Where and how do I belong? As Erin Spring (2016a) notes in her examination of space, place, and youth engagement with literature, "young adult fiction is fraught with implications for identity, of which place often takes center stage" (p. 432). Yet despite the ubiquity of adolescent characters' negotiations within and across physical and…

This paper explores how students, as multimodal storytellers, can weave powerful narratives blending modes, genres, artefacts and literary conventions to represent the real and imagined in their lives. Part of a larger ethnographic case study of student writing in a middle years class for immigrant students learning English as an additional…

The authors unpack a unit in which students were asked to consider the question, "Who and what is an American?" The activity originated with a discussion of 6 fictional profiles; students were asked to place these people along a continuum from "least American" to "most American." The resulting discussions broadened…

This essay investigates performance events that feature actual refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants, but in instances where presence and embodiment are mediated and made ambiguous. My focus is a fashion show by Catalan designer Antonio Miro, who uses refugees from Senegal as models, and Christoph Schlingensief's public art project…

There is a revivification of national literature in Canada. Writers from Canada's varied cultures are producing works. One such work is "Obasan," which concerns the ostracism of Japanese Canadians after World War II. This vivid novel reveals the fate of those "outsiders" as a social commentary on injustice. (VM)

Reviews the literary forms and trends of Chicano literature. Discusses the growing critical canon accompanying the development of this literature, and describes pedagogical approaches to courses and curriculum planning in this area. (SR)

A major problem in contemporary secondary school anthologies is the lack of discussion about the acculturating experiences of the dozens of European ethnic groups that have been migrating to this country for centuries. Criteria are proposed for selecting titles in European ethnic literature for students, and some titles are suggested. (SLD)

Membership Issue. (DS)

Suggests that third generation American children have, by and large, lost most of their sense of cultural roots and ethnic identity. A whole new generation of alienated children is confronting the American school system today. (Author/AM)

Focuses on the Nuyorican stage of Puerto Rican immigrant literature, suggesting topics and structural characteristics to discuss and teach along with other American literary traditions. Points out that Nuyorican literature shares many of the concerns of these other traditions. (SR)

Geographic displacement as spiritual desolation is a theme that bonds Puerto Rican and Chicano literature. The movement of masses of people to the United States and within the United States itself has had and continues to have severe consequences for the Latino population in this country. Two novels, "Down These Mean Streets" by Piri…

Analyzes Paule Marshall's "Brown Girl, Brownstones" as a novel about a Black girl's necessary struggle to release herself from an emotionally intense relationship with her mother. Argues that the daughter's conflict is resolved only after she accepts her identification with her mother as a Black woman. (KH)

Examines Chinese-American author M. H. Kingston's book "The Woman Warrior" and the controversy and literary response to it. Discusses the dilemma of the "ethnic" writer and other issues including the use of literary license and social documentation and tensions between historical and experiential authenticity. (JB)

This guide provides the college teacher with a model for teaching undergraduate college students about the immigrant experience. Students read American literature which includes fiction, drama, and poetry as well as biographies, autobiographies, historical accounts, and other politico-socio-economic literature. The model consists of three…

This anthology of 21 short stories is intended for Spanish-speaking students of Spanish, other students in intermediate and advanced Spanish-language courses, and students commencing study of the Hispanic literature of the United States. Twelve of the 15 authors are, by birth or descent, of Mexican, Cuban, or Puerto Rican origin. Eight were born…