Out with the old and in with the new — that could be the case for La Cañada Unified's core literature list, if a request to replace the classic "The Miracle Worker" with a graphic novel about growing up Asian American is granted.
Seventh-grade English teacher Daisy Kim presented the item for consideration Tuesday at the regular meeting of the La Cañada Unified School District Governing Board, after she and fellow English teacher Paige Salardino had consulted Anais Wenn, the district's assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction.
Kim explained the rationale for their wanting to remove the 1957 William Gibson play "The Miracle Worker," about the early years of Helen Keller living under the tutelage of Annie Sullivan, from the seventh-grade reading list and replace it with "American Born Chinese," a 2006 graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang.
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Sara Cardine Signature
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The 240-page book blends images and text to intertwine the stories of Jin Wang, who finds himself the only Chinese-American student at his new school, all-American boy Danny perturbed by the arrival of his Chinese cousin and the Monkey King, who has mastered the art of kung fu and has ambitions to enter heaven.
"Our intentions are not to do away with classic literature in seventh grade," Kim said of "The Miracle Worker," explaining that students already learn lessons adapted from "The Diary of Anne Frank," another 20th-century story of a girl's struggle with self-identity in the face of overwhelming challenges.
"We would… like to explore some more current titles to use with our students, mainly because we want to raise student motivation and engagement with literature in the classroom," she added.
If accepted by the board, "American Born Chinese" would be the first graphic novel to break into the district's core reading list. But aside from its format, Kim also praised the book for its relevant content matter.
"It is a multicultural text and the protagonist is a Chinese American," she said. "Both Mrs. Salardino and I thought this would be perfect for our community of La Cañada because it would appeal to that population that already exists."
Board members shared their own impressions and experiences with graphic novels, remarking on how students now armed with mobile devices would be better able to interact with the text through readings and multimedia assignments.
Board Vice President Ellen Multari said when her 16-year-old son asked for a graphic novel she was leery, until she saw how engrossed he became with the text.
"It was very engaging and provided all the same kinds of opportunities as reading a traditional text, but was much more compelling for him personally," Multari said.
Board member Dan Jeffries said he'd like to find out whether next year's seventh-graders, who will be using their own Chromebook computers as part of a new district pilot program, would be able to access online versions of "American Born Chinese."
Fellow Board member Kaitzer Puglia attested to the appeal graphic novels have with younger generations, thanking Kim for broaching the subject in relation to the district's core literature list.
"I appreciate the cutting-edge component here, and being able to introduce this to our students," she said.
The board will vote on whether to approve the list changes when the item returns for a second reading at a future board meeting.
