Revista simpozionului Eficiență și calitate în educație - 19 mai 2017 Eficiență și calitate în educație | Page 55

In other words, students are taught to think independently, to write and speak
autonomously about what has been read, to be open to the critics’ ideas but not let
themselves overwhelmed or even manipulated into relying on some particular ideas and to
develop their creativity in the light of text analysis and critical engagement with the text.
Designed to stimulate intellectual curiosity and to promote creative, logical and
analytical thinking, an optional course will encourage students to be literate and articulate,
to be competent in the expression of ideas and feelings and to engage critically with texts.
In his article entitled “The Role of Literature in ELT - Part One”, Dario Banegas
mentions the following benefits of studying literature: students have the opportunity to
discuss the moral, social, ethical, economical and cultural issues that are debated;
to consider how different contexts affect our interpretation and evaluation of literary texts;
to develop an understanding of universal human experience within a particular
background; to improve the language skills through exposure to authentic material;
to form artistic taste and refine the way of thinking and feeling; to enhance creativity and
self-knowledge in order to become independent learners. Their responses to texts can be
personal, reflective, discursive, creative and analytical.
Thus, an optional course will explore the power of language to provoke and shape
response, with particular reference to both literary texts and students’ own ideas. Students
explore and discuss the techniques and effects of the language used in literary texts.
On the one hand, they will improve the language skills through acquiring complex
grammar structures and sophisticated vocabulary, language used in daily conversations as
well as the specialized terminology related to text analysis. On the other hand, they will
improve the literary skills through exploring the evocative power of the literary language
and will come to understand that language itself can be imaginative, sensuous,
persuasive, stimulating and pleasurable.
In addition to this, the reading activities, critical thinking and production skills
encouraged by an optional course will be useful in students’ current studies in high school,
in their further studies in their chosen careers and in their lives generally.
In the last decade particularl y, there have been some major changes in Romania
regarding the teaching of English literature in high school language-based class. These
changes were greatly illustrated in the content of the English textbooks used in high
schools due to the new requirements of the Baccalaureate exam regarding the status of
the foreign languages as stated by the Ministry of Education and Scientific Research.
Thus, the exam has taken the form of evaluating students’ competence in mastering a
foreign language according to the Common European Framework of Reference for
Languages, with the four language skills (Listening, Speaking, Reading, Writing) being
central.
Prior to this, the content of the high school textbooks consisted of an array of
topics and tasks based on vocabulary-based exercises, grammar-related exercises and
extracts from literary texts as a major part of the unit meant to develop students’ creativity
in expressing their opinions, to familiarize them with certain literary conventions of the
target language and to develop their extensive reading skills.
Along with the new requirements of the Baccalaureate exam, new textbooks were
introduced. The content was totally based on developing the four language skills through a
wide variety of exercises and tasks. As far as the study of literature is concerned, there is
no reference at all and it seems to be kept off the syllabus.
In this respect, literature should not be regarded as “elitist” and reserved for the
most advanced levels of study. In a language–based class, literature can offer principled
and thoughtful approaches to help students improve their English. At the same time, there
will be a great challenge for teachers as well: to select and design the material according
to students’ needs and interests along with the proper tasks and testing procedures that
will broaden their mastery of the target language. Thus, literature should be regarded as a
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