Abstract
Literary competence is still a poor research subject in many EFL (English as a Foreign Language) settings. Therefore, this qualitative case study analyzed how a group of Colombian English learners developed literary competence in the foreign language for the first time in their lives with the support of Numrich’s (2001) Sequence of Critical Thinking Tasks. Data related to English learners’ literary competence development were collected through learners’ transcripts of their oral responses to literature, artifacts (written papers/worksheets), and the teacher-researcher’s field notes. Data were analyzed through grounded approach and content analysis. Although reading and discussing authentic versions of literary texts in the foreign language was challenging for these Colombian English learners, findings revealed that they were able to foster literary competence when they did critical thinking tasks, namely Identifying assumptions about literary content based on the titles of texts, interpreting implicit meanings to discover conflicts and themes, inferring meaning conveyed in images and symbols, and evaluating literary content through inquiring further and analyzing literary language. The research novelty is that EFL Colombian education, as well as other EFL settings worldwide, can foster English learners’ communicative competence and literary competence gradually and more purposely through the Sequence of Critical Thinking Tasks model, encouraging the construction of meaning and at a critical stand through original versions of literary texts.
Highlights
The boom of communicative language teaching dominated EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classrooms back in the 80s and 90s, privileging survival and practical uses of language for communicative purposes
Reading and discussing authentic versions of literary texts in the foreign language was challenging for these Colombian English learners, findings revealed that they were able to foster literary competence when they did critical thinking tasks, namely Identifying assumptions about literary content based on the titles of texts, interpreting implicit meanings to discover conflicts and themes, inferring meaning conveyed in images and symbols, and evaluating literary content through inquiring further and analyzing literary language
Taking into account that “it is extremely difficult to itemize all the skills that go towards making up ‘literary competence’” (Lazar, 1993, p. 13) because it is a complex skill that develops over time and involves many aspects, as previously explained, the findings are stated as key-themes that emerged from the data analysis and show the most important literary critical thinking tasks that participants developed during this experience, which all together entailed their level of literary competence development: EFL Learners Made Predictions About Literary Content Based on the Title of the Texts
Summary
The boom of communicative language teaching dominated EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classrooms back in the 80s and 90s, privileging survival and practical uses of language for communicative purposes. Byrnes & Kord (2001), Ghosn (2002), Van (2009), and Neranjani (2011) highlight that integrating language and literature in EFL education cannot only enhance language learners’ linguistic and communicative expression, and their analytical, cognitive, and even humanitarian skills, including social, ethical, and intercultural attitudes. All these skills, attitudes, and knowledge together constitute essential components of what is understood as literary competence. There is interest in the inclusion of English-language literature in language teaching, further research on its influence and impact in many EFL settings is still needed (Paran, 2006; Clapsadle, 2014)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
