their reading of the novel, All American Boys. Participants, all self-identified as white, consisted of two cohorts of students who attended a large midwestern university and were enrolled in an advanced social studies…

This paper describes a qualitative participatory action research study applying critical cosmopolitan literacies principles with pre-service English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers to address global human rights issues through international English youth literature. Using literary works on sociopolitical issues alongside critical pedagogy…

We advocate for the reading of young adult literature (YAL) as a means for justice-oriented education, and we also recognize how the recent surge in challenges to youth-centered texts in the U.S. attempts to limit such work in classrooms. In response, we wondered about the ways in which YAL offers pathways for critically framing and situating…

This article highlights the interpictorality in two YA books by the Swedish writer and illustrator Anna Höglund, "Om detta talar man endast med kaniner" [This Is Something You Only Talk About with Rabbits] (2013) and "Att vara jag" [To Be Me] (2015). The analysis of the visual intertextuality between pieces of artwork by Peter…

Courses: Interpersonal Communication, Communication & Identity, Social Cognition/Influence, Diversity Studies, Rhetorical Theory and Criticism. Objectives: This activity examines children's books as a tool in the formation of social expectations, attitudes, and acceptance. It offers an opportunity to discuss effective ways to promote inclusion…

This three-article dissertation examines the role of comics as a medium for developing anti-oppressive pedagogies with teacher educators and teacher candidates in English language Arts (ELA) and literacy education. Using methods of critical content analysis (Johnson et al, 2016), descriptive qualitative research (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016), and…

This large-scale survey study examined how teachers select and integrate global and culturally diverse children's and young adult literature for their classrooms. Results from the survey captured self-reports of the selection process, suggesting if and how teachers were selecting and integrating this literature and reflecting possible influence…