Understanding the Models and

Approaches of Teaching
Literature
Literature study aims to promote language development, such as vocabulary and
structure. It also helps one achieve pleasure and satisfaction in reading while appreciating what
has been in one's time and space. This universality of literature makes it appealing to everyone,
regardless of culture, race, sex, and time. As students engage in literary peace, their critical
thinking is stimulated, and the mental process of abstract reasoning is enriched. The reader's
emotional powers are unraveled by analyzing symbolisms, implied meanings, nuances, and
messages. As such, there is a need to anchor the analysis on literary models to understand
better how each literary piece presents peculiar ways of seeing life, as evidenced by the
organization of ideas, form, structures, and expressions.
Remember that it is through understanding that we fully appreciate something. In this
lesson, we will be acquainted with the three models in teaching literature and how the
intertwining of these models can lead to holistic teaching. Furthermore, you are expected to
demonstrate the extent of your understanding as you plan and implement a session with an in-
service teacher.

The Cultural Model

The advocates of the cultural model believe that the value of literature lies in its unique
distillation of culture. In this model, the class reads ction or poetry as part of their instruction
about history, politics, social mores, and traditions.
The cultural model relates to the information-based approach (Thunnithet, 2011).
Literature is a source of facts or information that is put across to students by the teacher
(Hwang & Embi, 2007). It stresses the role of literature and condensing values, ideas, and
wisdom accumulated within a culture over historical periods (Aydin, 2013). Students need to
understand and search for political, literary, social, and historical context from the learned text.
It assists students to understand and appreciate di erent cultures and ideologies of thoughts
and feelings beyond their time and space. It is a traditional approach, teacher-centered, and
delivers information and facts to students (Rashid, Vethamani, & Rahman, 2010).
Information-based Approach. The information-based approach gives students
knowledge and information (Thunnithet, 2011). It is teacher-centered and demands a lot of
teacher input in giving students various literary content with historical, political, cultural, and
social backgrounds. Knowledge of literature is delivered as a source of information to students
(Rashid, Vethamani, & Rahman, 2010). It includes reading from the criticism or notes,
explanations, and lectures given by the teacher for examination’s sake (Hwang & Embi, 2007).

The Language Model

Since literature is built from language, it opens a path for students to construct their
understanding of words and phrases. According to this model, reading is of value, and for the
same reason, it is valuable in a student’s native language: it gives them the tools for more
e ective communication.
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 The language model comprises a paraphrastic approach, a stylistic approach, and a
language-based approach. It integrates language and literature to improve students’ language
pro ciency while learning the language (Hwang & Embi, 2007). It uses literature to teach
di erent language functions, such as grammar, vocabulary, and language structures, from
literary texts to students (Aydin, 2013). It helps to attain literature’s aesthetic aspect solely via
the expression and communication quality of literature (Khatib, Rezaei, & Derakhshan, 2011).
Paraphrastic Approach. The paraphrastic approach primarily involves paraphrasing
and rewording the text to a more straightforward language or using other languages to
translate it. Teachers use simple words or less complex sentence structures to make the
original text easy to understand (Divsar, 2014). It is teacher-centered and does not contribute
many exciting activities to students (Hwang & Embi, 2007).
Stylistic Approach. The stylistic approach implies literary criticism and linguistic
analysis. It is for students to appreciate and understand the literary text more profoundly. It
helps students to interpret that text meaningfully and develops language awareness and
knowledge (Thunnithet, 2011). It analyzes the language before the elements of literary text
(Aydin, 2013).
Language-based Approach. The language-based approach helps students
understand how the language is used when studying literature. It is student-centered and
activity-based for the productive use of language. It improves students’ language pro ciency
and incorporates literature and language skills among students (Dhillon & Mogan, 2014). It
engages students more in experiences and responses (Aydin, 2013). Role-play, cloze, poetry
recital, discussions, forum and debate, dramatic activities, making predictions, brainstorming,
rewriting stories’ endings, and summarizing are practiced in this approach (Divsar, 2014).

The Personal Growth Model

In this model, the focus is on engagement. Teachers use literature to help students
understand themselves better and connect with the world around them in a more profound way
by exploring universal themes.
The personal growth model comprises a personal response approach and a moral
philosophical approach. It enables students to develop their language, character, and emotions
by connecting and responding to the issues and themes [of the stories] in their lives (Hwang &
Embi, 2007). It encourages students to love and enjoy reading literature for personal
development and to relate their relationships to the environment (Aydin, 2013).
Personal Response Approach. The personal response approach encourages students
to make sense of their experiences and their personal lives with text themes. It also
encourages students to associate the subject matter of the reading texts with personal life
experiences (Rashid, Vethamani, & Rahman, 2010). It engages individuals in literary text
reading as personal ful llment and pleasure can be met while developing language and literary
competency (Divsar, 2014). Brainstorming, small group discussions, journal writing, interpreting
opinions, and generating views from a text are practiced in this approach (Hwang & Embi,
2007).
Moral-Philosophical Approach. Learners seek moral values from a particular literary
text while reading it. It helps students to be aware of moral and philosophical values and
identify them (Rashid, Vethamani, & Rahman, 2010). Students must go beyond the text for
moral and philosophical inference (Divsar, 2014). With this approach, teachers can direct
students to achieve self-realization and self-understanding while interpreting literary works (Lim
& Omar, 2007). This approach is in line with the aim of the secondary English language
syllabus, which is to instill values for good citizenship.

Though each model has distinct characteristics, speci c ways exist to expand your
students’ experiences of learning literature in a second language. Using the models, students
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 can access the target language, understand the target culture, and eventually realize the
seamless connections between the language and the other subjects. Such connections allow
them to see the relevance of language in other disciplines like history, math, and art. In doing
so, they will be able to understand the universality of language. Through guided practice, your
students will see examples of metaphors, symbols, analogies, and puns and unconsciously
think about similar constructions in their rst language. This elucidates meaningfully
connecting language and personal growth.
Summing up, literature, which is built from language, serves as a gateway for students
to arrive at their understanding of words and phrases. As they read literary texts, they acquire
new words and learn discourse functions, structures, and sentence patterns, which are
sca olds for e ective writing. Using language in literary texts within its cultural context
supports personal growth. Succinctly, Carter considers that “teaching literature within a cultural
model enables students to understand and appreciate cultures and ideologies di erent from
their own in time and space and to come to perceive tradition of thought, feeling, and artistic
form within the heritage the literature of such cultures endows” (Carter & Long, 1997).
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