Using Children's Literature and Drama to Explore Children's Lives in the Context of Global Conflicts PDF

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This article was downloaded by: [KSU Kent State University] On: 28 August 2014, At: 14:06 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK The Social Studies Publication details, i...

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Using Children's Literature and Drama to Explore Children's Lives in the Context of Global Conflicts Gumiko Monobe, EUN HYE SON, Gumiko Monobe

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This article was downloaded by: [KSU Kent State University] On: 28 August 2014, At: 14:06 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK

The Social Studies Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/vtss20

Using Children's Literature and Drama to Explore Children's Lives in the Context of Global Conflicts a

b

Gumiko Monobe & Eun Hye Son a

Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, USA

b

Department of Literacy, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho, USA Published online: 14 Jan 2014.

To cite this article: Gumiko Monobe & Eun Hye Son (2014) Using Children's Literature and Drama to Explore Children's Lives in the Context of Global Conflicts, The Social Studies, 105:2, 69-74, DOI: 10.1080/00377996.2013.820164 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00377996.2013.820164

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The Social Studies (2014) 105, 69–74 C Taylor & Francis Group, LLC Copyright ⃝ ISSN: 0037-7996 print / 2152-405X online DOI: 10.1080/00377996.2013.820164

Using Children’s Literature and Drama to Explore Children’s Lives in the Context of Global Conflicts GUMIKO MONOBE1 and EUN HYE SON2 1

Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, USA Department of Literacy, Boise State University, Boise, Idaho, USA

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This article examines children’s literature that depicts people undergoing political conflict and war in a post-WWII era. These books portray political conflicts, refugees’ relocation, and settlement in different countries. Using these books with drama inspired activities can help students gain awareness and empathetic attitudes toward those in a global community. Keywords: children’s literature, drama, early-childhood education, elementary education, global perspective, political conflicts

Last fall, one of the authors, Gumiko Monobe, visited a first-grade classroom in an elementary school located in the Midwest. The classroom teacher invited her to share about Japan and Japanese culture with the first-grade children as a part of the social studies curriculum. Before sharing, however, Gumiko wanted to check what prior knowledge the children had about Japan. She asked them: “Could you tell me what you know about Japan or what you think of Japan?” Immediately, they were all so excited to share their knowledge and opinions: “I don’t think you drink Cokes”; “You don’t dress like us and don’t have shoes like mine”; “I know Karate”; “I went to eat sushi”; “I don’t think you have cars because Japan is very small. If you drive a car there, your car will drop into the ocean.” After listening to all of their ideas, Gumiko then asked the children, “Why do you think Japanese people don’t dress like you and don’t drink Coke?” They replied: “Well, Japan is a very different county! They are not like us!” We were not surprised by the thoughts and comments upon which the children shared regarding Japan; instead, we were more concerned about their sources of information on Japan. Unfortunately, views of different countries, such as Japan in this case, often lack accurate and authentic images, perspectives, and narratives (Short and Thomas 2011). Because of their limited knowledge, children’s understandings of Japan are superficial and binary as shown in this vignette. The children’s limited knowledge reflects a belief that because Japan is outside of the United States, it is distinctly different from the United States; consequently,

Address correspondence to Gumiko Monobe, Kent State University, 404 White Hall, Kent, OH 44242, USA. E-mail: [email protected]

the children set boundaries between us (America) and them (other countries). We believe that these dichotomies, which reinforce distinctions between “us” and “them,” can interfere with preparing students for global citizenship in a culturally diverse and interdependent world. To avoid having students create “us” versus “them” mentalities, teachers should promote the use of more global literature in their classrooms. Global literature can help students develop global awareness by bringing diverse dimensions of the world (e.g., culture, language, religions, social and economic status, gender, and sexual orientation) to their classrooms (Hadaway and McKenna 2007; Lehman, Freeman, and Scharer 2010; Martin and Yankay 2012). Tomlison (1999) states, “Bringing the children of the world together so that they might know, understand, and accept one another is an important way for librarians and teachers to prepare young people for a productive, peaceful future. International stories teach children about their peers in other lands, since they bring the people, history and traditions of these countries to life and counteract stereotypes” (15). In addition to introducing children to different facets of the world, global literature enables students to see other alternative perspectives on global matters so that they can develop empathy to “other” children and people’s experiences and realities (Hadaway and McKenna 2007). Through global literature, students can learn (1) how one global event can impact many children and people’s lives, and (2) how that event can be perceived and interpreted in various ways by different countries and individuals. When students use literature as a springboard to recognize and understand the multiple and complex layers of global matters, they can gain better understanding of the global community with more comprehensive, personalized views, that can help

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70 the children develop empathy. By learning, reading, and dramatizing these perspectives, they can gain a sense of awareness and empathy toward other lines of thinking, ways of knowing, and means of communicating. Hopefully, this openness to other viewpoints and vantage points will help students to reevaluate their current belief systems so they can build a stronger sense of empathy for others’ stories. Despite the great potential of offering global literature to students, some limitations do exist in using global literature in the classroom (Freeman and Lehman 2001; Short and Thomas 2011). First and foremost, there is a “limited availability of culturally authentic literature set in other countries” (Short and Thomas 2011, 149). Because the amount and collections of global literature are scarce, well-rounded presentations of diverse cultures are not always present. The current global literature mostly focuses on traditional aspects of culture and lifestyles but often leaves out contemporary lives and experiences of children and people. If global literature with an emphasis only on traditional culture is given to students without proper contextualization, it may reinforce students’ stereotypes and misconceptions about “other exotic” countries. In addition to a limited array of authentic global literature, many teachers are not familiar with global literature (Freeman and Lehman 2001), so they often have a difficult time engaging students in the books that portray foreign terms, experiences, and ways of living (Lynch-Brown, Tomlinson, and Short 2010). While teachers might use global literature to introduce other cultures in their social studies classrooms, they seldom use it as a foundation or pedagogical framework to promote more global understanding (Macphee and Whitecotton 2011). If students cannot connect to the books in a meaningful way, Short and Thomas (2011) claim “children may view this literature as ‘exotic,’ failing to connect in significant ways forming superficial understandings about people around the world” (149). This would explain why students and teachers maintain their current state of beliefs rather than building more cultural awareness. To dispel these problems, we believe teachers should implement carefully selected global literature partnered with pedagogical activities. For instance, teachers could use dramatic activities to create a space or “playground,” where students can foster their social imaginations to bridge their worlds to others’ worlds. Creative dramatic play is a fun way for students to explore and interact with other characters who have diverse perspectives and situations. Once children use drama to interact with peers and characters who are close to their ages, they feel more comfortable making personal connections to the literature and to their communities. To them, these protagonists, who are undergoing different situations (e.g., political conflicts and wars) and who might otherwise be negatively objectified as “other,” are more viable options that are open for further exploration. Dramatic play helps them to gain a broader understanding of people situated in unique social and cultural contexts.

Monobe and Son In this article we examine the use of high-quality children’s literature and drama to help elementary school-age children gain more understanding about global issues. Our hope is to enhance their understanding of people, cultures, and conflicts in a global community. We focus on global literature that discusses political conflicts that have impacted several parts of the world. First, we introduce children’s literature that presents a range of global, political conflicts as told from an insider’s perspective. Then, we discuss pedagogical activities rooted in drama that teachers can use along with the literature. Through these activities, students develop stronger personal connections and empathetic attitudes toward others and further their development as active global citizens.

Children’s Books Portraying People Undergoing Conflicts around the World Using resources, such as WorldCat, Children’s Literature Comprehensive Database, and Amazon, we searched for picture books for kindergarten through sixth-grade students that contained content pertinent to political conflicts outside of the United States after World War II. Granted, even though a collection of high-quality children’s literature about World War II existed, we wanted to focus on more current global conflicts through which students and teachers may have witnessed or lived. After examining a collection of picture books from the initial search, we narrowed it down to twelve books with the following criteria. First, we included books that authentically reflected individuals and communities without stereotyping or romanticizing the experiences of minorities (Kiefer 2007). Next, we selected books that represented voices and perspectives of children, who are immersed in political conflicts and/or war. Finally, we chose authors who met the following criteria: (1) committed to writing about children or people who are underrepresented in the United States or globally, (2) were originally from the country, or (3) were inhabitants of the country for a significant length of time. With the above cultural backgrounds, experiences, and additional research, we felt that the books could accurately describe people’s experiences in the context of political conflicts. The examination of this literature indicates that there are three common stages in political conflicts: occurrence of war or political conflict, relocation (most often to a refugee camp), and settlement in a different country than the characters’ original homelands. In the following section, we categorize these books into these three groupings and discuss themes and experiences of the children in each group. Political Conflicts and Wars We chose five books in this category for second- to sixthgrade students because the books describe how children

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Exploring Children’s Lives Through Literature and Drama manage their lives under political conflicts and war. These books discuss different political conflicts across four countries: Iraq, Lebanon, Chile, and Afghanistan. In these stories, the main characters are faced with the harsh realities of political conflicts and must find effective ways to manage their personal and social difficulties in these environments. For example, to focus his attention away from the war in his country, Ali, the main character in Silent Music (Rumford 2008), learns Arabic calligraphy to honor his heritage. In The Librarian of Basra (Winter 2005), the character Alia deals with war casualties in Iraq by trying to save books. She believes that saving the books filled with diverse ideas will bring some beauty back into her life. Like Alia, Nasreen in Nasreen’s Secret School (Winter 2009) also endures her country’s war troubles by focusing her attention on school and learning, which are not allowed for girls in her Afghan culture. Next, Pedro, in The Composition (Skarmeta 2000), finds a way to protect his family from a Chilean dictatorship, and Sami in Sami and the Time of the Troubles (Heide 1992) secretly listens to the radio and absorbs his uncle’s stories in the basement during wartime in Lebanon. Even though these children are in tragic situations, the authors do not lose sight of the fact that they are still children. Like several young readers, these characters lead somewhat typical lives; they play soccer, go to school, and play with friends (Table 1). The main theme these books convey is that ordinary children can be empowered—through the strategies used by these characters—to survive political conflicts beyond their control and positively impact others around them. Relocation Many children also become refugees after experiencing deportation/escape from their countries. According to a report by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (2011), the number of people forcibly displaced worldwide reached 43.3 million during 2009, including 27.1 million people who experienced internal displacement and 15.6 million who were displaced to a third country. Like real-life refugees, many characters in the stories about relocation flee their homes and live in orphanages or refugee camps during or after political conflicts or wars. Children live daily existences marked by uncertainty and fear. They are forced to leave everything familiar behind them, not knowing what their futures hold for them. The characters in the four selected books for kindergarten through fifth-grade students present a range of experiences and values that children learn in refugee camps. For example, in the book Four Feet Two Sandals (Williams 2007), the author describes two girls’ lives and daily routines in a Pakistani refugee camp. In this tale, two Afghan girls—Lina and Feroza—find and share one pair of sandals, which not only represent their friendship but symbolize the lack of resources in the camp. In Muktar and the Camels (Graber 2009), Muktar, a Somali orphan in Kenya, misses

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life in his home country and struggles to adjust to a new culture. Throughout his journey, he attempts to find a balance between his old life and his new one by using the skills from the nomadic life of his people to make contributions to his new community. In Brothers in Hope (Williams 2005), the author portrays the harsh, yet hopeful journey of approximately 30,000 Sudanese boys who walked nearly 1,000 miles in search of a safe refuge location in Ethiopia. Finally, Dia’s Story Cloth (Cha 1998) tells the plight of the author’s Hmong family, who fled their native Laos for a refugee camp in Thailand. All these children escape from life-threatening and tragic situations to eventually gain some stability in refugee camps and orphanages (Table 2). They make friends, go to school, provide practical assistance to themselves and others, and sympathize with each other as they struggle with problems, such as homesickness, fear, and uncertainty. In all of these books, the main theme is the same: The children must all endure arduous journeys, move to unfamiliar places, and adjust to a new life. Achieving Permanent Settlement Many refugee children often leave their temporary settlement camps with or without other family members and eventually find new homes in another country, such as the United States. According to the Office of Immigration Statistics (Martin and Yankay 2012), 56,386 people were accepted into the United States as refugees from countries, such as Burma, Bhutan, Iraq, and Somalia during 2011. Although refugee-related issues are serious global concerns, young American students rarely have the opportunity to study such complex matters. As students’ lives and cultures become more diverse, teachers have done little to highlight literature that focuses on this diversity, especially when considering how many “new” and “quite different” classmates are becoming more the norm, rather than the exception in their classrooms (Genishi and Dyson 2009; Portes and Rivas 2011). In these stories about achieving permanent settlement, typically for kindergarten through third-grade students, all of the characters are portrayed struggling to overcome fears related to a war at home, a loss of homeland, and/or adaptation to a new environment (Table 3). The authors of the three books describe the process that refugees undergo to relocate and adjust to a new culture and environment. For example, Gervelie’s Journey (Robinson and Young 2008) portrays the complicated process of immigration as the main character makes a dangerous passage from war-torn Congo to asylum in Norwich, England, via the Ivory Coast and Ghana. The other two books, The Color of Home (Hoffman 2002) and My Name is Sangoel (Williams 2009), depict refugee children’s lives after arriving in their new country, the United States. In both books, the main characters deal with loss: Hassan in The Color of Home (Hoffman 2002) suffers from homesickness and the trauma of war in

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Monobe and Son

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Table 1. Books about Political Conflicts and Wars Grade Level

Countries

Conflicts

Ways of dealing with conflicts

Sile...