Explains how a teacher, a Belizean of African descent who immigrated to the United States, feels about having grown up reading only Western literature. Explains the costs of such limited reading in psychological and emotional terms. Gives a brief review of a few well-known Caribbean authors, including Julia Alvarez and Jamaica Kincaid. (TB)

Discusses how literature can facilitate students' appreciation of the multifaceted Hispanic culture. Offers advice on merging Hispanic literature and literacy instruction, organizing children's books by category to help structure classroom activities, exploring themes and cultural concepts, and integrating literacy/thinking strategies with…

Describes a U.S. literature course and a comparative literature course that focuses on Asian, African, Canadian, Caribbean, and Latin American literature. Asserts that students need to be aware of the European impact on the U.S. identity, even where it is unpleasant. Discusses the magical realism in the distinct artistic vision of Latin America.…

Offers a brief historical perspective on Latino folk literature. Discusses 26 recently published books for children and adolescents in both English and Spanish, organized into origin tales, tales based on historical facts, trickster tales, and cumulative tales. Describes activities to use with these books to foster literacy and make powerful…

This book features scholarly criticism on works by 19 famous authors, such as N. Scott Momaday, James Welch, Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Rudolfo Anaya, Sandra Cisneros, Amy Tan, and more. These authors' works are widely taught, but little critical comment is yet available about them. Written specifically for instructors in literature courses,…

New multicultural anthologies too often end up looking suspiciously like the color palate of a paint-by-numbers kit. Canonical tokenism is quickly seen as a ruse by minority students and teachers who are circumspect and adept at uncovering counterfeits. As an alternative to tokenism, one recommendation is to use Patricia Bizzell's "contact…

In this brief study guide, the focus is on the "maroons," those Africans who bravely threw off the chains of slavery and established independent communities within colonial Latin America. The specific study is of the history and culture of Esmeraldas, a province in northwestern Ecuador and home to one of the most interesting maroon…

This unit was developed to give students in grades 7-12 a fuller understanding of the Latin American world, which is a growing part of the multicultural atmosphere in the United States. The unit is used currently in the seventh grade gifted Language Arts program at B. T. Washington Junior High School (Florida). The unit includes; (1) basic…

This guide was developed as part of a project to encourage more, and more accurate, teaching about Latin America in U.S. community colleges. The specific purpose of the guide is to survey the range of 20th century Latin American literature in order to suggest various ways in which works from Latin American countries may be integrated into any…

This document makes the argument that since the European conquest of the Western Hemisphere, society has had a policy of "covering" the history of the indigenous people. The systems of religion, farming, government, education, and the economy of native peoples from the Arctic to Tierra del Fuego were outlawed and repressed. Textbooks…

This curriculum guide is intended: (1) to expose students to the people and customs of Michoacan, Mexico; (2) to explore the meaning of traditional Day of the Dead customs through hands-on experiences; and (3) to build the self-esteem of second language learners of Mexican descent. During the study, students whose primary language is Spanish read…

This book was prepared to enable schools to incorporate material on the Caribbean into existing curricula. Four aims guided the editors in their selection and presentation of materials: (1) to show Caribbean history and contemporary realities through the eyes of ordinary people, both real and fictional; (2) to promote critical thinking rather than…

This collection of six essays examines the ways in which literature, as a discipline, reflects ongoing scholarship on gender, race, ethnicity, social class, and sexual orientation. In "Rethinking the Discipline of Literature: Gender," Joan E. Hartman presents the results of a Modern Language Association survey that highlights the…