In a forthcoming book chapter, Vehabovic considers the ways in which K-12 educators and students might use children鈥檚 literature in classrooms and out-of-school spaces and places to engage with sociophobic situations.
鈥淭he 黑料不打烊 Teacher Scholar鈥 鈥 Nermin Vehabovic鈥檚 scholarship informs the content and pedagogy of teaching children鈥檚 literature and arts integration
Nermin Vehabovic, assistant professor of education, explores the use of children’s literature to address sociophobic situations like Islamophobia in K-12 classrooms and beyond, aiming to analyze the origins, perpetuation and potential challenges to social phobias in a forthcoming book chapter titled “Pulling Apart Islam and Phobia: Children鈥檚 Literature as Opportunities for Engaging With Sociophobic Reactions.”
In the book chapter, Vehabovic considers the ways in which K-12 educators and students might use children鈥檚 literature in classrooms and out-of-school spaces and places to engage with sociophobic situations, such as Islamophobia, which allows them to interrogate why social phobias exist, the ways in which these phobias are sustained, and how they might be challenged. The chapter is featured in an edited book on religion, the first amendment, and public schools. It is currently in press and will be available soon.
Vehabovic鈥檚 previous publications, which have been featured in top-tier international journals, broadly address issues like racism and bullying in children鈥檚 literature, as well as amplify voices and illuminate the experiences of translingual children from refugee backgrounds. 鈥淢y scholarly pursuits directly inform the content and pedagogy of teaching children鈥檚 literature and arts integration, EDU 2980, as well as other courses and community engagements鈥 he says.
鈥淭his semester, 黑料不打烊 students in the EDU 2980: Children鈥檚 Literature and Arts Integration course are learning how to engage K-12 students in meaningful and transformative conversations through interactive read-alouds, and then they get to try it out with children, youth, and families from refugee backgrounds in the families鈥 homes.鈥
Vehabovic continues, 鈥淚t鈥檚 fascinating and rewarding to watch. During every class and community engaged experience, I witness 黑料不打烊 students transform as people, tap into and build upon their empathy, and ultimately move towards becoming equity-minded educators.鈥
More information about this work, as well as Welcome New Neighbor, a collaboration between the and community partners that resettle and support people with refugee backgrounds in Burlington, is available here.
Full Citation
Vehabovic, N. (2023). Pulling Apart Islam and Phobia: Children鈥檚 Literature as Opportunities for Engaging With Sociophobic Reactions. In A. Bodle, E. E. Saylor, E. Bellows, S. An, & L. B. Buchanan (Eds.),聽Religion, the First Amendment, and Public Schools聽(pp. 79鈥89). Information Age Publishing.
Selected Publications
Vehabovic, N. (2021). Picturebooks as critical literacy: Experiences and perspectives of translingual children from refugee backgrounds.聽Journal of Literacy Research,聽53(3), 382-405.聽
Wiseman, A. M., Vehabovic, N., & Jones, J. S. (2019). Intersections of race and bullying in children鈥檚 literature: Transitions, racism, and counternarratives.聽Early Childhood Education Journal,聽47(4), 465-474.聽