REEXAMINING LITERATURE STUDY IN THE MIDDLE GRADES: A CRITICAL RESPONSE FRAMEWORK.

LITERACY; ADOLESCENCE; PSYCHOLOGY; MIDDLE schools; MIDDLE school education; MIDDLE school teachers; MIDDLE school students; SOCIAL conditions of students

Recent reexaminations of adolescent literacy have expanded previous cognitive psychological models of reading to include views of the social and cultural aspects of literacy. The term critical literacy refers to approaches that focus on the social forces that influence the creation and interpretation of texts. When applied to the study of literary texts such as young adult novels, a critical literacy approach can help young adolescents to examine their own values and their role in society. This article provides a brief overview of critical literacy and then presents a framework that allows middle level teachers to incorporate elements of critical literacy into reader response activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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