Day 12 - Rachel

What books have you read and what books are you planning to read?

Well, aside from a ton of non-education-related books (yay summer!)....
I am currently reading

• Words and Actions. This book is produced by ACTFL but it is currently available for free in its electronic form for members! If you know ACTFL's normal pricing range, this is huge, and you should jump on that. It's really kind of a textbook that is probably intended for language methodology courses, but it is useful to read for clarification of what Social Justice in language education is and can mean. This was not only recommended at the webinar put on by ACTFL's Critical and Social Justice SIG, but also in Bob Patrick and Jennifer Jarnagin's pre-institute workshop "Latin When Everyone Can Do It."

I am planning to read

• For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood....And the Rest of Y'all Too. I'll admit that I find the title of this one kind of, as my son phrased it, "cringy." But I also trust Bob Patrick and he highly recommends this book, both during his workshop, referenced above, and in person. So I bought it and it's literally on its way as I type this. Hopefully it'll arrive tomorrow! It is about teaching students from multiple backgrounds and how to meet them where they are..I think. I'll know more once I read it. And it's less than $11 on amazon.
• Courageous Conversations About Race. This comes highly recommended by another of my friends, K.C. Kless, who has his own blog. He's a fantastic CI teacher and cares deeply about reaching every student. K.C. read the book as part of a larger professional development, Beyond Diversity Training, but he says if you cannot afford that training (and it is not inexpensive), at least read this book. However, as the book is also not inexpensive, (i.e. cheaper than $30) I think we will be buying a department copy and passing it around.

All of this is to add to my work to bring social justice discussions and more representations into my classes this year!

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