Literature in contemporary foreign language school textbooks in Russia: Content, approaches, and readability

Calafato, Raees; Gudim, Freda

doi:10.1177/1362168820917909

Cited by 14 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 52 publications

(66 reference statements)

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“…This hesitancy can be compounded when the study materials they use contain language that does not reflect real-world interactions. Such is often the case with foreign language textbooks (Gilmore 2004), which have been found to contain outdated authentic content (Calafato and Gudim 2020) and are sometimes described by teachers as being of poor quality (Calafato 2018b). These shortcomings in textbooks have prompted calls for a greater focus on using authentic content in the foreign language classroom (Calafato and Paran 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comics as a multimodal resource and students’ willingness to communicate in Russian

Calafato

Gudim²

2021

Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics

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The multimodal nature of daily interactions in the twenty-first century has led to growing calls for the inclusion of multimodal content like comics in foreign language classrooms. Such content, as opposed to traditional language textbooks, can boost learners' self-confidence and more effectively develop their multimodal competence, including their willingness to use foreign languages via diverse media. This article reports on an exploratory study involving a teacher of Russian as a foreign language (RFL) and her students that investigated how the use of comics as a pedagogical resource affected the students' willingness to communicate (WTC) in Russian, the teacher's level of engagement with her students, and her professional development. The study drew on interviews, classroom observations, and samples of students' written production over two semesters. The study's findings revealed that the use of comics boosted the students' WTC in Russian multimodally, as well as their desire to read in the other languages they knew. The students exhibited a greater willingness to speak Russian during lessons, interact with others in Russian via social media networks, produce art that incorporated Russian, and engage in performative behavior using Russian in the classroom and beyond.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comics as a multimodal resource and students’ willingness to communicate in Russian

Calafato

Gudim²

2021

Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics

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“…The Lix formula, a proven measure of readability, was used to evaluate all included materials [ 24 , 25 ]. In contrast to other metrics like the Gunning Fogg Index, Lix was demonstrated to be a trustworthy measure of readability in various languages (Swedish, Danish, English, French, German, Finnish, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese) [ 18 , 24 , 25 ]. It is considered by the scientific community to be a reliable readability measure for all European languages [ 18 , 24 , 25 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast to other metrics like the Gunning Fogg Index, Lix was demonstrated to be a trustworthy measure of readability in various languages (Swedish, Danish, English, French, German, Finnish, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese) [ 18 , 24 , 25 ]. It is considered by the scientific community to be a reliable readability measure for all European languages [ 18 , 24 , 25 ]. Not only is it easy to calculate and understand but it also overcomes challenges with syllabification, making it suitable for complex languages such as Chinese and Arabic [ 18 , 24 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Readability of Patient Electronic Materials for Atopic Dermatitis in 23 Languages: Analysis and Implications for Dermatologists

Skrzypczak,

Szepietowski

2024

Dermatol Ther (Heidelb)

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Introduction Patients search on the Internet for information about various medical procedures and conditions. The main aim of this study was to evaluate the readability of online health information related to atopic dermatitis (AD). Online resources are becoming a standard in facilitating shared decision-making processes. With a pipeline of new therapeutic options like immunomodulators, understanding of the complexity of AD by the patients is crucial. Methods The term “atopic dermatitis” translated into 23 official European Union languages was searched using the Google search engine. The first 50 records in each language were evaluated for suitability. Included materials were barrier-free, focused on patient education, and were not categorized as advertisements. Article sources were classified into four categories: non-profit, online shops, pharmaceutical companies, and dermatology clinic. Readability was assessed with Lix score. Results A total of 615 articles in Swedish, Spanish, Slovenian, Slovak, Romanian, Portuguese, Polish, Lithuanian, Latvian, Irish, Italian, Hungarian, Greek, German, French, Finnish, Estonian, English, Dutch, Danish, Czech, Croatian, and Bulgarian were evaluated. The overall mean Lix score was 56 ± 8, which classified articles as very hard to comprehend. Significant differences in mean Lix scores were observed across all included languages (all P < 0.001). Articles released by non-profit organizations and pharmaceutical companies had the highest readability ( P < 0.001). Low readability level was correlated with high article prevalence ( R 2 = 0.189, P = 0.031). Conclusions Although there was an abundance of online articles related to AD, the readability of the available information was low. As online health information has become essential in making shared decisions between patients and physicians, an improvement in AD-related materials is needed.

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“…This is seen in drama conversations, sentiment expressions, functional phrases, and views in contextualized utterances (Khatib, et al, 2011). As Calafato & Gudim (2020) reported, literary texts are often the most important link to other cultures for learners who do not have the opportunity to interact with native speakers of the target language. The same is true for novels and real-life works based on the creative and artistic nature of the individual.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…The worth of authenticity that literature holds in its input for language acquisition since it is deemed authentic content is one example of what is viewed as an advantage of utilizing literature in the classroom. According to Calafato & Gudim (2020), literary texts can meet the requirements for textual authenticity since literary works are authentic and were not explicitly created for use in textbooks. Maley (1989) further contributed to this fact by claiming that literary texts such as novels, dramas, and even poems are written with themes and content that Arab World English Journal www.awej.org ISSN: 2229-9327 156 revolve around a variety of non-trivial issues while providing the reader with real, authentic input that has a personal connection and affects the individual.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Voice of Learners on English Literary Texts: Passing on the Mantle

Samat¹,

Azmi²,

Abdullah³

2021

AWEJ

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This study examines how pre-service teachers assess the appropriateness of literary texts used by high school students in terms of learners’ age, linguistic needs, and language proficiency. It also aims to determine the relevance of the texts used to learners’ cultural understanding. The participants in this study were five pre-service teachers who participated in a content analysis study of five literary texts. They analyzed the content of the texts using the four categories of textbook evaluation criteria proposed by Tomlinson (2001), namely, media-specific criteria, content-specific criteria, learner-specific criteria, and language criteria. The evaluation results were positive. All participants agreed that all five texts were appropriate for high school learners, with average levels of compliance ranging from moderate to appropriate. In addition to selecting texts that are appropriate for the learners’ language level, the topics and issues addressed in the texts should also be appropriate for the learners’ interest, so the selection of literary texts is crucial. Finally, more local texts should be selected for the English literature curriculum to highlight local cultures and practices. It is expected that this study will contribute to English language teaching as the findings of this study will provide necessary information to those who are concerned with the selection of appropriate literary texts for schools. In addition, this study will raise awareness among teachers and curriculum designers of the need to consider learners’ level of competence when evaluating and selecting from the many literary texts available.

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Literature in contemporary foreign language school textbooks in Russia: Content, approaches, and readability

Cited by 14 publications

References 52 publications

Comics as a multimodal resource and students’ willingness to communicate in Russian

Comics as a multimodal resource and students’ willingness to communicate in Russian

Readability of Patient Electronic Materials for Atopic Dermatitis in 23 Languages: Analysis and Implications for Dermatologists

The Voice of Learners on English Literary Texts: Passing on the Mantle

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