Reading Fiction in a Second-Language Classroom

Abstract

This article considers the role of reading fiction within the school subject of Swedish as a second language. It examines how a group of advanced second-language learners in a Swedish upper secondary school read and discuss a contemporary Swedish novel, how they interact with the text and with each other in relation to the text. Further, it analyses which forms of reading the students use. It reports on a qualitative, empirical study based on field studies, transcriptions of taperecorded interaction as well as written texts. The results indicate that second-language learners in this context have a positive attitude to reading and discussing what they read using different forms of reading. They often compare the content of the text to their own lives. One conclusion drawn is that literature teaching could be integrated into a single Swedish subject in order to create even more meaningful interactions between students from different backgrounds and that literature can be a means leading to language development as well as personal development.

Implementing English language teaching reforms through professional learning

“…This quote reflects the growth in Simin's agency in that she initiated a new way of resolving the issues she had in her own class, and this appeared to be the result of encouragement she received through the collegial sharing of ideas (Beighton, 2016;Hanks, 2015). In addition, through enabling her students to take responsibility and invest in the group work tasks, they were supported to develop their own linguistic and personal identities as English language learners (Economou, 2015).…”

Skönlitteratur i skolämnet svenska som andraspråk

“…Mycket forskning har bedrivits om svenskämnets litteraturundervisning, i såväl skola som lärarutbildning (se till exempel Alkestrand, 2016;Bergman, 2014;Johansson, 2015;Thavenius, 2017;Ulfgard, 2015), medan forskningen i SVA har varit mer styvmoderligt behandlad. Undantag i nordiska sammanhang är avhandlingar och studier av Elisabeth Ellingsen (2013) och Catarina Economou (2015;2018). Deras empiri belyser bland annat andraspråkselevers reception av litterära texter som använts i undervisningen.…”

“…Studien argumenterar bland annat för att utvidga ämnet litteratur genom att inkludera litterära traditioner från andra delar av världen, i såväl skola som litteraturvetenskap på universitetsnivå. Economou (2015) belyser hur andraspråkselever på gymnasiet läser och diskuterar romanen Kalla det vad fan du vill (Bakhtiari, 2011) genom sin receptionsstudie. Eleverna har en positiv hållning till läsningen och hjälpte varandra till förståelse av oklarheter i texten.…”

Aikuisten S2-oppijoiden kielenoppimisen kokemuksia selkomukautetun kaunokirjallisuuden parissa

“…Lukiessa tapahtuu myös huomaamatonta oppimista (Chang & Renandya, 2017), joten kaikki oppiminen ei tule ilmi haastatteluin. Kielenoppimisesta on havaittu, että ulkopuo-ja Economou (2015) havaitsivat yhtä lailla merkityskeskustelua toisella kielellä käydyissä kirjallisuuskeskusteluissa.…”