USING LITERATURE IN AN ADVANTAGED SITUATION: ISSUE AND PROSPECTS

Abstract

The sudden resurgence of English, which is largely due to the remarkable successes in industry, naturally brought about the emergence of literature. This paper will discuss the status of the teaching of literature in an advantaged situation, i.e. the fully residential schools such as those operated by the Ministry of Education and MARA, and suggest future directions. Students in these schools, the majority of whom are admitted after primary school education, are selected on the basis of their excellent academic achievement. The nature and composition of the student population in such schools would enable teachers to conduct more challenging activities in addition to the existing English language curriculum. The physical characteristics of these schools invite us to seek means of utilizing the advantaged learning situation to the fullest. When discussing future directions in approaches, a general review of both the present Class Reader Programme for the secondary school level and the elective Literature in English Programme at the upper secondary is necessary. This is done using Carter and Long's (1991) models in the teaching of literature. They suggested three models: (1) the cultural model, (2) the language model, and (3) the personal growth model. Several strategies for the advantaged situation that language and literature teachers can deploy in fully residential schools to make the teaching of literature more meaningful are offered.