Literature SIG Panel presentation at AERA 2014, Philadelphia, PA, April 4, 2014.

2. What‟s going on with the
Common Core?
 Two major divisions for standardization of
learning
 English Language Arts / Literacy in History/Social
Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects
 Mathematics
 Implementation of “The 4 C‟s”
 Creativity
 Collaboration
 Communication
 Critical thinking

3. English Language Arts /
Literacy Common Core‟s foci
 Reading
 Text complexity
 Comprehension
 Writing
 Responding to reading
 Research
 Inquiry
 Speaking and Listening
 Public speaking
 Collaboration
 Language
 Conventional use
 Vocabulary

4. Common Core‟s literary
modus operandi
 “The Common Core asks students to read
stories and literature, as well as more complex
texts that provide facts and background
knowledge in areas such as science and
social studies. Students will be challenged
and asked questions that push them to refer
back to what they‟ve read. This stresses
critical-thinking, problem-solving, and
analytical skills that are required for success in
college, career, and life.”
-- “ELA/Literacy standards”, corestandards.org

5. Common Core and the Library
 A focus on English Language Arts & Literacy standard
 close and deep reading
 text complexity
 literary texts with strong characters and themes
 hybrid texts --- such as graphic novels, inter-textual novels
 compare/contrast canonical texts with contemporary texts
 Librarians align with the Common Core by recommending
varied book formats that cater to different ways of reading,
writing, speaking, listening, and language.
 close and deep reading for comprehension
 listening as the gateway to learning
 Librarians support reading requirements in classes with
substantiated reading recommendations.
 Librarians have been doing this for decades in the form of
Information literacy.

6. Common Core and the Library
 Accept that information literacy is an established approach to learning
that incorporates all that the Common Core is seeking to “re-do”.
 Information Literacy is:
“the set of skills needed to find, retrieve, analyze, and use
information. …
The beginning of the 21st century has been called the Information
Age because of the explosion of information output and information
sources. It has become increasingly clear that students cannot learn
everything they need to know in their field of study in a few years of
college. Information literacy equips them with the critical skills
necessary to become independent lifelong learners.”
– American Library Association website, 2014.
 Accepting that the “common core” is an approach to information
literacy that librarians have been doing for decades.

7. Controversial texts
 Informational texts: textbooks, owners‟ manuals, government documents.
 Literary texts: novels, plays, poetry, epistolaries, scripts, journals, serials.
 CCSS pushes for a focus on informational texts. However, Evers (2014), states:
“reading literature enhances our moral imagination … it allows use to see how
some complicated life situation, how different kinds of people respond to situations
in various ways and how people solve their problems … and reading literature
provides cultural enjoyment. With a focus on informational texts, this is going to be
lost in the reading practices of our students.”
 What is considered “controversial” in the era of the Common Core?
 Literature? Is canonical literature now “controversial”? Is leisurely, reflective,
“reading for the enjoyment of it” type reading now deemed – controversial? If
not, where and how does personal reading fit into the English classroom?
 Is young adult literature considered controversial? Themes about sex, violence,
realism, science fiction, fantasy, urban experiences, rural experiences?
 Is multicultural literature considered controversial? Where is there discussion
about engaging in global literature present in academic standards for the
American classroom?
 Are formats controversial? Graphic novels, audiobooks, ebooks?

8. Literary imaginations
 According to Dr. Sandra Strotsky, the Common Core
prescribes about a 50/50 focus on literary and
informational texts, K-12 (Jorrey, 2013).
 This prescription „boxes in‟ what is determined/defined as
“literature / literary” AND “complex”.
 If high schoolers can‟t read beyond the 12th grade level,
how does this prepare them for college level reading?
 This prescription holds the potential to marginalize student
choice and access to various literary genres.
 How does a students‟ leisure reading tastes, habits, and
choices find space in the Common Core classroom?
 Texts that students read independently need to be included in
the reading practices of the classroom.

9. Subjugated ways of knowing
 Because everyone is unique and different,
“consistency” is never guaranteed.
 “Faction” and “relevant truth” (Korrey, 2013) –
However, facts need to be taught, including
basic writing mechanics, so that students‟
narratives can find appropriate relational
spaces in academic and research discourse.
 Rigor
 Inquiry
 Critical thinking

10. Reading to transgress
 Accepting that students‟ independent reading choices is
also an independent learning choice, and we have no
control over this aspect of their personal literacy practices.
 Accepting that youth are human beings that know what
they like to read, write, and think about, and need
constructive, non-prescriptive spaces where they can talk
about what they read, write, and think about.
 Accepting that not everyone learns the same things in the
same way at the same pace in the same contexts, thus
“global” and “universal” is rarely, if ever, appropriate when
engaging in the learning process.
 Accepting that no matter what “new system” or “new
technologies” come into society, the 4 C‟s are always in
play as human-to-human interaction; and they are always
“fuzzy” and nuanced, and organic. We have to accept the
messiness of our humanness in learning contexts.

11. My Common Core ???s
 What does “consistency” mean when CC is applied beyond the public school system?
 How is “literacy” being defined?
 What‟s a “complex text”? And who gets to define that?
 Haven‟t teachers always incorporated the 4 C‟s?
 In what ways are the 4 C‟s enacted to engage “21st century skills”?
 Oh yeah, what are “21st century skills”, exactly? Are we technology here? If so,
haven‟t we always dealt with “new technologies”? How is technology “new” in
education?
 What‟s “process”?
 Does Common Core accommodate large class sizes (or has “process” come at the
expense of individualized teaching and learning)?
 When do students get a say on what and how they want to learn?
 In other words, do students get to say, “I liked this book” or “I hated this book” and
talk about that?
 How does “my life” become a reflective learning resource? How does “my life”
count as a literary/literacy experience in the Common Core classroom?
 What happened to No Child Left Behind?
 NCLB‟s goal was “universal proficiency by 2014” (Stoules via Jorrey, 2013).
 2009, National Governor‟s Association created the CCSS.
 Planning and implementation did not include higher ed faculty.
 2010, CCSS adopted.
 2013, CCSS starting to be implemented across the nation (so far, 44 states).

12. References
 American Library Association. Introduction to Information
Literacy. Chicago: ALA. Available:
http://www.ala.org/acrl/issues/infolit/overview/intro
 Anzur, T. & Evers, W. (2014, March 2). Sunday Morning News,
KFI-AM 640, Los Angeles. Available:
https://soundcloud.com/#terry-anzur/commoncore030214
 Jorrey, K. (ed.). (2013). Concerned Parents Common Core
Forum. Thousand Oaks, CA: Concerned Parents Conejo
Valley. Available:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srYHUdSpuR0
 National Governors Association Center for Best Practices,
Council of Chief State School Officers. Common Core State
Standards: English Language Arts. Washington, DC:
National Governors Association Center for Best Practices,
Council of Chief State School Officers.