Benefits of Using Literature in the Classroom

Benefits of Using Literature in the ClassroomThis chapter attempts to emphasize on relevant writings recapitulation that illustrate the following details definition of literary works, the importance of pedagogy, benefits of belief literary works in ESL Classroom, trainee t all(prenominal)ers, and past studies.2.1 DISCUSSION OF MAJOR TOPICS OF STUDYLiterature is defined as pieces of writing that atomic number 18 valued as works of art, especially novels, plays, and poems (Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary, 2005). For belles-lettres in English, William Shakespeare is unmatch adapted of the famous writers who had produced massive masterpieces. He had been widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the worlds pre-eminent dramatist (Greenblatt, 2005). Literature is overly known as the window of the world as it offers the learners or readers the marrow of ones culture, history, and traditions (Carter Long, 1991)Literature in English has been implemente d in the Malaysian education system to enhance students proficiency in the English Language through the athletic field of a set prescribed literary text, as well as contributing to personal development and character building (Ministry of Education, 2000The claim the study of writings is fundamentally a study of language in operation (Widdowson 1971) is based on the realization that belles-lettres is an example of language in use, and is a setting for language use. Thus, studying the language of literary texts as language in operation is seen as enhancing the learners appreciation of aspects of the diametrical systems of language organisation (OSullivan, 1991). By the cease of the secondary school English Language program, students should be able to achieve the objectives set for them. Unfortunately, after ten years being in the English syllabus, literature is still not seen as an important role to learn English language in Malaysian curriculum.There are several definition of article of faith method, and one of the definition is by Bruner (1996), he defined education as an effort to assist or shape the growth of students it is mean that teacher should have an effort such as to prepare lessons, should know extra information on what they are going to teach in order to make their students understand more. The principle process should be a two way communication between the teacher and the students so that it ordain be a meaningful scholarship. Therefore, to be able to have a better understanding on an outstanding teaching process that results in meaningful learning, a teacher should have pedagogical familiarity on teaching which contained methods, approaches, and strategies of teaching.2.1.1 THE IMPORTANCE OF PEDAGOGYAccording to Collins English Dictionary 6th Edition, 2006, pedagogy is defined as the principles, practice, or profession of teaching. didactics came to be identified as practice, techniques, methods, or implementation, either separated from theory or inadequate to revise it (Salvatori, 1996). In becoming a teacher, trainees should be fit with the knowledge of pedagogy and should be able to implement and use it in the real family lineroom. Pedagogy determines the effectiveness of a lesson by implementing the techniques and methods, as verbalise beforehand. telling teachers display a wide range of skills and abilities that lead to creating a learning environment where all students feel comfortable and are sure that they can come after both academically and personally. (Early Childhood/Generalist Standards, 1998). pedagogy considers how education can provide case-by-cases with the tools to better themselves and strengthen democracy, to create a more egalitarian and adept society, and thus to deploy education in a process of progressive social change(Giroux, 1994)As explained by Giroux, pedagogy promotes one individual to call her flaws and discover the potential to be a better person. A teacher, for instance , could discover her/ his weaknesses in teaching by the approaches or strategies used in class. According to Entz (2006), it is workable to identify the crucial elements of teaching that contributes to successful learning for all children by implementing on pedagogical practices with the weakest and most challenging students. Entz tots that the most important areas of inquiry are how the teacher chooses to interact with learners, structures the classroom and delivers the content which conforms to the idea that the knowledge on pedagogy of teaching is crucial in order to be a teacher. In addition, Agree (1998) has stated that Good grasp of content knowledge, pedagogical knowledge and understanding students interests and needs are some of the requirements needed to teach literature competently. Therefore, it is turn up that pedagogy is one of the important elements in determining whether the lessons are successful or not.2.1.2 THE BENEFITS OF TEACHING LITERATURE IN ESL CLASSROOMApa rt from that, teachers should have find the benefit of teaching literature in ESL classroom. According to Dr. Ganakumaran Subramaniam, a president of Malaysian English Language Teaching Association (MELTA), literature is introduced into syllabus for handsome purposes. Literature is hoped to be able to (1) provide rich and diverse exposure to language, (2) improve vocabulary, syntax, and structure, (3) develop perception and interpretation skills,(4) develop comprehension and motivation. As stated in the Curriculum Specification (also known as Huraian Sukatan Pelajaran Bersepadu Sekolah Menengah), the study of literary texts is meant to inculcate values and broaden learners outlook. All the objectives mentioned can be related to literature component that existing English Syllabus.There are three core areas that literature can help a language learner. The first aspect is literature assist learners language development. According to Fook and Sidhu, (2010), a literature-enriched curri culum not only helps learners improve their reading and writing skills but more importantly helps them internalize grammar and vocabulary. Sidhu(2003) and Savvidou (2004) add that the study of literature unconsciously enhances students overall linguistic competence including their knowledge of syntax, morphology, semantics and phonetics. Himanolu (2005) stated that, literature provides learners with a wide range of individual lexical or syntactic items. Students become familiar with m some(prenominal) features of the written language, reading a substantial and contextualized body of text. As stated by Davis et al (1992), literary style and structure pose a problem for students in trying to comprehend literary texts, therefore, it somehow contributes to students attitude towards literature learning. For instance, poems are identically disliked as it contains numbers of figurative language and images which students fail to interpret (Wan Kamariah, 2009). In order to make literature as the prominent role in enhancing English language, teachers should be able to change this hindrance into attraction.Literature also enhances ESL students knowledge about society. In the literary texts prepared, students are exposed with various cultures from different countries. As stated by Kow (2002) noted that childrens books are multifunctional. They help students to expand their imagination, apart from literacy. Literature helps students to cope with problems be they social, cultural, racial or problems that crop up in dealing with life in the real world. It also helps to inculcate specific social attitudes that are thought to be acceptable in their community. In fact, one of the advantages of using literature is that it can serve as a medium to transmit the culture of the people who speak the language in which it is written. (Valdes 137). Valdes also warns us however, not to use literature only as a means of imparting cultural information (Valdes 137). The study of literature allows students to learn natural ideas and knowledge. It adds to their understanding of concepts and cultural traditions and values and issues in life. Developing respect for self and others and encouraging one to become aware of ones auditory modality are learning gains to be derived from the study of literature.The third area that literature will benefit English language learner is in fostering students critical intending.As it is highly connotative and associative, literature speaks subtly different meanings to different people. It is rare for two readers to react identically to any given text. In teaching, this has two advantages. The first advantage is that each learners interpretation has validity within limits. The second advantage is that an almost infinite fund of interactive discussion is guaranteed since each persons perception is different. That no two readers will have a completely convergent interpretation establishes the tension that is necessary for a genuine exc hange of ideas.(Hismanoglu, 2005)In other words, Hismanoglu harbord that literature promotes students to think critically as they have different perception and prior knowledge towards one literary text. According to Norliana Ghani (2009), students prefer books or texts that discuss the issues of youth, relationship, and social changes. These texts or stories are usually have clear language, good organization of the plot, and thought provoking. This is the reason why in literature class, students are encouraged to have discussions or presentations of their opinions which indirectly promote critical thinking. Critical thinking is very useful when it comes to problem solving as one has to weigh before making any decisions.2.1.3 TRAINEE TEACHERSIn this study that involves trainee teachers several aspects will be looking at. The first one is trainee teachers readiness. In assuring the objectives of the KBSM to be achieved, trainee teachers should be prepared, knowledgeable, and confiden t to teach the landing field that they are majoring in. Teacher preparation accounts for 40% to 60% of the total variance in students achievement (Hammond, 2000). Darling Hammond also added that teacher preparation has a stronger liaison with students achievement. Therefore the teachers should be aware of all topics and sub topics used in teaching process and able to discuss as well as tidy up students to understand the topic. As for literature, one of the best ways to have effective literature teaching in school is to be ready and prepared before hand.According to Safiah Osman, (1992), the success of learning and teaching will depend a great deal on the teachers. The problem raises here is whether trainee teachers are well-equipped with relevant knowledge about literature or not. As future English teachers who are going to teach Literature for the subject, they will encounter some problems in teaching literature as they have least knowledge about literature elements. For those w ho are taking literature as their minor, they will learn various forms of literature from the various Literature subjects for instance Asian Literature, Contemporary Literature, Women and Literature, Literature in the English Classroom, Creative Writing, and Literature and Media. Throughout these subjects, the future English teachers will be learning and analyzing the elements of literature from various pieces of work. This show they gain their knowledge of literary elements and devices needed in teaching literature.Teaching literature during micro/macro teaching is totally different with teaching literature in the real classroom. Teaching audience who have been embedded with the knowledge of the literary texts is very much easier than teaching students who have zero prior knowledge about the text. As stated in a research done by Nor Liyana Ghazali (2009), ninety seven percents of her respondents agree that prior knowledge of the literary texts is vital in comprehending the texts. T hrough my experience, as a student and also a trainee teacher, most students enter the literature class without reading the texts, even after the teacher had told them to do so. Teachers obviously cant delay the lessons that they have planned before hand, hence, their strategies and techniques in making these students understand and go in in their instruction is crucial. If to compare with students who have analyzed the literary texts, trainee teachers will found a huge difference and realize that their ambitious aims and objectives of the lessons cant be implemented in the real classroom.As Grieve stated in his Teaching Strategies and Tips for Adjunct Faculty, teacher should be able to be a facilitator of learning which means they have to know how to develop learning skills and teach students to learn and to organize their materials. He added that teachers are actors or actresses on stage. They are responsible to their audience by assuring that their appearance, conducts, communic ation techniques, and physical traits are constantly under scrutiny. Teachers are also advised to vary their teaching activities to keep students interested. The usage of teaching aids like films, videos, demonstrations, or mini sketch/drama should be helpful in feeding their attention span. Apart from that, teachers have to be crank and alert to early signs of difficulties and ready to provide assistance and referrals to the students. This is parallel to Browns suggestion in teaching English which teachers as the source of information. In literature teaching, teachers should be able to assist students with limitations in areas of reading and writing.2.2 CONCLUSIONSAs the conclusion, it can be seen from the statements above that teachers play crucial roles in determining students interest and attitude towards literature teaching. Teachers possession on pedagogical knowledge, creativity to conduct literature lessons, exposure and readiness to teach literature are the aspects to dete rmine the successfulness of a literature lesson.

An Inspector Calls - J. B. Priestley :: English Literature

An inspector C altogethers - J. B. PriestleyIntroductionMy aim is to explain a discern cyclorama from the play An Inspector Calls,how it might be staged and to explain the role of my chosen characterMr Birling in this part of the play.This is the key sceneBirling (solemnly)But this is point. I dont want to lecture you two young fellowsagain. But what so many of you dont calculate to understand now, whenthings are so much easier, is that a man has to make his admit way hasto picture after himself and his family too, of course, when he hasone and so coarse as he does that he wont come to much harm. But theway some of these cranks talk and write now, youd think that e preciseonehas to look after everyone else, as if we were all mixed up togetherlike bees in a hive community and all that nonsense. But take my ledger for it, you youngsters and Ive learned in the good hard schoolof experience that a man has to mind his own business and look afterhimself and his own and (We hea r the sharp skirt of the front door bell. Birling sacks tolisten.)EricSomebody at the front door.BirlingEdnall answer it. Well, cook another methamphetamine of port, Gerald and thenwell join the ladies. Thatll stop me giving you good advice.EricYes, youve piled it on a bit tonight Father.BirlingSpecial occasion. And feeling contented, for once, I wanted you tohave the benefit of my experience.(EDNA enters.)EdnaPlease, sir, an inspectors called.BirlingAn inspector? What kind of inspector?EdnaA police inspector. He says his names Inspector Goole.Birling preceptort know him. Does he want to see me?EdnaYes, sir. He says its important.BirlingAll right, Edna. Show him in here. Give us some to a greater extent light.(EDNA does, then goes out.)Im still on the Bench. It may be something about a warrant.Gerald (lightly)Sure to be. Unless Erics been up to something. (Noddingconfidentially to Birling) And that would be awkward, wouldnt it?Birling (humorously)Very.Eric (who is uneasy, sharp ly)Here, what do you imagine?Birling (lightly)Only something we were talking about when you were out. A joke really.Eric (still uneasy)Well, I dont think its very funny.Birling (sharply, staring at him)Whats the matter with you?Eric (defiantly)Nothing.Edna (opening door, and announcing)Inspector Goole.(The INSPECTOR enters, and Edna goes, closing the door after her. TheINSPECTOR need not be a big man except he creates at once an impressionof massiveness, solidity and purposefulness. He is a man in hisfifties, dressed in a plain darkish typeface of the period.An Inspector Calls - J. B. Priestley English LiteratureAn Inspector Calls - J. B. PriestleyIntroductionMy aim is to explain a key scene from the play An Inspector Calls,how it might be staged and to explain the role of my chosen characterMr Birling in this part of the play.This is the key sceneBirling (solemnly)But this is point. I dont want to lecture you two young fellowsagain. But what so many of you dont seem to unders tand now, whenthings are so much easier, is that a man has to make his own way hasto look after himself and his family too, of course, when he hasone and so long as he does that he wont come to much harm. But theway some of these cranks talk and write now, youd think that everyonehas to look after everyone else, as if we were all mixed up togetherlike bees in a hive community and all that nonsense. But take myword for it, you youngsters and Ive learned in the good hard schoolof experience that a man has to mind his own business and look afterhimself and his own and (We hear the sharp ring of the front door bell. Birling stops tolisten.)EricSomebody at the front door.BirlingEdnall answer it. Well, have another glass of port, Gerald and thenwell join the ladies. Thatll stop me giving you good advice.EricYes, youve piled it on a bit tonight Father.BirlingSpecial occasion. And feeling contented, for once, I wanted you tohave the benefit of my experience.(EDNA enters.)EdnaPlease, sir, an inspectors called.BirlingAn inspector? What kind of inspector?EdnaA police inspector. He says his names Inspector Goole.BirlingDont know him. Does he want to see me?EdnaYes, sir. He says its important.BirlingAll right, Edna. Show him in here. Give us some more light.(EDNA does, then goes out.)Im still on the Bench. It may be something about a warrant.Gerald (lightly)Sure to be. Unless Erics been up to something. (Noddingconfidentially to Birling) And that would be awkward, wouldnt it?Birling (humorously)Very.Eric (who is uneasy, sharply)Here, what do you mean?Birling (lightly)Only something we were talking about when you were out. A joke really.Eric (still uneasy)Well, I dont think its very funny.Birling (sharply, staring at him)Whats the matter with you?Eric (defiantly)Nothing.Edna (opening door, and announcing)Inspector Goole.(The INSPECTOR enters, and Edna goes, closing the door after her. TheINSPECTOR need not be a big man but he creates at once an impressionof massivene ss, solidity and purposefulness. He is a man in hisfifties, dressed in a plain darkish suit of the period.

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain :: Adventures Huck Finn Twain Essays

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain The entire plot of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is rooted on intolerance between distinct social groups. Without prejudice and intolerance The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn would not have any of the antagonism or intercourse that makes the recital interesting. The prejudice and intolerance found in the go for are the characteristics that make The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn great.The author of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is Samuel Langhorn Clemens, who is more commonly known by his pen name, Mark Twain. He was born in 1835 with the passing of Haleys comet, and died in 1910 with the passing of Haleys comet. Clemens often used prejudice as a building block for the plots of his stories. Clemens even said, The very ink in which history is compose is merely fluid prejudice. There are many other instances in which Clemens uses prejudice as a foundation for the entertainment of his writings such as this quote he said about foreigners in The Innocents Abroad They spell it Vinci and pronounce it Vinchy foreigners always spell better than they pronounce. Even in the opening split of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Clemens states, Persons attempting to find a motive in this narrative will be prosecuted persons attempting to find a moral in it will be banished persons attempting to find a plot in it will be shot. There were many groups that Clemens contrasted in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The interaction of these different social groups is what makes up the primary(prenominal) plot of the novel. For the objective of word of honor they have been broken down into five main sets of antithetic parties people with high levels of melanin and people with low levels of melanin, rednecks and scholarly, children and adults, men and women, and finally, the Sheperdsons and the Grangerfords.Whites and African Americans are the main two groups contrasted in the novel. Throughout the novel Clemens portray s Caucasians as a more educated group that is higher in society compared to the African Americans portrayed in the novel. The cardinal way that Clemens portrays African Americans as obsequious is through the colloquy that he assigns them. Their dialogue is composed of nothing but broken English. One utilisation in the novel is this excerpt from the conversation between Jim the fugitive slave, and Huckleberry about why Jim ran away, where Jim declares, Well you see, it uz dis way.

Jane Eyre :: essays research papers

Ten-year-old orphan Jane Eyre lives unhappily with her wealthy, cruel cousins and aunt at Gateshead. Her only salvation from her daily humiliations, such(prenominal) as being locked up in a "red-room" (where she thinks she sees her beloved uncles ghost), is the kindly servant, Bessie. Jane is spared further mistreatment from the Reed family when she is sent off to school at Lowood, but there, downstairs the hypocritical Evangelicalism of the headmaster, Mr. Brocklehurst, she suffers further privations in the austere environment. She befriends Helen Burns, who upholds a doctrine of Christian forgiveness and tolerance, and is taken under the wing of the superintendent, degenerate Temple. An outbreak of typhus alerts benefactors to the schools dread conditions, Mr. Brocklehurst is replaced, and Jane excels as a student for six years and as a teacher for two. Jane finds employment as a governess at the estate of Thornfield for a junior-grade girl, Adle. After much waiting, J ane finally meets her employer, Edward Rochester, a brooding, detached man who seems to have a dark past. Other oddities around Thornfield include the occasional beastly laugh Jane hears emanating from the third-story attic. Rochester always attributes it to modify Poole, the seamstress who works up there, but Jane is never fully convinced, and the fire she has to put out one night in Rochesters bedroom plants further doubts. Meanwhile, Jane develops an attraction for Rochester, not based on looks (both are considered plain) but on their intellectual communion. However, the higher social standing of the beautiful young woman Ingram seemingly vaults her above Jane. Though Rochester flirts with the idea of marrying Miss Ingram, he is aware of her financial ambitions for marriage. An old acquaintance of Rochesters, Richard Mason, visits Thornfield and is severely injured from an attackapparently from Gracein the middle of the night in the attic. Jane, baffled by the circumstances, t ends to him, and Rochester confesses to her that he made an error in the past that he hopes to overturn by marrying Miss Ingram. He says that he has another governess position for Jane lined up elsewhere. Jane returns to Gateshead for a while to see the dying Mrs. Reed. When she returns to Thornfield, Rochester says he knows Miss Ingram is after him only for his money, and he asks Jane to marry him. Jane accepts, but a month later, Mason and a solicitor, Mr. Briggs, interrupt the ceremony by revealing that Rochester already has a wife Bertha Mason, Masons sister, a lunatic who is kept in the attic in Thornfield.

The Struggle of Women Trying to be Equal to Men Essay -- Feminism Femi

The Struggle of Women Trying to be Equal to Men Throughout many decades women have been struggling to be equal to men, both at home and in the work place. Women have come a long way and be certainly fighting to gain that equality, but sexual practice roles are very important in our society. They have become important in life from birth, and society continues to push these sexual activity roles. The treatment of the male gender is very different from that of the female, and this tell apart has become very important to me, as a woman. As children we learn and adapt to specific gender roles, and as we set up they become more evident and more important to our role in a society. There is a portion out of discrimination against the female gender. Carol Gilligan argued that women are more likely to make decisions based on responsibility and norms of caring, where as men are likely to apply principles of justice to their decisions .Because of this discrimination, social mobility has be en difficult, but is unquestionably changing to benefit women and is definitely something I would like to see changed.Women of the later 20th century are fighting more to end the discrimination, and a lot has improved. But women are still looked down upon in society, and men still have the power. I believe that this issue is important, not only to myself, but to everyone. It is an issue that effects everyone, and people have to realize that women are stronger, smarter and involved with the world much more than they were a half a cen...

mind vs machine :: essays research papers

In 1792 Mary Wollstonecraft in her work A Vindication of the Rights of Wo part posed the question, "In what does mans pre-eminence over the fauna creation consist?" She answers, "In origin and virtue by which mankind can attain a degree of knowledge." Today, no one would argue that man and woman are not intellectually equal, or that humans have a superior intellectual capacity over the brute creation, but what would they hypothesise about humankind versus the machine? We have always felt ourselves superior to animals by our ability to reason -- "to form conclusions, judgments, or inferences from facts or premises"(Random erect Dictionary). Philosophers have argued for centuries about what defines reason, now on the dawn of the 21st century this age old question must be revisited. Since the ENIAC, the first mainframe, hummed to life in 1946, the chasm between humankind and machine has appeared to dwindle. Computers have insinuated themselves into the lives of millions of people, taking over the performance of mundane and repetitive tasks. With the constant improvement of computer technology, todays super-computers can outperform the feature brain power of thousands of humans. These machines are so powerful that they can store an essay sixteen billion times longer than this one in spry memory. With the development of artificial intelligence software, computers can not only perform tasks at remarkable speed, but can "learn" to respond to situations based on various input. Can these machines ever procure "reason and virtue," or are they simply calculators on steroids? We have now reached the point where we must redefine what constitutes reason in the 21st century. On the intellectual battlefield, in February 1996, thirty-two chess pieces, represented the most recent challenge to the belief that thought is exclusive to humans. Kasparov, the human being chess champion, faced off against one of IBMs finest supercomputers , Deep Blue. Chess, a game of logic and reason, would be a perfect test of a computers ability to "think." In the Information Age battle of David vs. Goliath, the machine clearly had the advantage. Deep Blue is capable of playing out 50- 100 billion positions in the three proceeding allotted per turn. Nonetheless, the silicon brain was no match for the cunning intellect of the human mind. Deep Blue lacked the ability to anticipate the moves that Kasparov would make. In preparation for the game, Kasparov capable a strategy of play unique to the computer.

Bitter Imagery in Hamlet Essay -- GCSE English Literature Coursework

Bitter Imagery in village    In Hamlet, imaging of disease, poison and declension, are used by Shakespeare for a purpose. The descriptions of disease, poison, and dilapidate help us understand the bitter relationships that hold up in the play and Hamlets own cynicism. We see Hamlets pessimism in his monologue when he contemplates suicide. The resentful relationship that exists between Claudius and Hamlet is heightened with the use of imagery when Claudius asks about Polonius. Imagery enhances Claudius abhorrence of Hamlet. Shakespeare uses imagery in this play to deepen our sagacity of the emotions experienced.     The imagery of decay is used to help comprehend the depression Hamlet feels in his first soliloquy about suicide. O that this too sullied flesh would melt, Thaw, and go down itself into a dew, (Iii, 129-130) Hamlet is basically communicating that he wishes not to exist in this world anymore. He wants to die and be apart of the ground. An image of Hamlets flesh, rotting, combining with the soil is produced. At this moment we can grasp Hamlets true emotions. We feel his pain and his yearn for death. Hamlet continues to submit How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable/ Seem to me all the uses of this world Fie ont, ah, fie, tis an unweeded garden/ That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature /Possess it merely.(Iii, 133-137) Here, Hamlet says his reason for wanting to rive suicide is that he hates the world he lives in. He feels that the world around him is useless and in disarray. We can understand the true motivation for his suicide. Shakespeare lets us friction match into Hamlets soul by creating these vivid images.     Claudius relationship with Hamlet is drea... ...hance Hamlets pessimism of life. Imagery is also used significantly in portraying the sour emotions that exist between Hamlet and Claudius. When Claudius questions Hamlet of the whereabouts of Polonius we see the foul relationship with the help of imagery. As Claudius acknowledges Hamlets behaviour and insanity, he reveals the anger he feels towards Hamlet. In Hamlets soliloquy, with reference to suicide, imagery shows us his dark feelings. In Hamlet we truly see what a great deal of depth imagery provides us with. Imagery of disease, poison and decay gives us a chance at really understanding the true emotions that the characters experience in their mind and soul. With the imagery created by Shakespeare, we as readers, can actually comprehend the feelings that are experienced by the characters in Hamlet, that are not always obvious but important.