The main arguments presented in all of these sources is the impact comics have on students and how they can be a positive addition to classrooms. In The Secret Coders by Yang, I was surprisingly blown away. I have mentioned in my previous blog post that comics are not something I am familiar with, nor are they something I thought I would enjoy. I found myself eager to flip to the next page because the story and graphics were just that good. After reading Tapping into Parallel Universes – Using Superhero Comic Books in Sociology courses, I started to think back and notice specifics in The Secret Coders that I did not necessarily notice while reading. For example, – there is only one African American presented in the whole comic book named Eni. Yes, he is a main character but is the only person of color. The book starts out with Hopper, the main character, getting bullied by a bunch of boys. The way the boys treated her and talked to her was disturbing. Makes me think, “why are men allowed this stereotype when it comes to women?” I did not realize how technical and truly time consuming creating a comic is. In the TED Talk by McCloud, he explains the dynamics and science behind creating a great digital comic. He was scared that the fast growth of digital media would destroy the intricacies of comics and how they are to be read and seen. He presents how comics have extreme meaning behind them and should be used in the classroom. Furthermore, in Yang’s TED Talk, he really goes in depth on why he thinks comics are great for the classroom. He explained something I did not know, which is that comics actually were ONCE used in the classroom around the 1940’s (when they were first created). They were then deemed as bad for children and were taken away from classrooms for a long time. They are finally making their way back in and Yang could not be happier. His contributions in creating comics for his classroom and showing the positives that comics bring to learners is brilliant.
In reading these, it is hard to for me to relate because comics were never apart of my educational experiences. I wish more of my teachers in K-12 would have brought comics into the classroom because I can now see how much I would have benefited from them. It does make me take comics in the classroom into consideration because I am going to school to become a K-5 teacher. I feel that it would be a great option for many reasons.
How can we convince “old school” school districts to allow teachers to add comic books to the curriculum?
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