Teacher Says No Comics; Student Replies With Research

When Sam, a third-grader in Alaska, was told by his teacher that comics weren't allowed in the classroom, he decided to do something about it. He researched the benefits of reading comics and presented his findings at the Science Fair. His project ended up winning a prize at the state finals!

Action research, folks. What's not good about this story? By the way, you can get more details by clicking the link embedded in this post's title.

Blue Water Adds Some Class

In the past, I've associated the products coming out of Blue Water comics publishers as, well, befitting a place in swirling blue water, if you know what I mean.

But I'm happy to announce the company is literally adding a "class" component. My friend and colleague in comics-and-literacy, Chris Wilson, of the popular blog resource The Graphic Classroom, has signed on to produce lesson plans for the company's nonfiction titles. I think this is a very smart move for Blue Water.

Click the link emdedded in this post's title to learn more, and, if you're reading, congrats on the gig, Chris!

Read SFSU Students' Thesis on Comics in the Composition Classroom

Ellen Hua Ma's work is posted at The Graphic Classroom via Scribd. She's joined the inimitable Chris Wilson as a writer there, so I hope you'll check in to see even more of her work.

Chris Wilson Talks Research, Standards, and Comics

The Graphic Classroom has a pretty good piece regarding an article citing a "study" by a University of Illinois professor that made the rounds on the blogs about a month ago. The "study" is actually another advocacy/informative-type piece on comics and learning. I know because I hunted down the original article, printed it out for my records, and even contacted the author, who was herself a little worried about how the media had been interpreting her writing.

TGC's Chris Wilson does a good job of articulating some of the points and counter-points of comics in education in his reaction, though, so click this post's title and enjoy!