Critical and Cultural Thinking

Over the semester, I have read so many articles about literacy. Sometimes, I felt like I read so much that I was not understanding as much as I could. I read, re-read, and sometimes read for the third time these literacy articles. And here we are, at the end of the semester and I still find it terribly difficult to define literacy without explaining through a quotation or paraphrase. More than gaining new vocabulary, I feel like the understandings I have developed are penetrating my life. Not only do I think about the library in a different way, but also my relationship with children, how I speak to them, and how I interact with adults as well.
I find myself analyzing classroom situations that I observe. I am looking for positioning, power, and perspective where I was passively involved before. I am looking to see what I have not included in my teaching that might benefit the children from popular culture and the knowledge I have of what the child can offer to the classroom. I am challenging culture that I felt was natural because I have realized it is a social construction. I feel like the understandings I have gained are helping me develop as a teacher/librarian.