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Full text release has been delayed at the author's request until August 25, 2025

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Critical Literacy Practices in a Multicultural Book Club: A Close Look at Immigrant Children in an Out-of-School Context

Son, Youngji
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1589392954426015

Abstract Details

2020, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, EDU Teaching and Learning.
This qualitative case study explores three multilingual elementary school students’ experiences with critical literacy (CL) practices in an out-of-school context. Drawing upon critical literacy theory, it describes how the Asian immigrant children in the United States, including my own daughters, negotiated their identities as racial, cultural, and language minorities and how their participation in the CL practices helped to deal with their struggles associated with the different backgrounds. The children took part in a weekly multicultural book club meeting in a public library during the 34-week research period. The data included the audio-recordings of the book club meetings and the interviews with the participants, their journal entries, and the written artifacts they produced at home and school. The data were analyzed using interpretative analysis that consisted of two phases, within-case analysis and cross-case analysis. Within-case analysis was conducted simultaneously with the data collection. Once the within-case analyses for 34 weeks were completed, cross-case analysis began to build a general explanation that fit the individual participants. The findings illuminate the potential for CL practices to promote the immigrant children’s identity negotiation and better cope with their struggles associated with their cultural and linguistic backgrounds. The participants shared aesthetic responses to literature and connected to their lived experiences related to the books. These shared responses served as a catalyst to promote critical reflection on the issues related to themselves and others and come up with their own understandings. When the participants acknowledged the other members’ struggles, they also tried to help each other as a strong alliance. By elucidating the complex nature of the immigrant children’s identities and struggles, this study offers some implications for researchers and teachers who want to take the critical approach to their research and teaching practice. The study suggests more collaborative critical research that involves parents and teachers. As they are the ones who can provide the detailed accounts of children’s lives inside and outside school, their active involvement would be promising. The study also offers suggestions to teachers as to how to promote students’ critical engagement with literacy practice.
Youngjoo Yi, Ph.D (Committee Chair)
Alan Hirvela , Ph.D (Committee Member)
Peter Sayer, Ph.D (Committee Member)
280 p.
Literacy; Literature; Multicultural Education

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Son, Y. (2020). Critical Literacy Practices in a Multicultural Book Club: A Close Look at Immigrant Children in an Out-of-School Context [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1589392954426015

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Son, Youngji. Critical Literacy Practices in a Multicultural Book Club: A Close Look at Immigrant Children in an Out-of-School Context . 2020. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1589392954426015.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Son, Youngji. "Critical Literacy Practices in a Multicultural Book Club: A Close Look at Immigrant Children in an Out-of-School Context ." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1589392954426015

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1589392954426015
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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.