Written and designed by Claudia Maria Uribe Hoyos, Yimmy Alejandro Martinez Toro and Fabumuyi Olutade Austine
¨Great literature is simply language charged with meaning to the utmost possible degree¨ Ezra Pound (American poet and essayist, 1885-1972)
Introduction.
Literature is the mirror of life. In fact, Literature is the expression of societal´s events in form of drama, prose and poetry. It is an important factor in learning a language and it cannot be swept under the carpet of sociolinguistics or culture. As a matter of fact, culture cannot be divorced from language and literature. Therefore, this literary work is geared towards making literature a focal point of learning in SLA or FL classroom. As a matter of fact, literature has gone into CLT and literature has taken a pride of place in the world of task based language learning and communicative language learning. However, the rudiments of literature, its importance and reasons behind its use and how it can be utilized in order to achieve the sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics` objectives of learning in the face of technological advancement and sophistication of L2 learning techniques or methodology of our today`s world full of digital natives and immigrants in terms of language use and usage remain the focus of this research work. Furthermore, using literary pieces in EFL /ESL classrooms has become a fundamental element in order to achieve constructive communication in meaningful scenarios. It can be claimed that literature has the advantage of being spread everywhere: a book, an e-book, a comic, a billboard and great textbooks. Thus, the richness it can bring to classrooms and the countless possibilities of reaching all kind of learners cannot be underestimated.
Why is Literature important in language learning?
Literature is the flesh of language. It is the socio -cultural skin which covers the skeleton of language. Certainly, it can be said that literature is an important concept in the language learning classroom because it opens the world of learners to different styles of expressions as well as the intrinsic or the extrinsic dispositions of the literary work and its elements. Nonetheless, the quotation below also sums up the importance of literature:
´´Studying the literature of any language is one of the best ways to learn it and to get a feel for it. Language is obviously all about words and words are the way in which we communicate with each other, verbal and written. We learn from others in whatever is our native language. Literature is the written language and contains various styles of expressions involving imagination and mood and thoughts and ideas as well as to relate everything that makes up the human condition. It is characterized by the culture of any society. Once you acquire all the rudimentary knowledge of English language construction you then build on this by studying literature at various levels¨ (Damian, 2004)
Literature could never be disconnected from the language classroom, it is a clear representation of the diverse kinds of texts readers are faced to, and it is language itself presented under several literary aspects. (Carter and Nash, 1990 in Savvidou 2004). Equally important, the use of literature in the language classroom to develop intercultural awareness in students can further improve their interpretative, inter-textual appreciation, as well as their critical thinking. Widdowson (1979) suggests that literary discourse is interpreted in the same way any other type of discourse is.
In other words, it is believed that one can read as much as one can. Not only does one familiarise oneself with good and correct use of language, but immerse oneself in the subject matter of the material. Also, the fact that knowing how to read leads the learners to imitate the way literature is written and that has further led learners to the written and oral analysis of the literary work. As a result, they subconsciously or spontaneously assimilate the essence of a language through literature.
How can Literature be utilized in EFL/ESL classroom?
Literature is a tool in the EFL/ESL classroom. Indeed, there are several objectives that can be reached through its use in any teaching setting. It can be an element to study the language and its constituents, and thus makes learners acquire it in a subconscious way by a natural and meaningful exposure. This can be done by simply reading any literary text and developing reading comprehension exercises from literal or inferential aspects: keeping a literary journal; developing a reading log; being part of a literary circle or a reading club.
Certainly, literature can be used to learn languages by exposing learners to extensive literary work from any literary genre, considering their likes, dislikes and linguistic level, as well as the type of class and the objectives followed there. For instance, telling a short story and using soap opera from the local or national television stations can have a far-reaching positive effect on learners.
Furthermore, literature can also be used to commence a class by using a story related to a specific topic and then ask students to give a response through any literary text or linguistic expression. Also,students can be taught how to write a poem with poetic license in order to appreciate the auditory quality, emphasize the expressive and creative function of language; or see what they feel and recall by being exposed to famous poets and their work.
Literature is a representation of feelings; context and it could be used to appeal to the senses of readers through the use of imagery and symbolism from simple exercises to more complex ones. In addition,teachers must consider all kinds of literary pieces to be brought to the class and respect the readers’ rights to express opinions related to agreement, disagreement, and diverse feelings about the text and what it evokes. Equally important, literature can be utilized to teach referential and representational language: social and imaginative situation with emphasis on the target language. In other words, literary texts which engage the imagination of the learners can be entrenched in the classroom. With reference to the points mentioned above,it is important to determine how, when, why and how literature can be explored in the classroom. Subsequently, it will be easier to determine its realm in EFL/ESL teaching and the objectives it would fulfill. A good possibility to clarify the approach to be used when working with literature is the rational presented by Carter and Long (1991), where a combination or balance between the cultural, the language and the personal growth model are integrated. (Savvidou)
Metacognitive and Cognitive learning in literature classroom.
It has been said that language teaches how to communicate while literature teaches what to communicate. Literature is the product of our immediate and remote floral and fauna. Indeed, it is accepted that literary text can serve as a powerful pedagogic tool which can further improve communicative competence.
The focus on language in the L2 or EFL classroom has taken away the fact that literature is the only beauty of language. Therefore, it can be mentioned that, in terms of the metacognitive and cognitive nature of literature, skimming and scanning as reading strategies can be taught or learned in EFL or SLA classroom. Having mentioned it earlier, literature in the realm of language learning will improve critical thinking.
Moreover, literary texts with all the meaning ,connections and effects they have on the readers could serve as the planning of a structured use of cognitive and metacognitive strategies. For instance, the first group can be worked on by simply activating prior knowledge; making inferences or predictions; personalizing what is being expressed by the literary text or reading exercises where the students must encounter new vocabulary and work with transference or paraphrasing among others. Furthermore, the second group can be enhanced by working on a specific task that takes the students/readers to plan what to do, manage their own learning, monitor what has been done and evaluate the outcomes, an example for such use of the strategies can be done through a reading journal, a blog or the participation in literary circle.
Learning strategies could be enhanced with literature from diverse perspectives that would go from basic reading comprehension strategies to the possibility of developing critical readers who give their opinions, express feelings, evaluate imagery and judge or interprete the tone of the writer.
Conclusion
This research work has attempted to throw more lights on how literature can be utilized in the EFL or SLA classroom. Without doubt, literature is vital tool of language learning and it is a product of our immediate environment. Needless to say that, if it is well utilized learners will learn language subconsciously and become more critical thinkers. In addition, it could be stated that literary texts foster and use all the branches of linguistics and therefore they are essential pieces to be analyzed, felt, expressed and enjoyed in the EFL/ESL classroom .
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