Just in time for the annual conference this week of the National Council of Teachers of English in Boston, Penguin Random House Education has issued a new Teacher’s Guide to accompany our new Penguin Classics anthology of The Literature of Japanese American Incarceration. You can download it for free as a ten-page PDF.

The guide is written by  Laura Reis Mayer, a professional learning consultant from Asheville, NC, and she pulls no punches in asserting that the teaching of this material is more timely than ever:

“In today’s highly charged political landscape, where racial bias and cultural scapegoating remain powerful weapons of propaganda and politics, The Literature of Japanese American Incarceration is not just relevant, but requisite for student readers.

“In letters, essays, poetry, and primary documents, the text addresses multiple contents and curriculums. Students can read the text in its entirety, or they might read selections that align with course goals. Educators can assign any combination of this guide’s classroom activities, which ask students to read critically, write argumentatively, and speak persuasively.

“Whether teachers use the book to explore history and the U.S. Constitution, or to analyze literature and the development of writer’s voice, The Literature of Japanese American Incarceration addresses important realities and essential truths while inspiring students to advocate for equity and to learn from our nation’s past and present.” 

Copies of the guide will be distributed at two separate panels at the NCTE conference in the Boston Convention Center.

Co-editor Floyd Cheung is a featured speaker on the panel, “Finding Hope and Humanity in Intergenerational Resistance,” on Friday, November 22 at 11:00 am in Room 156A. He’ll be joined by a distinguished panel that includes author and activist Maggie Tokuda-Hall, a leader of Authors Against Book Bans.

Moderator: Tricia Ebarvia, Greene Street Friends School

Speakers:
Jessyca Mathews, Michigan Council of Teachers of English
Tiana Silvas-Brunetti, East Side Community High School
Leah Werther, Guilderland Central School District
Autumn Allen, Penguin Young Readers
Floyd Cheung, Smith College
Alyssa Reynoso-Morris
Randy Ribay, Penguin Young Readers
Shifa Saltagi Safadi, Penguin Random House
Maggie Tokuda-Hall, Candlewick Publishing

Floyd will also sign copies of our book at the Penguin Random House booth in the Exhibit Hall, Booth 1000, on that Friday from 5:00-5:45 pm.

Our good friend Cathlin Goulding of the YURI Education Project will be distributing copies of the book and Teacher Guide on Sunday, November 24 at 10:30 am in Room 207, at the panel on “Preserving Dignity through Memory and Critical Literacy with Honor to the Japanese American Experience during WWII-Era Incarceration.”