Did We Read Graphic Novels?

Entering the graphic novel section of our Multi-Modal course, I stopped to think. Did I read any graphic novels throughout my junior high and high school English experience? Looking back, I can only think of one: Maus. My sophomore year, I read it as one of many pieces of literature in the 10th grade Holocaust unit. However, no matter how hard I tried I couldn't remember what the book was about, or if I had learned anything from it.

Comparing this to how intensely other forms of literature are emphasized in schools today - novels, poems, short stories - it's quite an eye opener to realize that graphic novels are an extremely underrepresented art in the classroom. With the emphasis in today's society pushing towards films, video games, and other technological advances, I feel that graphic novels may be an educator's best tool when attempting to reach his or her students through literature. The format of the novels with its pictures and text may actually be more familiar and relatable for each individual student than the traditional novel. If students are comfortable with the work, there is reason to assume that they will have a higher motivation to read the assigned text and come away with a greater understanding of what they have just read.

Therefore, I think it is important that more graphic novels are integrated into curriculums, rather than the typical once every four year approach. By opening our students to all different forms of literature, we are preparing them for the encounters they will have with texts in their everyday lives. Because the future is what every teacher is hoping to ready their students for, this makes reading graphic novels on a more regular basis a crucial goal for school districts across America.