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ERIC Number: EJ795537
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2008
Pages: 10
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0009-4056
EISSN: N/A
Supporting Immigrant Students' Understanding of U.S. Culture through Children's Literature
Akrofi, Amma K.; Swafford, Jeanne; Janisch, Carole; Liu, Xiaoming; Durrington, Vance
Childhood Education, v84 n4 p209 Sum 2008
In this article, the authors begin with what they believe is an implicit endorsement of an integration orientation toward acculturation. Literature may be used to help students understand the implicit nature of culture. Inspired by such scholars as Clayton (1996, 2003) and based on a content analysis of 134 books, the authors identify and describe a sample of children's literature that can serve to portray aspects of American culture for immigrant students' integration into their new schools. In the following sections, the authors first present the theoretical ideas underlying the notion of acculturation. They particularly note Clayton's (2003) discussion of the importance of immigrant students' cultural adjustment and describe her delineation of the culture's implicit categories needed by immigrant students in order to enhance their school and academic success. These became the basis for the authors' selection and analysis of children's literature books. Second, they briefly discuss their own understandings and stances regarding Clayton's cultural categories. An explanation of how they identified books that include indicators of the cultural categories follows. They continue with summaries of sample books and identify the aspects of culture they entail. Finally, they conclude with recommendations for classroom instruction. (Contains 2 figures.)
Association for Childhood Education International. 17904 Georgia Avenue Suite 215, Olney, MD 20832. Tel: 800-423-3563; Tel: 301-570-2111; Fax: 301-570-2212; e-mail: headquarters@acei.org; Web site: http://www.acei.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Education; Grade 1; Grade 2; Grade 3; Grade 4; Grade 7
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Turkey
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A