Graphic Novels in a History Classroom

Read the following articles regarding the use of Graphic Novels in the History Classroom

Clark, J. Spencer. “Encounters with Historical Agency: The Value of Nonfiction Graphic Novels in the Classroom.” The History Teacher, vol. 46, no. 4, Society for History Education, 2013, pp. 489–508, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43264152.

Holey, Nina K. “Imagination and Interpretation: An Empirical Study of …” Scholarly Undergraduate Research at Clark University, Oct. 2015, https://commons.clarku.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1033&context=surj.

In the class blog record your thoughts and the main impressions that each article left upon you.

Teaching History with Graphic Novels

Graphic novels offer an opportunity for students to view and experience historical events and perspectives from a more diverse population and multiple perspectives. John Lewis’ graphic novel memoir series, March is one such graphic novel. John Lewis chose to share his memoir in graphic novel form because it was a comic that he was given when he was a young teen that introduced him to peaceful protest techniques, how others were protesting the injustices that existed, and how others were working together to battle those injustices at the beginning of the Civil Rights Movement.

Please watch the attached interview with John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell speaking about their motivation and purpose. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri1zSBZdftE&t=1970s

There have been many institutions and individuals who have created unit plans connecting March to the Civil Rights Movement, as well as the educational standards relating to history and English study. One of the best that I have found is the following by Meryl Jaffe for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.

Jaffe, Meryl. “Using Graphic Novels in Education: March: Book One.” Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, 7 Feb. 2014, http://cbldf.org/2014/02/using-graphic-novels-in-education-march-book-one/.

Other unit resources for March:

https://classroom.popcultureclassroom.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/MARCH_GUIDE.pdf

https://readingwithrelevance.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/The-March-Trilogy-Sample-Lesson.pdf

https://www.teachingbooks.net/tb.cgi?tid=35317

http://cdn.topshelfcomix.com/guides/march-book-one-teachers-guide.pdf

https://www.rif.org/literacy-central/book/march-book-one

https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/marchingforward/wp-content/uploads/sites/500/2017/06/MARCH_ReadingGuide.pdf

Lewis, John. “Congressman John Lewis ‘March: Book One’ – YouTube.” YouTube.com, Politics and Prose, 9 Sept. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQU8rMufqLQ.

Lewis, John. “March Recording Book 1 Part 1 HD.” YouTube, YouTube, 2 Nov. 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Liggd_cRgCU.

“John Lewis on His Graphic Novel Memoir .” YouTube.com, Learning for Justice, 15 Jan. 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKYKyMQVRcY.

Additional Resources for Teaching History with Graphic Novels

Sibaja, Rwany. “Comic Books in the History Classroom.” Teachinghistory.org, 2011, https://teachinghistory.org/nhec-blog/24707.

“Best Graphic Novels to Teach History.” Pop Culture Classroom, 2021, https://classroom.popcultureclassroom.org/resources/pcc-recommends/comics-101/best-graphic-novels-teach-history/.

“Graphic Novels That Teach History.” Common Sense Media: Ratings, Reviews, and Advice, 1 Jan. 1970, https://www.commonsensemedia.org/lists/graphic-novels-that-teach-history.

“Fresh Perspectives with Historical Graphic Novels.” Too Cool for Middle School, 31 May 2019, https://toocoolformiddleschool.com/2019/05/31/fresh-perspectives-with-historical-graphic-novels/.

Clark, J. Spencer. “Encounters with Historical Agency: The Value of Nonfiction Graphic Novels in the Classroom.” The History Teacher, vol. 46, no. 4, Society for History Education, 2013, pp. 489–508, http://www.jstor.org/stable/43264152.

Cromer, Michael, and Penney Clark. “Getting Graphic with the Past: Graphic Novels and the Teaching of History.” Theory & Research in Social Education, vol. 35, no. 4, 2007, pp. 574–591., https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2007.10473351.

Alkana, Linda Kelly. “Teaching World History with Graphic Novels.” World History Bulletin, vol. 23, no. 2, 22 Sept. 2007, p. 28.

Decker, Castro, Mauricio C., and Mauricio Castro. “Teaching History with Comic Books: A Case Study of Violence, War, and the Graphic Novel.” History Teacher, vol. 45, no. 2, Feb. 2012, pp. 169–188.

Boerman-Cornell, William. “Learning to See History: A Content Analysis of the Affordances of Graphic Novels for High School Teaching.” ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2012.

Getz, Trevor R. “Disciplining Comics: Teaching in the Humanities with Graphic HistoriesGetz, Trevor R.” YouTube, NHC Education Programs, 27 Jan. 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9AakBikkCg.

“Telling History through Comics and Graphic Novels.” Digital History Lab, 9 Apr. 2020, https://digitalhistorylab.com/?p=371.

Cotton, Amy. “History Told through Graphic Novels.” Cotton Education Services, Cotton Education Services, 26 July 2020, http://www.amycotton.net/teaching-resources/2020/7/26/history-told-through-graphic-novels.

The goal of teaching students literature is to grow a literate populace. Graphic novels are an inventive method which promotes a lifetime reading habit. The promotion of literacy with graphic novels through

Graphic novels offer an opportunity for readers to experience text and art fused together. The appeal of graphic novels to young people offers educators an opportunity to introduce students to diverse literary voices, to teach literary terminology and techniques, such as dialogue to build a bridge to other classics and as a basis for writing literary based arguments, and to offer alternatives to traditional texts and mass media.

Reading comprehension, as well as the comprehension and interpretation of themes, literary devices, and social issues is improved through the study of graphic novels. Graphic novels may be used in an educational setting as component of an interdisciplinary thematic unit, to introduce a specific content area component, or on their own as a stand alone piece of literature for study. Reluctant readers and visual learners are less resistant to graphic novels. Visual learners through analysis of the illustrations gain an understanding of the cognitive and literary concepts in a graphic novel which results in stronger comprehension of the material. “In any subject area, studying a graphic novel can bring media literacy into the curriculum as students examine the medium itself. Students can explore such questions as how color affects emotions, how pictures can stereotype people, how angles of viewing affect perception, and how realism or lack of it plays into the message of a work” (Schwartz). Students are offered the opportunity to analyze the works’ through the lens of art analysis relating to the colors, textures, words, textboxes, frames, camera angles, and to make connections between all of those element and evaluate their effectiveness.

Graphic novels may also improve a students’ social skills by introducing students to diverse people and cultures they may not encounter otherwise. Educators may use graphic novel to give new voices to minorities and people with diverse viewpoints.

Differentiation of instruction opportunities are afforded as well. An instructor may offer students the opportunity to read a graphic novel as a part of a unit. An example being a unit on the Holocaust. If students are offered the opportunity to read a text at the appropriate reading level from them as an individual rather than having to read the same text as a whole class, but instead focus on the themes of the unit as it portrayed through multiple perspectives. Examples of texts that may be read in such a unit could be Maus, The Diary of Anne Frank, Number the Stars, Hidden, The Book Thief, Night, and The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.

Benefits of Reading Graphic Novels for All Students

There are many benefits to reading graphic novels. One as mentioned is comprehension, but another, a key to encouraging reading and learning, is motivation. Motivated readers are defined as “engaged, curious, and anxious to talk about what they are reading. They are able to read from several texts at the same time, look forward to new challenges and value text choice and time to engage with print” (Marinak et al., 2010, p. 503).

Kyle Redford’s (n.d.), article from Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity stated,

Additionally, in class discussions, the graphic novel’s easy-to-read accessible format allows struggling readers into the world of classic literary references that would otherwise be accessible only to stronger readers. Graphic novels are a wonderful way to help dyslexic readers strengthen their vocabulary, build their reading confidence, and foster a love of story. (para. 4)

He also stated in the same article,

The brilliant thing about the graphic novel is the way they offer dyslexic readers several different cues to the story. If a reader gets snagged on the vocabulary or storyline of a graphic novel, illustrated pages offer contextual cues to help decipher meaning. But don’t be fooled; strong readers love the graphic novel as well. The attraction can be likely be explained by the enjoyable format. (para. 3)

Graphic novels not only help struggling readers, but good readers enjoy the illustrations and cues that help to understand the storyline.

Another benefit to having students read graphic novels is that it helps the students gain a broader vocabulary, to appreciate and enjoy reading. CeCe Bell (n.d.), the author of the graphic novel, El Deafo, stated in an article on struggling and reluctant reader in Reading Rockets, a national public initiative used by educators,

But there was like this sense of satisfaction for readers who maybe have a little bit of difficulty reading. Here are these pictures that help propel me through. It doesn’t take very long to get through a page. Suddenly you read a 220-page book, and you’ve never read a 220-page book in your life. It’s like this gateway to reading maybe things that are more difficult down the road… Graphic novels can introduce struggling readers to the world of classic literature. Classical Comics and Graphic Classics, for example, publish graphic novel versions of Dickens, Shakespeare, Twain, Alcott, and other great writers. (para. 5-7)

Bell is a deaf person, and she chose to write her semi-autobiography as a graphic novel, telling her story through a rabbit that shares how she balanced her life experiences.

Graphic novels benefit all students. According to Fisher & Frey (2013), graphic novels help students gain valuable literacy skills, such as previewing content, summarizing information, visualizing, reviewing, and analyzing texts. As McTaggert indicated, “[Graphic novels] enable the struggling reader, motivate the reluctant one, and challenge the high-level learner” (as cited in Fisher & Frey, p. 32).

Wellen, Lauren, and Edgar Ramos. “Comic Books to Graphic Novels: Lutheran Education Journal.” Lutheran Education Journal | Published by Concordia University Chicago and the Lutheran Education Association., 5 Nov. 2019, https://lej.cuchicago.edu/columns/from-comic-books-to-graphic-novels-ways-to-help-students-learn-to-read/.

Graphic Novels

Graphic novels are one of the most popular and fastest growing types of literature on the market today. Graphic novel is a format that a story is presented, not a genre. Francisca Goldsmith in The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Graphic Novels defines them as being “book-length format containing sequential art narrative.” Eddie Campbell, author of the graphic novel Alec and the illustrator of the graphic novel From Hell believes that “graphic novel signifies a movement rather than a form…to take the form of a comic book, which has become an embarrassment, and to raise it to a more ambitious and meaningful level…forging a whole new art which will not be a slave to the arbitrary rules of an old one” (Gravett 9).

Graphic novels differ from comic strips which present a single idea, and that idea is often a joke or a gag, that is told through typically three to five panels. Comic strips present a single idea which is usually a joke or a gag that is revealed through several panels, usually between three to five panels. Comic books contain multipage and are typically multi-issue stories that are published as serials. Comic books are also different from graphic novels, as comic books are published as serials and are the work of multiple artists and writers who are employed by a studio, such as Marvel or DC Comics, as multipage and multi-issue stories. Graphic novels are a bounded narrative with a complete story arc (beginning, middle, and end) that encompass multiple genres and are designed for a wide range of readers at a wide range of ages. Graphic novels may be fiction or non-fiction, personal narratives, historical memoir, fantasy, horror, political satire, biographical accounts, adventure, science fiction, etc.

In the 1970s, the field of comic studies first appeared as an academic discipline. The following is a description of comic studies from the University of North Texas.

“Comics studies is a field of academic research focused on comics and sequential art, including comic books, comic strips, cartoons, graphic novels, animation, digital media, and film.

Comics studies can include the theory, history, philosophy, aesthetics, or cultural relevance of comics, as well as the industrial production, marketing, and collection of comics or comic art. It may draw on scholarship from a broad range of disciplines including history, literary studies, media and communication studies, art & art history, sociology, linguistics, philosophy, business & marketing, library & information science, or legal studies (particularly in regard to first amendment & censorship issues).

Since the 1990s, comics studies has developed into an active field of scholarly research, with a number of books, journals, conferences, and programs devoted to the topic.”

“Comics Studies: Introduction.” Guides, https://guides.library.unt.edu/comics-studies.

And yet, comics and graphic novels are still considered less than as an academic tool for instruction. Graphic novels are long comic narratives which are written for mature audiences. They are not the periodicals that were published weekly or monthly for children and have pages filled with advertising that targets young readers. Graphic novels offer depth of plot, theme, and character development. In a graphic novel the illustrations extend and enrich the text. The images are not illustrations designed to simply amplify or repeat the text. The images offer essential information that is necessary to understand the narrative that is relayed through the text. The text in turn provides information that is not provided by the image. The text is not a caption for the image. When reading a graphic novel readers are required to not only decode the words and the illustrations for meaning and purpose, but also identify the events that occur between the sequences shown on the page. Explicit and implicit reading is required for each graphic novel. Reading the text requires decoding skills such as with reading a traditional novel. The images require the reader to interpret what they are seeing. The reader must interpret the point of view, the facial and body language, the use of shading and white space, as well as the orientation of the panels flow as the narrative moves forward. Readers are required to apply visual and verbal literacies at the same time when reading a graphic novel.

One of the best resources to use when beginning a study of graphic novels is Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics.

Reading a graphic novel requires the traditional decoding skills required in a standard book, but the reader must also interpret within the images the facial and body language of the characters shown, determine point of view, analyze the purpose of the illustrator’s use of white space and shading, and the orientation of the flow of panels as they carry the narrative forward. A reader must utilize verbal and visual literacies at the same time to read a graphic novel. The reader is creating the intellectual space with their melding of word and image synchronically.

Misconceptions

Resistance to graphic novels stems from the belief that combining text and images is considered fine for children’s books and that children are expected to “grow out of” reading such texts and start reading real books. Graphic novels are assumed to be too easy or that the images detract from what the authors could have expressed in words alone. Some of the other misconceptions about graphic novels are that they are just funny books and that they leave nothing to the imagination. Others believe that graphic novels take no time to read.

“Others perceive graphic novels only as gaudy escapism, whether superheroic, fantasy-based science fiction, or hard-boiled, for adolescent males, all furious spectacle and special effects and little depth or humanity like their movie counterparts.” (Gravett 8)

Gravett, Paul. Graphic Novels: Everything You Need to Know. Collins Design, 2006.

Graphic novels are an excellent resource for classrooms. Graphic novels use images to relay messages with and without text accompanying them, adding dimension to the story. Authors can make inferences with imagery, with text, or with both in combination. It is genuinely a multimodal work of literature that facilitates and supports students’ ability to visualize and understand complicated ideas. Components of novels, picture books, and film are all working together to create a new literary form that is higher level than if reading a print-based text by itself. Graphic novels enable one to analyze a work for literary elements such as figurative language, dialogue, character development, plot construction, etc. Graphic novels also allow students to analyze the work using film technique analysis including elements such as the use of color, angles, framing, foregrounding, and backgrounding. The vocabulary in graphic novels is approachable and manageable which can reduce text load and decrease stress related to print-based reading. This creates work that captures a student’s attention, increases student motivation, and promotes a positive association with reading. Students find that they pay more attention to what the author is explicitly stating and where the reader must infer to find details and overarching ideas. The images support reading comprehension.

Students can access sensitive and difficult topics that are difficult to discuss through graphic novels dealing with social and historical situations through graphic novels, which feature complex plots, a variety of literary elements, and character development that present historical events, situations, influential people, and time periods with illustrations and text. Graphic novels can provide students with an opportunity to interact with history in an engaging way that is sometimes more influential than just text or images alone.

The goal of this course is to illustrate how one may use graphic novels in the classroom to enrich a students’ understanding of historical time periods, motivate future reading, and develop an understanding of how one may communicate through the use of words and images together.

Intent: Many times students have difficulty connecting historical events and figures with reality and their own life experiences. Instead of having students connect history to a series of dates and events, a graphic novel offers an opportunity with people involved in the events and finds personal connections with the events that shaped history.

Graphic novels are a mode of visual literacy and storytelling. They combine the classic components of a novel including plot, character development, theme, etc. with elements of the film where one uses the interpretation of imagery to develop meaning. In the case of graphic novels such as March by John Lewis, they offer students an opportunity to learn from one’s personal experiences in a memoir format to learn about how certain events came to be, why the people involved felt they were necessary, and how it impacted the individuals involved and history. John Lewis’s graphic novel begins with the telling of Lewis’s early life and how he became involved in the civil rights movement as a teenager. By utilizing graphic novel memoirs in a history classroom offers teachers the opportunity to engage students on multiple levels while teaching them about historical events and the effects those events have had upon society.

What is to be learned: Students will learn how to analyze the content of a graphic novel to interpret visual and textual information relayed by the author. Students will also learn how to incorporate graphic novels into their curriculum and create interdisciplinary units that engage students at differing reading levels, captures student interest, increases student motivation, and promotes positive associations with reading. Using graphic novels’ visual nature and the format makes the content more relatable and engaging for students as well offers them an opportunity to practice analyzing a work for explicit and implicit meanings. Lessons in this course will be focused on using the graphic novel, March by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, and Nate Powell but will also provide examples of other graphic novels that may be used in a history classroom for other units covering other historical time periods and events.

Goals: The goal of this mini-course is to show graphic novels that may be used in a history classroom to engage, motivate, and instruct students about historical events, persons, and the impact they have upon today’s society. At the end of this course, students will learn about how graphic novels relay information in a multimodal format, promote literacy, offer opportunities for differentiating instruction, improve comprehension, and help students develop an understanding and appreciation for history and/or different cultures.

This mini-course includes the following units. Click the title of a unit to go to its page.

Unit 1: Define graphic novels & identify misconceptions about graphic novels

Unit 2: How graphic novels help students learn

Unit 3: How to teach history with graphic novels

Unit 4: How to analyze a graphic novel to determine appropriateness for classroom usage