At the start of this course I wrote in my journal that I felt fairly confident – I work in a high school library, I’ve been an English teacher for almost 17 years, and I thoroughly enjoy YA fiction. These advantages helped somewhat with my prior knowledge giving me a good kickstart, but what I didn’t estimate was how it would make me examine my own reading habits, and how a love of fiction connected to my own learning journey. I have never studied WW2 in detail, but I know quite a lot through my WW2 fiction phase; likewise, I’ve never learnt about Henry VIII and his many wives in an official capacity, but siphoned knowledge about this era from a series of Philippa Gregory novels.
By examining how fiction has affected my own acquirement of knowledge, I could easily see how learning is about so much more than what is written on the classroom whiteboard. Engaging in reading fiction alongside their studies gives secondary students the ability to connect with their learning in a way that textbooks can’t provide.
Beach et al (2011) discuss the “intense concern with self” that plagues teenagers today, and teachers must view these developmental theories in light of very present social and political concerns that engulf young adults. When teaching about climate change in a science classroom, for example, we must keep in mind that this is a legitimate threat, often presented as “eco-anxiety” in young adults (Sciberras & Fernando, 2021). They argue that this isn’t a bad thing as it encourages personal responsibility; I would argue that reading literature, particularly fiction, where students engage with characters ALREADY struggling in a post climate-change world encourages them to put themselves in that person’s shoes, to look at the science and our possible futures from a human perspective. Straits & Nicholls (2006) state that studying literature and practising science in combination reflects how science is actually conducted – reading literature “generates curiosity in science, and doing science promotes enthusiasm for reading”. The same could be said for literature in other subject areas – and what a golden opportunity for schools to utilise TLs.
TLs are a resource which connects the curriculum to literature, and thus connects knowledge to the human experience. By studying a vast range of literature in combination with the curriculum, students are broadening and deepening their learning experiences. Bland (2019) states that “literary texts form a gateway to new perspectives and intercultural awareness.” Any English teacher can tell you this, but teachers of other curriculum areas may not quite understand how this can fit into their lesson plans. School staff simply must be on board with creating a culture of reading and literacy, and it must be seen as something that crosses curricular areas and reading levels (A culture of reading, 2010). As a TL, I can promote this connection through collaboration with staff and through building a schoolwide culture that values reading – putting myself, the library staff and the library itself at the forefront of collaboration, resource collection, literacy, and curriculum support and enhancement.
REFERENCES
A culture of reading (2010). Reading Today, 27(6), 38.
Beach, R., Appleman, D., Hynds, S., & Wilhelm, J. (2011). Teaching literature to adolescents. Taylor and Francis.
Bland, J. (2019). Learning through literature. In S. Garton & F. Copland (Eds.), Routledge Handbook of Teaching English to Young Learners (pp. 269-287). Routledge.
Sciberras, E. & Fernando, J. (2021, November 11). Yes, young people are concerned about climate change. But it can drive them to take action. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/yes-young-people-are-concerned-about-climate-change-but-it-can-drive-them-to-take-action-171300
Straits, W. & Nichols, S. (2006). Methods and Strategies: Literature Circles for Science. Science and Children, 44(3), 52-55.