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Friday 25 Oct 2024
8:30 AM - 9:50 AM Plenary Session 1
Conference Welcome & Opening Session Featured Speaker
Staley Library, Ballroom (3rd Floor)
Challenged and Challenging Texts and Teaching
Carol JagoStaley Library, Ballroom (3rd Floor)
Carol Jago taught middle and high school for 32 years in Santa Monica, California. She has served as president of the National Council of Teachers of English and on numerous committees including the College Board’s English Academic Advisory committee, ILA Adolescent Literacy Interest Group, and NAEP Writing Standing Committee.
Carol Jago has published a number of books on literacy and English pedagogy, including her most recent book The Book in Question: Why and How Reading Is in Crisis (Heinemann, 2019). She has written for the Los Angeles Times and many educational journals and online forums.
Carol is the recipient of the International Literacy Association's Adolescent Literacy Thought Leader award and the NCTE Exemplary Leadership Award.
Book signing to follow
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM Breakout Session A
Mimicking Isn't Thinking: Putting Thinking Back in Writing Instruction
Kimberly Williams and Sarah Scholz, Hinsdale Central High SchoolStaley 138
Students emerged from Covid classrooms, but not unscathed. More than ever, they were not engaging in their own learning. Our course team decided we couldn't keep lamenting the fact that our tried-and-true approaches weren't working anymore; we needed to adapt to teach the students in front of us now. Inspired by a book for math teachers on getting kids to think, we adapted our own approach to writing instruction.
Perils of the Participation Grade: Rethinking our Evaluation of Participation
Stephanie Bailey, Glenbrook South High SchoolStaley 140
As educators, we know the value of participation. However, we also know that many barriers to participation exist in and out of the classroom. We know that participation grades favor extroverted students, and at their worst, participation grades “may be inherently ableist” (Laurel Bastian, as cited in D’Agostino, 2023). But what if there is a way we could abandon the perilous participation grade while simultaneously showing students we value daily engagement? There is a way: the Engagement Grade.
In this session, Dr. Stephanie Bailey will define the Engagement Grade and the implementation of it with various abilities and grade levels. Dr. Bailey has been teaching high school English for 27 years and has taught at the community college level. Also, she has been a reader for the AP Language and Composition test. Currently, she teaches AP Language and Composition and remedial junior English.
Culturally Responsive Teaching Standards, Practices, and Resources for the HS English Classrooms
Beth Schurman, Olivet Nazarene UniversityStaley 142
In March of 2021, the Illinois State Board of Education adopted a set of Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards for the purpose of better preparing future teachers to create culturally rich spaces and curricula that are welcoming and supportive for all students. While the new standards are an important tool for teacher education programs, there does not seem to exist a similar set of standards for practicing teachers in Illinois. While research suggests that culturally responsive teaching is a practice of many high school English teachers regardless of a required set of standards, we wanted to determine the extent to which this is happening using the CRP standards as a lens for teachers to consider the ways in which they are already embracing culturally responsive practices.
Specifically, our session will first share the results from a survey and interview with several high school English teachers in Illinois about their perspectives on and teaching habits related to the CRP standards. Then, we will share a repertoire of resources that we have curated and created to support teachers in their continued implementation of the CRP standards and culturally responsive practices in general.
It Does Happen Here: The Literary and Cultural Roots of American Authoritarianism
Tim Libretti, Northeastern Illinois UniversityStaley 144
It hardly seems arguable that U.S. national politics have, for nearly a decade now, veered in a decidedly and intensified authoritarian direction. That nearly half the nation seems to crave autocratic rule and repression is not, in fact, a brand new development. Despite the fact that prominent trailblazers in American literary study such as F.O. Matthiessen defined American literature precisely by its strong democratic impulse and individualist spirit, one finds from even a cursory study of the U.S. literary tradition a powerful and canonical anti-democratic politics—relentlessly so. In the works of such writers including T.S. Eliot and William Faulkner, one finds unapologetic supremacist values. Even the romantic individualism of Emerson and Thoreau endorse autocratic behavior, eschewing the rule of law that is a key principle of democracy. This seminar invites us to scrutinize closely as teachers of literature what values we are transmitting to our students as we teach U.S. literature, reflecting on how the institution of literary study itself has participated in creating our current national condition.
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM Discussion Panel 1: Book Challenges
Moderated by Amy Magnafichi Strong
IATE Intellectual Freedom Committee Chair
Book Challenges
Amy Magnafichi Strong, Moderator, IATE Intellectual Freedom Committee ChairStaley 146
While Illinois schools and libraries enjoy broad protections against book bans, parents and community members bring challenges nevertheless. Panelists will discuss their experiences with book challenges. What books in the curriculum or library have been challenged? On what grounds? How have they addressed challenges to those books? What measure of success have they had in defending the challenge?
Panelists
- Gary Anderson, District 211 (Retired), Illinois State University, Harper College
- Bayyinah Bey, Chicago Public Schools
- Stacy Haynes-Moore, Coe College
- John Essington, Blackburn College
11:15 AM - 12:30 PM Workshop 1
Video Games as Literary Source Material for the Writing Classroom
James Drown and Mark Brand, University of Illinois at ChicagoScovill 212
Video-computer based games emerged as consumer products in the 1970s and now surpass movies, television, and music in terms of worldwide profits. Many of the original text-based games, such as Zork and Deadline had a genre based literary quality to them, and 50 years later we still see literary storytelling in this medium, with both major corporations and independent developers delivering significant texts using varying levels of technology and sophistication.
At the lower level of this, developers often produce low cost material that effectively deals with social and personal issues our students are interested in. Papers Please is a multi-platform game that examines issues around immigration and documentation. One Night, Hot Springs looks at the experience of being trans at a hot spring, while This War of Mine allow us to be a civilian in an urban combat zone (and is a text in Polish history classes). New and exciting games come out frequently, and this is a rich area for texts, which are sophisticated and meet students “where they live.”
We have successfully used video games in the writing classroom, and we are proposing a workshop that presents a number of short low-cost (or free) games to the audience, along with a variety of ways of using them in the classroom. As part of the experience, we would like to engage the participants in an actual lesson in relation to one of the games being presented.
11:30 AM - 12:20 PM Breakout Session B
The CEIT Paradigm for Non-fiction Writing
Kevin Aldrich, Routt Catholic High SchoolStaley 140
In non-fiction writing, there are only four basic “moves” a writer can make. An acronym to help student writers remember them is CEIT, for claim, explain, illustrate, and tie-back. First, you can make a claim. This claim may be called a thesis, a topic sentence, a theme, or a main idea. Second, you can explain that claim. Third, you can illustrate the claim. In literary criticism, this would be evidence from the story that supports your claim. Finally, you can tie the example back to the original claim. That is, you can briefly analyze how this example illustrates your theme. In addition to making these four basic moves, you can also signal them. "In other words," signals explanation. "For instance," signals an illustration. "This is an example of wisdom because" signals a tie back. When a thesis statement includes multiple parts, those parts can be made the core of subtopic sentences in a single-paragraph essay, or topic sentences in a multiple-paragraph essay. Each subtopic section can be explained, illustrated, and tied back to the subtopic sentence’s idea. In addition to the signals mentioned above, time or order signals can further clarify structure, such as first, second, finally, and so on. Once students become adept with the CEIT paradigm, they can choose which features to use and which to leave out. This presentation will thoroughly explain the CEIT paradigm and use student examples to show how it applies both simpler and more complex essays.
12:30 PM - 1:50 PM Plenary Session 2
Business Meeting Luncheon and Featured Speaker
Promises of Gold: Reflections on Writing, Reading, and the Classroom
Jose Olivarez, Featured SpeakerStaley Library, Ballroom (3rd Floor)
Jose Olivarez is the author of two collections of poems, including Promises of Gold and Citizen Illegal. He co-edited the poetry anthology The BreakBeat Poets, Volume 4: LatiNEXT, with Felicia Rose Chavez and Willie Perdomo.
Promises of Gold was long-listed for the 2023 National Book Award and Citizen Illegal was a finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award and winner of the 2018 Chicago Review of Books Poetry Prize.
In 2018, Jose Olivarez was awarded the first annual Author and Artist in Justice Award from the Phillips Brooks House Association and was named a Debut Poet of 2018 by Poets & Writers. In 2019, the Poetry Foundation awarded Olivarez a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship.
Olivarez's work has been featured in the New York Times, Paris Review, POETRY magazine, among others.
2:00 PM - 3:15 PM Workshop 2
2:30 PM - 3:20 PM Breakout Session C
"Picturing" Socially Just Research Writing
Remy Garard and Katie Bovenkerk, Normal West High SchoolStaley 140
As we are navigating “contentious times” in the ELA field, a high-interest and non-threatening approach to moving our students towards engaging in social justice issues is using diverse children’s picture books as a jumping-off point for students to choose topics for required research papers. We encourage teachers to use a mentor text to lead students through the process of engaging with diverse picture books for children, critically examining the texts that capture their attention, and then using a single text to lead their higher-level research and study of visual media. This approach is a highly motivating and non-threatening way to engage students in important discussions, concerns and eventual research about culturally diverse topics. Teachers will come away from this session understanding the research that supports a move towards this type of unit, as well as with practical tools and lists of texts to use immediately in their lessons.
2:30 PM - 3:20 PM Interview with Jose Olivarez
Interview with Jose Olivarez
Jose Olivarez Interviewed by Jen Vincent, Bannockburn School, Story ExploratoryStaley 144
Writers bear witness. Educator and writer Jen Vincent will talk with poet José Olivarez about how living the life of a writer means paying attention, collecting ideas, navigating the writing process, and ultimately, bearing witness to the human experience. In exploring writing through Olivarez’s eyes, educators will see ways to wield the power of poetry as invitations to read and write and celebrate our humanity.
3:30 PM - 4:20 PM Breakout Session D
The Perfect Match: Coupling Groundbreaking Texts with Revolutionary Pedagogy
Keisha Rembert, National Louis UniversityStaley 142
As ELA teachers, we know the power of a great book to captivate students' minds and hearts. By thoughtfully selecting and presenting texts that grapple with issues of race, identity and justice, we can ignite students' curiosity, empathy and critical consciousness. But we can't stop at just putting diverse books in students' hands - we must also equip ourselves with the pedagogical tools to guide them through meaningful engagement and reflection.
In "The Antiracist ELA Classroom," I laid out a vision and roadmap for transforming our English Language Arts classrooms into sites of antiracist education and empowerment. But how do we bridge the gap between theory and practice, between the pages of a professional book and the lived realities of our classrooms? In this session, I’ll book talk some great texts coupled with ready-to-implement anti-oppressive, antiracist instructional strategies.
3:30 PM - 4:20 PM Discussion Panel 2: Engagement and Curriculum
Student Engagement in Scripted Curriculums vs. Student Choice Contexts
Elizabeth Kahn, Moderator, Northern Illinois UniversityStaley 146
Some districts engage students with a severely limited classroom experience using scripted curriculums, while others engage students with curriculums that allow for broad student choice. Panelists will discuss their experience on this student engagement continuum. Where do their districts fall? What successes and challenges have they experienced? How have they worked around the challenges and capitalized on the successes?
Panelists
- John Barrett, Pleasant Plains Middle School
- John Hartzmark, MacArthur High School
- Cindi Koudelka, Fieldcrest Community School District, Aurora University
- Nicole Boudreau Smith, Adlai E. Stevenson High School
- Julie Hoffman, Springfield Public Schools & University of Illinois at Springfield
3:45 PM - 5:00 PM Workshop 3
4:30 PM - 5:20 PM Breakout Session E
Voices Silenced: Unpacking the Dilemma of Book Challenges in the Context of Culturally Responsive Pedagogies Through Content Analysis
Amy Magnafichi Strong, Illinois Association of Teachers of EnglishStaley 140
This session will discuss the findings of a three-year dissertation study about the reasons for and rhetoric surrounding book challenges and bans. The presentation will discuss how this rhetoric interrupts culturally responsive teaching practices and silences marginalized voices. This session will also present effective ways of discussing these challenges with stakeholders.
Cultivating the Next Generation of Teachers
John Barrett, Pleasant Plains Middle SchoolStaley 142
A session to empower and celebrate the vocation of professional educator. We will celebrate what we do, brainstorm ways to celebrate young teachers (in particular) and brainstorm ways to keep young teachers in the field of education.
Novel Selection in Secondary Settings: Curating Inclusive Texts
Kelly P. Vaughan, Lewis UniversityStaley 146
In the last four decades, literacy scholars and national educational organizations have emphasized the need to include more diverse and inclusive texts for our students. However, teachers have also experienced increased calls for censorship and book banning in the last decade. This presentation will address two questions: how do secondary English teachers currently select books for inclusion in their curriculum? How can teachers ensure access to diverse and inclusive texts?
The presenter will share the results of a pilot study about how teachers select novels in their classrooms and share multiple resources (evaluative checklists, book awards, and online resources) to help curate inclusive classroom libraries, comprised of texts featuring protagonists representing diverse racial, linguistic, gender, and disability communities. Participants will be asked to share their experiences with text selection, reflect upon the criteria they would like to use to determine which novels to teach, and evaluate their current novel choices.
Attendees are suggested to have access to Google slides.
5:30 PM - 6:30 PM Cocktails & Hors d’oeuvres
Staley Library, Ballroom Foyer (3rd Floor)
Enter the Basket Raffle to benefit the IATE Minority Scholarship
6:30 PM - 8:30 PM Plenary Session 3, Friday Dinner
Awards Dinner
Staley Library, Ballroom (3rd Floor)
6:30 pm, Plenary Session 3
Awards Dinner
- Drawing for Basket Raffle
- Minority Scholarship Recipients
- Student Literature & Art Contest Winners
- Lifetime Achievement Award
- Author of the Year
Joelle Charbonneau Interview
Joelle Charbonneau , Interviewed by Genevieve Sherman
Joelle Charbonneau is the author or the New York Times best-selling The Testing trilogy (comprised of The Testing, Independent Study, and Graduation Day), as well as two mystery series: The Rebecca Robbins mysteries (including Skating Around the Law and Skating over the Line) and the Glee Club mysteries (comprised of Murder for Choir, End Me a Tenor, and A Chorus Lineup). Her YA books have appeared on the Indie Next List, on the YALSA Top 10 books for 2014 as well as the YALSA Quick Picks for reluctant readers.
Joelle has performed in opera and musical theater productions across Chicagoland, and now teaches private voice lessons.
Book signing to follow
Saturday 26 Oct 2024
9:00 AM - 9:50 AM Breakout Session F
Demystifying Native Speakerism in English Teacher Education
Watsachol Narongsaksakul, Illinois State UniversityStaley 140
This presentation explores native speakerism —the problematic division between native English speakers teachers (NESTs) and non-native English speakers teachers (NNESTs)—resulting in the controversy surrounding desirable English language teaching professional identity. This critical issue informs ideological beliefs about the English language as a property. The most recent theoretical foundations address the privilege of NESTs that should be detached from a Western approach. Acknowledging power differentiation is another consideration that reinforces NNESTs' valuable cultural and linguistic backgrounds and imposes an unrealistic standard of language articulation and production.
Increase Student Engagement and Learning through Culturally Responsive Teaching & Leading Standards
Melissa Wheeler and Jaclyn Turner, Mattoon Community School DistrictStaley 138
Learn about ISBE-issued CRT leading standards through collaborative exercises. Create and share instructional practices and supplemented curriculum materials in a digital community. It is suggested to bring a device to access Google slides. Links and QR codes will be provided.
10:00 AM - 10:50 AM Breakout Session G
Getting Students INTO Analysis
John Hayward, Naperville Central High SchoolStaley 138
Teaching the previously-dreaded analysis skill becomes an anticipated opportunity for discovery and reasoned defense with a new approach. Get students into analytical reading and writing using a series of engaging warm-up activities that will spark interest, inspire investigation, and boost confidence. No more dry and boring book talks! Guide students through the fields of art and music first. Transition to crime scene analysis to make clue searching fun again. Involve AI if you dare. When students finally land in the world of text, they will know how to argue for their interpretation with conviction and solid evidence. Come learn new ways to approach analysis!
Themes Across Time and Place
Sheila Yarbrough, National Louis UniversityStaley 144
Can exploring themes found in traditional folklore, pop culture, comics, and classical literature help students understand the dreams, needs, and fears that connect humanity across time and place? “Themes Across Time and Place” provides opportunities for students to discover and to think critically about ideas that link us to the past and connect us wherever we find ourselves in the present. Workshop attendees will delve into themes and discuss how the activity might be used in their classrooms.
10:45 AM - 12:00 PM Workshop 4
Implementing Writing Across the Disciplines
Jennifer May, A-C Central Middle & High SchoolScovill 211
This workshop introduces instructional techniques and activities for implementing writing across the disciplines. It is appropriate for all grades K-12 and is based on The Writing Revolution, training educators to incorporate short and simple activities into pre-planned lessons for any content. The objective is to boost students’ writing abilities and knowledge of the similarities and differences of content writing. Think about a science report and an ELA literary essay—a hypothesis vs. thesis statement, results of an experiment vs. proving an argument, etc. Participants will leave with several content-specific activities and the know-how to incorporate them into the units they’re already teaching. Attendees are suggested to bring a lesson plan.
The Science of Reading for Adolescents: What to do when big kids can't decode
Jennifer French, ThinkCERCAScovill 212
This presentation was born out of the presenter’s experience with the reading achievement gap at the secondary level. When students don’t master the strands of Word Recognition Skills in Scarborough’s Reading Rope by third grade, they typically end up being middle school or high school students who still can’t decode. Secondary teachers know how to support reading comprehension, but they are not trained to teach decoding or fluency. Furthermore, there are limited resources for secondary students who need decoding and fluency work. In this presentation, attendees will discover how to engage adolescent readers using age-appropriate strategies grounded in the science of reading. Participants will explore the science of reading and its application to older students, delving into evidence-based practices that promote literacy development. Whether you're a classroom teacher, reading specialist, or literacy coach, this workshop offers valuable insights and tools to enhance your teaching practice and empower your middle and high school students to become proficient readers. Attendees are suggested to bring a phone or laptop to access QR codes for resources referenced in the presentation.
11:00 AM - 11:50 AM Breakout Session H
Interactive Lectures and You
Kathryn Creasy, Limestone Community High School Illinois Central CollegeStaley 140
In this session, the presenter will demonstrate how interactive lectures (Nearpod, Peardeck, etc.) can introduce literature and literary elements, help students to analyze literature, make note-taking engaging, guide them through self-assessments of their writing, and more. Teachers are always looking to increase student engagement, deepen student reflection, and teach more effectively, and interactive lecture sites can help teachers to reach those goals. Teachers are invited to learn how they can incorporate this option into their current repertoire. Attendees are suggested to bring a laptop or tablet (a phone will work, too) to access the sites featured in the presentation.
Interview with Abdi Nazemian
Abdi Nazemian, Interviewed by Andrew J. Rodbro, Warren Township High SchoolStaley 144
Abdi Nazemian, Interviewed by Andrew J. Rodbro, Warren Township High School
Join IATE’s second vice president, Andrew Rodbro, for an intimate conversation with Abdi
Nazemian. They’ll talk about Abdi’s writing process, his experience in the motion picture industry, the differences in the creative process between novel writing and script writing, his novels, and, of course, his love for Madonna.
12:00 PM - 1:20 PM Plenary Session 4, Past Presidents' Luncheon
Building Bridges Through and With Creativity
Abdi Nazemian, Featured SpeakerStaley Library, Ballroom (3rd Floor)
Randy Rambo Classroom Library Grant Luncheon Featured Speaker
Abdi Nazemian is the author of Like a Love Story—a Stonewall Honor Book, Only This Beautiful Moment, The Chandler Legacies, and The Authentics. His novel The Walk-In Closet won the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Debut Fiction. His newest novel, released in September 2024, is Desert Echoes, and is available for purchase in the exhibition hall.
Abdi Nazemian’s screenwriting credits include the films The Artist's Wife, The Quiet, and Menendez: Blood Brothers and the television series Ordinary Joe and The Village. He has been an executive producer and associate producer on numerous films, including Call Me By Your Name, Little Woods, and The House of Tomorrow.
He lives in Los Angeles with his husband, their two children, and their dog, Disco.
In this discussion, Abdi Nazemian will share his journey coming of age as a queer Iranian-American who found refuge in stories and also felt invisible in those same stories. In tracing his life experiences, Nazemian will discuss the challenges he’s faced and lessons he’s learned through his writing career in film and television, and as an author of young adult books that tell all the stories he wishes he had in his own young adult years.
1:30 PM - 2:20 PM Breakout Session I
Fostering Student Choice in the AP Classroom
Courtney Beresheim, Proviso Math & Science AcademyStaley 138
Students perform better when they care about the material they are studying—but teachers can't always guarantee every student responds the same to a high-interest text. In both AP Literature and AP Language, there are ways to allow for student choice in text selection that allow for both windows and mirrors. In this session, teachers will receive (and hopefully share!) text selections for both courses, as well as specific lesson templates and activities to allow for student choice as they work towards skill mastery. Non-AP teachers welcome!
The Nostalgia Project: Discovering Community Through Poetry, History, and Human Impact
Laura Krueger, Cynthia Martinez, and Bethany Morton, Fred Rodgers Magnet Academy, East Aurora School DistrictStaley 140
In preparation for a return to school following the pandemic in 2021, East Aurora School District partnered with Dr. Badia Ahad, Loyola University Provost, to train staff district-wide on the concept of Nostalgia, Reclamation, Regeneration, and Retribution. Following the training, The Nostalgia Project was born. As an element of a four-part interdisciplinary unit ending with a four- part podcast, students shared their oral and written histories in the format of narrative poetry inspired by George Ella Lyon’s poem "Where I’m From" while considering their childhood homes, families, and community. Transitioning to social studies, math, and science, students learned about the history of their city and the diverse immigrant groups that worked to contribute to the identity and uniqueness of where they are from; compiled information about demographics of the area they chose to investigate and created their own data representation with projections; and proposed a way to resolve a social, environmental, or political issue in their city in a way that would benefit the community as a whole. In this session, educators will gain specific knowledge of the project in order to collaborate with their colleagues to provide a rich interdisciplinary experience for students to become experts in their community and to “forge a better future.” Attendees are suggested to bring a device to access links to resources presented during this session.
Pushing Back with Love and Joy: Why Queer Representation Matters
Cindi Koudelka, Fieldcrest Community School District; Julie Hoffman, Aurora University Springfield School District; Melissa Wheeler, The Readologist Mattoon School DistrictStaley 142
Join the presenters as they share their favorite books that center and celebrate Queer Joy in Literature. Despite living in a state that prohibits book banning and mandates instruction honoring the contributions of LGBTQ+ people, our students still have limited access to literature in which Queer joy is represented. This session will highlight joyful, identity-affirming literature that spans all ages in a fast-paced jubilee and discuss how the books can add to cultivating an inclusive classroom experience. A robust list of books with links to purchase from independent bookstores will be provided. Door prizes will be given! Come and make a new TBR list for your classroom.
Grammar for All by Focusing on Patterns
Judi Van Erden, Westmont High SchoolStaley 144
By focusing on parts of speech and sentence patterns, teachers empower students to improve their use of punctuation, sentence complexity, and overall writing. Bonus: they also teach reading strategies that assist with tackling difficult texts and create opportunities for English emergent students to succeed. Join this session to discuss this useful and non-threatening approach to grammar and review visuals and lessons that the presenter uses in College Readiness and English classes.
1:30 PM - 2:20 PM Discussion Panel 3
Discussion Panel on Co-Teaching, Moderated by John Hayward, Naperville Central High School
John Hayward, Naperville Central High SchoolStaley 146
Co-teaching is becoming a widespread practice to improve student performance. While collaboration is universally considered virtuous, teachers can be territorial in their lessons, with their students, and in their pedagogical judgments. Participants will be asked about their experiences co-teaching. How do co-teachers manage the division of teaching duties? What challenges have teachers experienced and how did they overcome them? What aims has co-teaching accomplished; which aims has co-teaching fallen short in achieving?
Panelists: Brittany Neil, Round Lake Senior High; Katherine Cole, Round Lake Senior High School; Alyssa Staley, Carbondale Middle School; Genevieve Sherman, Zion-Benton Township High School; Kathryn Hoving, Hampshire High School; Kimberly Millard, Hampshire High School
2:30 PM - 3:20 PM Breakout Session J
Teaching Texts with Multiple Perspectives: Analyze "Perspective," Cultivate Humanity
Angie HeiserStaley 138
Cultivate humanity by preparing your high school students to see the world and all it encompasses (past, present, future) by reading texts that encourage analyzing multiple perspectives so they, as the next generation of readers, thinkers and leaders, can be more tolerant and accepting of others around them. Three specific novels are intertwined in this presentation: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
The Rhetoric of Rap: Harnessing the Power of Hip-Hop When Teaching Rhetorical Moves
Jennifer Connolly, Granite City High SchoolStaley 146
Rather in-the-face of literary tradition, participants will explore how hip-hop/rap lyrics can be used to teach rhetorical moves and examine expert use of language in many situations. The session presenter will highlight a unit she’s taught in high school classrooms for almost 10 years, sharing ways to harness student engagement through the use of rap lyrics, examining context, appeals, reading like a writer, and a little literary analysis. Turn the love of a fascinating musical genre into a real-world way to teach rhetorical concepts.