Re-mapping literary worlds : postcolonial pedagogy in practice
In Re-mapping Literary Worlds: Postcolonial Pedagogy in Practice, I n g r i d Johnston takes the reader o n a l i terary journey in to the w o r l d of p o s t c o l o n i a l l i terature a n d its ro le i n e x p a n d i n g the t r a d i t i o n a l c a n o n i n secondary s c h o o l E n g l i s h c lassrooms. T h e text is t h o r o u g h l y researched, g r o u n d e d i n practice, a n d b e a u t i f u l l y w r i t t e n . She s k i l l f u l l y b l e n d s p e r s o n a l narra t ive , l i terary theory a n d selections, d e s c r i p t i o n s of p e d a g o g i c a l practice, a n d teachers ' a n d s tudents ' voices to create a " p o s t m o d e r n , re f lex ive narra t ive that seeks to carve out n e w c o n c e p t u a l r o u t e s " (p. 3). A l o n g the w a y she offers the reader m a n y v i e w s : l i terary , theoret ical , p h i l o s o p h i c a l , prac t ica l , a n d p o l i t i c a l . A l t h o u g h based o n her d o c t o r a l s t u d y , Johnston's b o o k does not f o l l o w the t r a d i t i o n a l format : theoret ical f r a m e w o r k , research m e t h o d o l o g y , f i n d i n g s , c o n c l u s i o n s . D r a w i n g o n the p o w e r of s tory a n d narra t ive i n q u i r y , J o h n s t o n uses the m e t a p h o r of a j o u r n e y to describe her research. A s a reader this a l l o w e d m e to j o i n Johnston a n d her research par t ic ipants as they left the conf ines of f a m i l i a r terr i tory to " b e c o m e m i g r a n t s , c r o s s i n g borders of t h o u g h t a n d exper ience w i t h a n e w restless i n t e r r o g a t i o n " (p. 123). In k e e p i n g w i t h the t r a v e l m e t a p h o r , her b o o k is s t r u c t u r e d i n mi les rather t h a n the u s u a l chapters ; m i l e titles e f fec t ive ly accentuate the t ravel m e t a p h o r . E a c h chapter begins w i t h t w o c a r e f u l l y selected quotat ions that further the t ravel theme, i n t r o d u c e the topic of the m i l e , o r h i g h l i g h t the w o r k s of p o s t c o l o n i a l authors . In the i n t r o d u c t i o n to the b o o k Johnston " m a p s the t e r r i t o r y " of her journey . The f o l l o w i n g research quest ions frame her s t u d y . • What are the positive values for students from diverse cultures of engaging wi th literary texts that resonate wi th their o w n histories, traditions, and cross-cultural experiences? What are the attendant drawbacks? • H o w might reading and deconstructing postcolonial literature in the context of a classroom enable students and teachers to problematize representations of self, place, and the other in literary texts? • What challenges and difficulties does one teacher face as she attempts to introduce postcolonial literature to students and to engage them in deconstructive reading strategies? A f t e r p r e s e n t i n g a concise d e s c r i p t i o n of narra t ive i n q u i r y , the author p r o v i d e s an o v e r v i e w of the m i l e s to f o l l o w .