Journal Article

The Challenge of Cultivating National and Cosmopolitan Identities Through Literature

Choo, Suzanne S., Yeo, Dennis, Chua, Bee Leng

2022

Overview

Since the late 20th century, scholars have called for a need to broaden the aims of teaching English Literature away from its Eurocentric focus. Much effort has also been invested in making the subject more relevant through diversifying the texts studied and connecting texts to current social and global issues. It is pertinent now to ask what the significant role of Literature is in a globally interconnected age. In particular, what do teachers believe are key philosophical objectives of teaching literature, and how does this influence the texts they select, the instructional strategies they employ, and the values they seek to cultivate in the classroom? In this article, we report on the first National Survey of Literature Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices in Singapore schools. First, we review four key pedagogical movements that have underpinned the teaching of literature in schools around the world: New Criticism, Reader-Response Criticism, Poststructuralist Criticism, and Ethical Criticism. These respectively represent four key constructs (text, reader, culture, and other) used in the design and analysis of our survey instrument. Next, we report on the survey findings, focusing on Singapore as a barometer of current trends given its identity as an Anglophone country negotiating conflicting global and postcolonial identities with an education system that inhabits colonial traditions. We highlight key tensions arising from the impetus to develop national and cosmopolitan identities through Literature, and reflect on the implications for future directions in teaching.

• Publisher: Wiley,Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subject: 20th century / 3‐Early adolescence / 4‐Adolescence / Anglophones / Classrooms / Colonialism / Critical Theory / Criticism / Culturally Responsive Pedagogy / Diversity / Educational Methods / Educational Objectives / Educational Philosophy / Educational Practices / Educational Strategies / Educational systems / Educational Trends / English Instruction / English Literature / English Teachers / Ethics / Foreign Countries / Global Approach / Global perspective / Globalization and Literacy / Instructional strategies; methods and materials / Literacies / Literary Criticism / Literary Theory / Literature / Literature‐Based Instruction / Motivation/engagement / National identity / National Surveys / Negotiation / Polls & surveys / Postcolonialism / Poststructuralism / Post‐structuralism / Reader Response / Reading instruction / Schools / Self Concept / Social Problems / State Surveys / Survey Research / Teacher Attitudes / Teachers / Teaching / Teaching Methods / Trend Analysis