Asian American Picture Books and Social Justice Conversations in Early Elementary Classrooms
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Authors
Ching, Chequet
Issue Date
2024-08-01
Type
thesis_open
Language
Keywords
Asian American , Picture Books , Social Justice , Diversity , Elementary , Child Psychology
Developmental Psychology
Psychology
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Alternative Title
Child Development Theses
Abstract
Asian Americans are the fastest-growing racial or ethnic group in the United States. As the diversity of the student population increases, it is and will be increasingly important to build classroom libraries that reflect this growing diversity because picture books are a foundational part of early childhood learning. This thesis project explores the use of Asian American picture books in early elementary school classrooms and how they might be used by teachers to support children’s ethnic and racial identity development and conversations around diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and belonging (DEIJB) in the classroom. Six teachers participated in qualitative interviews in person or via Zoom. The majority of Asian American picture books referenced by the teachers were about food, holidays, and/or celebrations, or seem to have been written in response to stereotypes. Most of the teachers could not name specific authors or titles of books with Asian American characters that they read during the previous school year. The teachers who were the most comfortable discussing issues of DEIJB with their students had salient childhood experiences of feeling marginalized or had a model for child-centered interactions. These same teachers also pursued graduate or doctoral degrees in education with a focus on anti-bias and social justice. Key findings reiterate the need for increased variety in the types of stories we share with children in order to provide fuller pictures of marginalized and oppressed groups of people.
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