ALBANY -- International Literacy Day was first announced by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) back in 1965. The first celebration of the holiday took place on September 8, 1967. Since that first day, teachers, like Monroe High School’s Laneysha Fudge, have been using this day to celebrate and expand their students' knowledge about different cultures.
Mrs. Fudge is a teacher for both American Literature and AP Literature. During her years in college, she learned a lot about international literature, which sparked her interest in teaching the subject. She said she believes that all students should have the opportunity to learn about foreign literature.
Fudge is one teacher among many who are on the front line of the Dougherty County School System's fight to improve literacy among students and foster a love for reading and literature.
Throughout the school year, Fudge uses different texts to incorporate international literature into her curriculum. One specific example of these texts is a short story called “Girl,” which teaches students about culture within the Caribbean.
“I think that it (International Literacy Day) is something really big because it actually gives teachers and ELA (English Language Arts) the opportunity to show literature from different cultures,” Fudge said. “It is imperative for students to learn about foreign literature because it gives them an opportunity to expand their horizons, so they just don’t know African American Lit or just American Lit or British Lit. They know literature from other styles and other genres.”
During her teaching career, Mrs. Fudge has noticed that students typically don’t know about other cultures outside of their own when they first enter her class, so Mrs. Fudge uses tools like YouTube and gallery walks to help students better understand texts and learn background knowledge about cultures. She explains that YouTube videos and gallery walks can help students have a visual picture of a culture.
Mrs. Fudge’s teachings and words show that she is very passionate about teaching international literature, and she hopes to continue expanding students’ knowledge about it.