Discursive distancing and disconnection-making in a culturally and linguistically complex book group

Abstract

Using data collected during a qualitative study of a book group in an after-school programme at a public, urban elementary school, in this article, I analyse how immigrant- and refugee-background students discursively distanced themselves from the portrayal of refugees in the text Outcasts United. The teacher chose this book because she believed it reflected students' own experiences. Yet they often resisted making personal connections to the refugee stories depicted, instead employing various discursive strategies to distance themselves and their experiences from those in the text. The study uses microethnographic and discourse analytical methods to examine interactions where students redirected conversations away from teacher-proposed connections. Findings underscore how connection-making is not universally straightforward or applicable, especially when assuming shared identities among minoritized students. By analysing instances where students engaged in distancing and disconnection-making, this study emphasizes the value of fostering both connections and disconnections in literacy instruction. Implications for educators include the creation of spaces that encourage diverse, authentic responses to texts, as well as future teacher training and curriculum design that fosters students' ability to push against narratives with which they disagree. This approach could enrich the development of inclusive literacy practices that better serve multilingual students from diverse cultural and linguistic contexts.