The Use of Literary Texts in EFL Coursebooks: An Exploratory Study

Shaima J Al-Saeed ,Abdullah Alenezi

doi:10.5539/ells.v10n3p86

Abstract

This exploratory study investigates the use of literary texts in English as a foreign language (EFL) coursebooks and examines the extent to which literature is used within the coursebooks, the types of texts used as regards authenticity and recency, the criteria for selecting and adapting the texts and the ways of improving the selection and adaptation process. Multiple articles written on this subject show that the evaluation of EFL coursebooks is a relevant and important research area in the study of language and linguistics. This study gives a survey of the extent to which literary texts are used in EFL coursebooks within institutions of higher learning in Kuwait and worldwide. In this study, 44 popular EFL coursebooks (between 2015 and 2019) within higher education institutes, including those in Kuwait, were analysed. The findings demonstrated that literary texts are not included in many of the coursebooks used nowadays and that the literary texts selected were primarily from an early period (more than a century ago). Furthermore, the results revealed that the coursebooks include a large percentage of inauthentic, ill-adapted works. Consequently, this study recommends incorporating authentic literary texts in EFL coursebooks comprising modern literature.

Highlights

There is a misconception that literature clashes with communicative teaching and that as needs change, so do the criteria for selecting teaching materials
This exploratory study investigates the use of literary texts in English as a foreign language (EFL) coursebooks and examines the extent to which literature is used within the coursebooks, the types of texts used as regards authenticity and recency, the criteria for selecting and adapting the texts and the ways of improving the selection and adaptation process
4.1 Extent of the Use of Literature in Coursebooks. This part of the analysis answers the first research question: to what extent is literature used in coursebooks nowadays, and what types of literary texts are used?

Summary

Introduction

There is a misconception that literature clashes with communicative teaching and that as needs change, so do the criteria for selecting teaching materials This concern does not necessarily translate into constricting reading materials to ‘useful’ texts. It is not a matter of literature replacing other types of texts but rather of it having a unique contribution in a language classroom. In his epilogue, Carter presented a timeline of the place of literature in a language classroom and commented on the current situation: Many of the questions first raised 30 or more years ago are still being asked today, in many cases with greater sharpness and relevance to the design of today’s curricula in language and literature. Some of the questions are epistemologically fundamental: What justifications are there for the inclusion of literature in the L1 and L2 English language learning curriculum? (Carter, 2015, p. 318)

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