2006 Distinguished Achievement Award

PRESS RELEASE

Childhood Education Article —
Teaching Religious Diversity Through Children's Literature —
Named Finalist for 2006 Distinguished Achievement Award

Media Contact:
Jana Pauldin, ACEI Public Relations Manager
jpauldin@acei.org
(301) 570-2111

For Immediate Release:
Olney, MD, April 26, 2006 — An article published in the Summer 2005 (Vol. 81, No. 4) issue of Childhood Education, the official journal of the Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI), has been selected as a finalist for a 2006 Distinguished Achievement Award, in the Learned Article category, by the Association of Educational Publishers (AEP/EdPress). "Teaching Religious Diversity Through Children's Literature," by Connie Green, Professor in the Department of Language, Reading and Exceptionalities, and Sandra B. Oldendorf, Associate Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, serves several purposes. The article:

Gives a historical perspective on religious diversity in the United States

Develops a rationale for teachers and children to learn about religious pluralism

Provides basic information, resources for teachers, and appropriate children's literature about major religious groups

Explores developmentally appropriate and unobjectionable ways of introducing children to traditions and practices of various faiths through children's literature

Provides a selected bibliography of children's books on religious diversity.

"The selection of this article is a special honor for both the authors and ACEI. Especially as an international organization, we welcome the opportunity to share the work of ACEI members and to help focus attention on cultural and religious diversity in the classroom through literature," says ACEI Executive Director Gerald Odland.

As the United States becomes an increasingly diverse nation, authors Green and Oldendorf provide teachers with developmentally appropriate resources to honor the multiplicity of cultural backgrounds found within schools and communities. They explain that classrooms that honor religious diversity help children to develop and preserve their cultural identities. "Teaching Religious Diversity" uses children's literature to understand Native American spirituality, plus the five largest religious traditions — Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam — introduced to the United States from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. The authors do not promote one religion over another, nor do they explore faith-based rituals or practices. Instead, "Teaching Religious Diversity" provides teachers with wonderful valid and substantive ways to develop a curriculum about understanding and respecting different religions, thereby enabling children to develop a sense of identity. According to Green and Oldendorf, "When teachers and children learn about different spiritual traditions, they develop empathy for others and become global citizens with interests and understandings beyond their own experiences."

Childhood Education articles won Distinguished Achievement Awards in 1992 and 2000, and were finalists in 2001, 2003, 2004, and 2005. The rigorous selection process makes being a finalist a noteworthy honor. A two-tiered judging panel selects no more than four finalists in each category. Winners will be announced on June 9 at the Association of Educational Publishers Annual Awards Banquet & Gala in Washington, DC.

The Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI) is the oldest professional organization in the world dedicated to the development of the whole child, from birth to early adolescence. Founded in 1892, ACEI is an organization of teachers, teacher educators, and parents whose primary purpose is to promote the inherent rights, education, and well-being of children in the home, school, and community. ACEI publishes the award-winning publication Childhood Education, as well as the Journal of Research in Childhood Education.

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