Notes

This article introduces TVbyGIRLS, a nonprofit organization supporting girls in the development of critical thinking, digital literacy and storytelling, leadership, compassionate collaboration, and social justice engagement. Religious educator Claire Bischoff interviews Rebecca Richards Bullen, TVbyGIRLS mentor, and Molly Nemer and Rachel Quednau, two core girls, to gain wisdom from the ways TVbyGIRLS works with girls in the flow of media, religion, and culture. “Undercover,” a film conceived of and produced by the girls, in which the girls went “undercover” to experience each other's faith traditions for themselves, serves as a case study for inter-faith dialogue and education.     

Ethnic and Racial Identity During Adolescence and Into Young Adulthood: An Integrated Conceptualization

Although ethnic and racial identity (ERI) are central to the normative development of youth of color, there have been few efforts to bring scholars together to discuss the theoretical complexities of these constructs and provide a synthesis of existing work. The Ethnic and Racial Identity in the 21st Century Study Group was assembled for this purpose. This article provides an overview of the interface of ERI with developmental and contextual issues across development, with an emphasis on adolescence and young adulthood. It proposes a metaconstruct to capture experiences that reflect both individuals’ ethnic background and their racialized experiences in a specific sociohistorical context. Finally, it presents milestones in the development of ERI across developmental periods.     

Responding to a 'Conquistadora': Readers talk about gender in Mexican secondary schools

Mexican classroom practices (reinforced by social convention) prescribe approved responses to historical and fictional characters in literature, mobilizing powerful preconceptions of gender. Although students may attempt to resist or subvert these representations, their opinions usually remain unexpressed. This paper presents the results of a study on gender and reading in Mexican secondary schools which also attempted to provide a space for readers to voice their own responses. Year 8 students were interviewed about an adolescent novel that relates the adventures of Maria de Estrada, a female conquistador . Analysis of the qualitative data drew upon poststructuralist and feminist criticism, together with reader-response theory, to consider conceptions about gender, the dynamics between the reader and the text and the expression of response. Results revealed some of the young people's concerns and anxieties about gender issues and how their understanding of these is constantly subjected to modifications by the media, education and life experiences. It is suggested that because students were also found to be aware of possible shifts in gender patterns, the discussion of alternative texts and characters could stimulate their critical skills and encourage them to become more vocal.