Words Do Matter: Children's Books and Music That Challenge Racism, Homophobia, and Bullying

• In Event: 68.041 - "Yes, We Do See Color!" Actively Combating Racism in Early Childhood Education

Abstract

Anti-bias education (Adams, Griffin & Bell, 2007; Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010; author) is rooted in the belief that in order for anyone to challenge or resist oppression, three components are necessary: Individual must recognize that something unfair, discriminatory, or oppressive is taking place; they must be able to name that injustice in some way; and they must have active strategies for addressing that injustice.
In contrast to discourses of the value of “colorblindness” and minimizing discussions of difference in the name of not calling attention to or worsening problems, this paper analyzes children’s books and children’s songs that directly address issues of prejudice, discrimination, and bullying and assesses their utility in teaching young children to be active upstanders in the face of oppression. I argue that it is impossible to both make differences invisible and teach children to engage in complex and nuanced ally behavior.
Reading children’s books and singing children’s songs is a common teaching strategy in early childhood and elementary settings, and thus constitutes an easily accessible, implementable activity that can introduce and reinforce discussions of prejudice, discrimination, and standing up for one another. However, simply because a book names its theme as “bullying” or “prejudice” does not guarantee that the book’s proposed strategies are ones that are appropriate, possible, or desirable for actualization by young children.
This paper analyzes children’s books and children’s songs related to challenging bullying or oppression in terms of: (1) an analysis of the bullying itself; (2) the extent to which the content of the bullying itself is specified; (3) the specificity of the language used in challenging the oppression; (4) the utility and “face validity” of the proffered solution in terms of its resemblance to children’s real lives.
The paper analyzes children’s books about teasing and bully published in the last 15 years; the children’s songs analyzed are all drawn from the website of the Children’s Music Network, an organization devoted to using children’s music to teach positive values and create a more peaceful world.
The paper concludes with a review of criteria that are necessary for developing anti-bias strategies for young children, including the following: (1) To be effective allies, children must be given complex and nuanced understandings of both individual differences and what oppressive language and behavior that target those differences look like; (2) Identifying language or behavior as “unkind” or “not nice” may be a useful first step, but if students are not helped to unpack and describe what they have seen, their ability to be thoughtful and effective allies will be significantly diminished; (3) educators must sharpen their own willingness and skills in identifying and responding to oppressive behavior in order to be effective teachers and models for young children; (4) Generic responses to ill-treatment or prejudicial behavior are unlikely to significantly shift the roots of the oppressive behavior or establish positive responses.

Author

• Mara Sapon-Shevin, Syracuse University