Why we need more diverse bookshelves

Research over the last two decades shows the world presented in children’s books is overwhelmingly white, male and middle class.

A lack of diverse books is failing children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. This is something that should concern all Australians, Helen Joanne Adam, Lecturer in Literacy Education and Children’s Literature, Edith Cowan University, wrote in The Conversation.

“I studied five Australian early learning settings and found less than 5% of books contained cultural diversity. My more recent findings show teachers are struggling to use books in ways that promote intercultural understandings,” Adam said.

“Diverse books can help achieve principles of diversity written into Australian education policies. The potential of diverse books in addressing these principles and equity more generally is too important to ignore.

“Reading to children has a powerful impact on their academic and intellectual development. Children learn about themselves and the world through the books they’re exposed to. Importantly, children can learn understanding and respect for themselves and for those who are different to them.

“The majority of children’s books depict white main characters. But a lack of diverse books means we have a serious problem. Currently, children from minority backgrounds rarely see themselves reflected in the books they’re exposed to. Research over the last two decades shows the world presented in children’s books is overwhelmingly white, male and middle class.

“For children from minority groups, this can lead to a sense of exclusion. This can then impact on their sense of identity and on their educational and social outcomes.

“The evidence regarding Indigenous groups across the world is even more alarming. Research shows these groups are rarely represented. And, if represented at all, are most likely to be represented in stereotypical or outdated ways.

“Many teachers or adults unwittingly promote stereotypical, outdated or exotic views of minority groups. This can damage the outcomes for children from those groups.”

Director Julia Cameron of Werris Creek and District Preschool uses literature as one avenue to close the gap by respecting diversity for her community.

“With almost half of our enrolment being Indigenous, one of the ways we reflect the belonging and understanding of the culture is through books, music, storytelling and told stories,” Cameron said.

“Some of the storylines such as Just a Little Brown Dog by Sally Morgan, illustrated by Bronwyn Bancoft, could be a story reflected in any of our preschool’s Indigenous and non Indigenous families. So rather than ‘traditional or cultural,’ it is a story that’s set in anyone’s family, however, it is the colours and strokes in the artwork throughout the story that leads us to the Indigenous heritage.

“Warnayarra-the Rainbow Snake, as told by the Senior Boys Class Lajamanu School and illustrated by some of the school children, is a regular favourite story. According to the preschool children, they like the way the Lajamanu children drew the pictures, particularly the Rainbow Snake.

“Both contemporary and traditional Indigenous stories aimed at the preschool age are now accessible, unlike many years ago, when the outdated stereotypical stories showed bearded men wearing a loin cloth and carrying spears.

“Providing a choice of diversity leads to extended learning and understanding and branches into many other learning experiences and knowledge.”

“In exploring Indigenous stories, artwork and symbols we are planning to work with a Kamilaroi artist and story teller to create stories that reflect the Kamilaroi nation from a child’s perspective,” Cameron said.

“Some of our soft furnishings, such as cushion covers, reflect Indigenous art symbols. The children are able to recognise many of them and have reproduced their own interpretations.

“Our community based preschool also facilitates a weekly community playgroup which is predominantly aged 0-3 years. In recent times we have partnered with Winanga-Li Aboriginal Child and Family Centre – whose Community Support Worker is currently teaching the playgroup families, teacher and educators Twinkle Twinkle Little Star in Kamilaroi, as well as sharing Dreamtime stories.”

Adam said children from dominant cultural groups can view themselves as ‘normal’ and ‘others’ as different.

“In my recent study, I found the book collections in early childhood settings were overwhelmingly monocultural. Less than 5% of the books contained any characters who were not white. And in those few books, the minority group characters played a background role to a white main character.

“Particularly concerning was the lack of representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Of 2377 books, there were only two books available to children that contained Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander characters. Only one of these was a story book.

“In this book, the Aboriginal character was portrayed as a semi-naked person playing a didgeridoo in the outback. There were no books showing actual everyday lifestyles or views of Aboriginal people.

“The accompanying practice of teachers may also be counterproductive to achieving equitable outcomes for children from minority backgrounds. The teachers in my study were keen and committed to the children in their care.

“They were passionate about the importance of reading to children. But when it came to selecting books, they struggled to know what books to select and how best to use them.

“Teachers also need support to learn how to select diverse books.

“Some teachers overlooked the importance of diversity altogether. Some saw diversity as a special extra to address occasionally rather than an essential part of everyday practice.

“The call for more diverse books for children is gaining momentum around the world. The value of diverse books for children’s educational, social and emotional outcomes is of interest to all.

“The voices of Aboriginal and minority group writers calling for change are gaining momentum.But there is still much to be done”, Adam said.

“The recent development of a database from the National Centre for Australian Children’s Literacy is an important step. Publications of diverse books are still very much in the minority but some awareness and promotion of diverse books is increasing.

“These important steps forward could be supported with better training for teachers and increased discussion among those who write, publish and source books for children.”

Here are five tips to help you build a more diverse book collection.

(Bedrock often offers giveaways from Indigenous publishers Magabala Books.)

Five diverse books to get you started

The Perfect Flowergirl
By Tahgreb Chandab and Binni Talib (illustrator)
Pub: Allen & Unwin

The Little Refugee
By Anh Do, Suzanne Do and Bruce Whatley (illustrator)
Pub: Allen & Unwin

Sam’s Bush Journey
By Sally Morgan, Ezekiel Kwayamullina and Bronwyn Bancroft (illustrator)
Pub: Hardie Grant

The Patchwork Bike
By Maxine Baneeba Clarke and Van T Rudd (illustrator)
Pub: Hachette

Want to Play Trucks
By Ann Stott and Bob Graham (illustrator)
Pub: Walker Books


Reference

https://theconversation.com/five-tips-to-make-school-bookshelves-more-diverse-and-five-books-to-get-you-started-110718