Redefining Literature Education through Active Teaching Strategies

In the past, there has been a rigid definition of what goes on inside the classroom for the literary subjects: A knowledgeable professor stands behind a wooden desk, giving a well-rehearsed lecture while the students furiously take down all the information. This was the way things were done during the eighties and even before. The teacher’s position was that of being the oracle of all wisdom, responsible for pouring this wisdom into the minds of students. However, things have evolved. We now understand that teaching does not simply involve talking; it is an art as well as a science involving methods and procedures. Teaching literary studies, therefore, does no longer mean only lecturing.
Previously, many accomplished teachers felt that earning degrees from top institutions made them effective teachers. They concentrated on the content (the theme of a poem or the historical background of a book) without considering the pedagogical approach or the teaching strategy. Although those experts had great knowledge of the subject matter, their classes were usually disengaging. There was scarcely any solicitation of ideas from the students, or formative assessments or minimal interactions.
While lectures may showcase the brilliance of a teacher, they do not ensure the learning of a student. According to current educational theories, if a student does not analyse, write, and discuss the content of a text, the comprehension level of the information is still shallow. The shift from the old-fashioned teaching approach to the new classroom entails a major change in thinking from teaching content to the methods students learn.
To take learning above and beyond mere lectures, teachers need to arm themselves with a set of techniques that canbe applied in every literary genre. The first technique entails elicitation and scaffolding. That is, teachers need not spoon-feed learners by explaining how certain metaphors are used in the text but need only ask questions which lead the learners towards that understanding.
Additionally, assessment needs to be continuous. It is necessary to do away with assessments done after class through final exams and engage students with formative assessments such as asking learners to write summaries about what they have been taught and allowing time for discussion within the class. Finally, writing tasks need to be included in the class sessions. Literature lessons require the inclusion of writing assignments because writing is simply thinking out loud.
Various forms of literary works necessitate various skills in teaching. It is impossible to teach a poem in the same way as a novel of five hundred pages is taught. For poetry, there should be an emphasis not only on the meaning of the text but also on the sound aspect of the poetry. According to modern methods of teaching poetry, the text should be read aloud several times not only by the teacher but also by the students. The analysis of poetry can be hair-splitting, which means that students need to analyse the effect created by one word choice.
In case of drama, the work itself serves as a script for performance rather than being a silent text. In a well-developed education system, the technique for teaching drama involves watching films and analysing performances in order to compare them to each other. Besides, role-play is also very important since, through acting out particular scenes, students can see deeper meaning beyond mere words.
With regards to teaching this book, the problem lies in handling the broad nature of the content. This can be achieved through the use of literature circles, where students assume roles that involve things like summary and word finding within a number of weeks. This makes the work of explanation the student’s responsibility rather than the teacher’s.
For many western institutions of higher learning, it is standard practice for an outline of a particular course to be carefully put together to incorporate multiple learning methods. An outline does not simply detail what chapters will be covered but provides a time schedule for the same in order to guarantee actual engagement of the text by the students. The use of multimedia is to provide either historical background or artistic diversity while certain time is allocated to one-to-one oral presentations, thereby giving students the opportunity to express themselves publicly.
Today’s literature teacher is more than simply an instructor; he or she is a facilitator, a catalyst, and even the creator of experiences. It is essential that we stop considering the old idea whereby when the instructor leaves the class, the lecture ends. Instead, a good modern class would be one in which the leaving of the teacher leads to vigorous debates among the pupils, partially completed essays, and intense engagement with the text.
The study of literature deals with the human condition. By merely lecturing, one treats literature as something lifeless. The application of techniques, on the other hand, will enable the literature to come alive through the learners. It is time for us to fully embrace all the techniques that make teaching possible.

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The writer is Assistant Professor of English at Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology, Dhaka