Context
In the English classroom, some works (and genres) of literature are treated as worthy of study simply for their own sake and for their socio-cultural importance, such as Romeo and Juliet, but very few short stories are considered so iconic. Of the four genres mandatorily taught at the secondary level—short stories, novels, poetry, and drama (Shakespeare)—short stories are perhaps the most superficially accessible to students, and therein lies the danger of limiting the learning outcome to superficial understandings of individual texts. This is unfortunate, as the structure of the genre has great potential for developing critical thinking, literacy and literary skills that are widely applicable both to other subjects and to real-life situations.
Research Question
For this reason, I believe it is valuable for the English teacher to consider which approaches (classroom and lesson structures) are most conducive to pushing past a superficial level of understanding and using the texts themselves as opportunities to learn and apply critical thinking and literacy skills. For this independent inquiry project, I intend to explore the range of approaches to teaching short stories, both traditional and contemporary, that have been used to foster the development of specific skills, paying specific attention to which skills are favored by each particular approach. As a secondary consideration, I would also like to explore how different approaches address the issue of having a wide range of skill, ability and interest across the student population, as well as how those approaches are able to make students’ internal thought processes accessible to the teacher.
Research Approach
The approach that I have taken for this inquiry project involves researching academic publications on the topic of pedagogical approaches to the short story, identifying at least three unique approaches to teaching the short story and the skills they aim to develop, and comparing these approaches to uncover how and why they lend themselves to fostering specific skills. This information will then be experimented with during my long practicum with the goal of uncovering which techniques best address the needs of my classroom and are the most practical, given my own individual teaching style.
Expected Conclusions
I anticipate finding a range of approaches that focus on developing literary (reading and analysis) skills, as well as awareness of important social and historical considerations. While these are valuable, I also hope to find some approaches that focus on the development of writing skills, language skills—specifically for EL learners—and information literacy.
Preliminary bibliography
Brier, D. J., & Lebbin, V. K. (2004). Teaching information literacy using the short story. Reference services review, 32(4), 383-387.
Duke, C. R. (1974). Teaching the Short Story. The English Journal, 63(6), 62-67.
Freeman, B. (1955). Teaching Short Stories. English Journal, 284-307.
Peltzie, B. E. (1966). Teaching Meaning Through Structure in the Short Story. English Journal, 703-719.
Potter, R., & Dale, J. (1948). A technique of teaching short-story writing. English Journal, 248-252.
Kallan, R. A. (2000). Teaching Journalistic Cogency with 55-Word Short Stories. Journalism and Mass Communication Educator, 55(3), 81-88.
Yan, K. (2006). An Approach To Teaching Short Stories. International Journal of Business and Management, 1.
Adhikari, B. Teaching short stories in the language classroom. Journal of NELTA, 11(1).
Carrell, P. L. (1985). Facilitating ESL reading by teaching text structure.TESOL quarterly, 19(4), 727-752.
Neupane, M. (2010). Teaching short stories with a difference. Journal of NELTA, 12(1).
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