ABSTRACT

The “words” referred to in the title of this chapter were voiced as an epithet by Keisha, one of the students in Patricia Zalewski’s 10th-grade global studies class. The words Keisha bemoaned were her teacher’s, spoken to ask questions during classroom discussions about reading assignments. Keisha complained that, although she completed and understood such assignments, Pat asked questions in ways that created post-reading confusion for Keisha. The purpose of this chapter is to explore such literacy related constructions of meaning by students in Pat’s classroom.