Three young men, Afghan refugees in Iran. By EU/ECHO Pierre Prakash, 2013, via Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
“A part of every society is invisible, human beings of flesh and blood who live before our eyes and yet . . . we refuse to see them.”
—Amir Ahmadi Arian, “A Year Among the Boat People, My People”
With all the content to cover in a typical social studies class, why might we also look at adding literature to the reading list?
Open palm with a wooden image of an eye and the word "Yes." Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash.
With International Translation Day coming up on September 30th, we're revisiting this roundup of resources on teaching translated literature. Read on for a list of articles, interviews, and activities to get your students thinking about translation! —Eds.
You won’t find the Korean story “Ascending Scales” on any lists of “high interest/low reading level” suggestions for high school English Language Learners. This work of contemporary Korean fiction was written for adult general readers, without any efforts to simplify vocabulary in the original or English translation. More than that, the story’s plot is sharply different from the narratives that students usually encounter in assigned school reading, making it perhaps the opposite of a “predictable text.”
The National Education Association, an educator-funded organization that promotes “the absolute best in public education,” is awarding member educators grants of $1,500-$5,000 for professional development, which could include travel abroad, summer institutes, study groups, and more. Apply by September 15.