International Journal of Indonesian Studies , Vol 1 2013
International Journal of Indonesian Studies , Vol 1 2013
One of the key factors contributing to the overuse of grammar-driven methodology is the national examination system that emphasises rote learning packed into multiple choice test items , which neglects students ‘ critical thinking abilities .
Grammar and other language rules are by no means unimportant ; in fact , knowledge of grammar is a prerequisite in language learning . However , English teaching that over emphasises this aspect is often regarded as insufficient and irrelevant for learners living in the information era ( Kalantzis & Cope , 2012 ).
LITERATURE REVIEW
Critical Literacy in language education
Critical literacy is grounded in critical social theory and rooted in the Frankfurt School ( Kincheloe & McLaren , 2000 ) where researchers such as Max Horkheimer , Theodor Adorno , Walter Benjamin , and Herbert Marcuse worked together in the Institute for Social Research in Frankfurt , Germany , in the mid-1930s . Inspired by Kant ‘ s critical viewpoint and Marx ‘ s critique of ideology , this school of thought pursued the objective of discovering and revealing basic inequalities and hypocrisy in society by means of ― immanent critique ‖ and ― dialectical thought ‖ ( McDaniel , 2006 ). Paulo Freire ( 1970 ), the Brazilian educator , also developed and popularised the notion of critical pedagogy , transferring critical theory into schools ‘ practices , in his well-known book , Pedagogy of the Oppressed . His work has made a significant contribution to the concept of critical literacy in language curriculum as a conscious act to empower disenfranchised groups to unpack the unequal power relations in society and transform themselves through literacy education . Similarly , Janks ( 2000 ) also argues that critical literacy education should teach learners to understand the complex relationship between language and power .
Although this approach has been widely defined based on the contexts of its use in language education , some argue that it should not be viewed simply as an instructional strategy but as a philosophical belief embodied in literacy education that ― students are language users , not language recipients ‖ ( Lee , 2011 , 100 ).
For the purpose of this paper which examines critical literacy and English as a foreign language , I would like to draw a definition from Luke and Dooley ( 2011 ).
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