Asking Questions about Literature: A Review of Strategies

Abstract

Systematic observations have shown that asking questions is one of most crucial and frequently employed tactics in English classroom?. In case of literature study, most scholars and English teachers treat questioning as a basic pedagogic act and consider success of literature curriculum to depend significantly on type, manner, and quality of questions posed. Opinion within profession, however, is divided on particular type of questions that will secure best results for curriculum. The issue is whether inquiry should evolve from objective textual considerations or from student response to text. In Freedom and Discipline in English, a comprehensive statement of traditionalist viewpoint on English curriculum, Commission on English proposes that teacher of literature functions most appropriately as a textual critic. The Commission assumes that students will best learn to understand and judge literature by witnessing teacher's considered response to specific works and by following established critical procedures in study of each work. The approach to teaching recommended by Commission relies on a set of fundamental questions which the teacher must face as he prepares for class and then must teach his students to face as they study work with him.2 These questions concern formal, rhetorical, and semantic features of text; nature of reader's personal response (presumably after thorough textual analysis); and ultimate value of COLLETT B. DILWORam, JR., is an assistant professor in English Department of East Carolina University. His most recent articles have appeared in Research in Teaching of English, English Journal, Classroom Practices in Teaching of English, and Clearing House.