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Teaching Drama to Non-Native English-Speaking Students

If asked “Have you any experience of acting,” most people would answer “No”

and even make a scornful comment. Drama is usually looked upon as a cultural activity,

as something that we did at school, or do in an organization or even as something that

other people do to entertain us. However, drama is almost as natural to human beings as

breathing. Children say, “Let’s pretend.” Imaginative play is universal among children,

and drama is the most literal imitation of life to be found in the arts of the writer.

Formal drama has its origins in religious festivals. In addition, drama is deeply

rooted in magic, religion, and ritual. Ritual today still includes an element of drama; a

marriage service with its symbolic actions and vows, a funeral, a commemoration

service, a graduation, a military parade, or a coronation all include an element of drama

(Tomas, 1996).

Likewise, Courtney (1985) stated that the uniqueness of drama lies in what the

students do. In reality, drama education in the ESL classroom has no content or perhaps

the content of drama in schools is different in kind from all other subject areas. History is

about history, and science is about science, but drama is about nothing of that kind. The

subject matter of drama — what it is about — can be drawn from anywhere: the students’

heads, scripts, TV, or even other subjects in school.

The discussion in an ESL creative drama class is about students’ action — what is

to be done, or what has been done. In the major works on drama education — by

Winifred Ward, Geraldine Brain Kiks, Nellie McCaslin, Peter Slade, Brian Way, Dorothy

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Heathcote, Gain Bolton, Gisele Barnett, David Booth, and many others — we see that, in

any drama class, the essence is the students’ actions. Drama is about dramatic action:

how a person operates in such action; how we think, and how we express how we think,

in dramatic action. If drama has any content, this is what it is.

Consequently, drama is unique because its action (unlike any other school action)

is about the total process of living between birth and death. It is about human life and

human existence (Courtney, 1985). Drama involves the whole living process with which

ESL students can readily identify. The medium of literature is language, the medium of

music is sound, and the medium of math is abstract signs. But the medium of drama is the

person — the presentation of self, the actor acting.

Drama is one of the most difficult literary forms for the ESL instructor to teach

because it requires a higher degree of skill in selection and organization of language and

episode than any other. One significant factor that makes drama difficult for ESL students

is that students sometimes fail to visualize what is taking place. In most other forms of

prose, narrative passages aid visualization, but a play is a kind of shorthand. ESL students

need help in learning to read between the lines to actually see and hear the play.

Daigon (as cited in Ciaburri, 1975) stated that study after study showed that

students had a low opinion of literary activities. Most of this was due to a non-humanistic

approach to teaching. Too much time was spent with hard facts, biographical and

historical data, and technical terms. Students should not only be exposed, but rather

immersed in a great work of literature and encouraged to discuss it in depth in the ESL

classroom.

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Moreover, plays present different challenges in different languages. In Arabic, for

example, the use of drama in the ESL classroom encounters problems because the spoken

language is not considered literary (Ervin, 1991). There are even special problems related

to producing Shakespeare: Many of the words he used are no longer used or have

changed in meaning, controversy exists as to what the correct script is; and sometimes it

is not clear what the script means. Shakespeare’s plays were written for a theater

constructed somewhat differently from modern theaters and for a different style of acting.

These problems are less serious in plays of the eighteenth century or later. However, the

dramatic quality of a play is an important element for bringing literature alive for

students. Purcell (as cited in Ervin, 1991) believed that the genre of drama could hold

students’ interest through scene changes, character development action and the spoken

language.

According to Boulton (1996), “one of the very valuable results of education

through drama is that it improves the standard of speech. People . . . try to speak better

and more with more dignity” (p. 127). Reasons for teaching drama include drama’s

stimulation of high-level thinking and collaborative work. It can also be said that drama

brings students closer to imagining and reproducing the feelings of people who are quite

different from themselves (Jurczack, 2000). The fabric of a story (characters, time, place,

plot, and action) helps students to relate to culturally different peoples, and it helps them

also to relate to their own history and experiences. Through the reading of literature, ESL

students have the opportunity to become a part of another person’s life and thus increase

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their level of understanding. In particular, through the voice of a protagonist, readers have

the opportunity to adopt other perspectives (Smith & Metcalf-Turner, 1997, pp. 19-25).

The work of researchers and practitioners in the United States, such as Richard

Beach, Judith Langer, Kathleen McCormick, Jeffrey Wilhelmm, and others, has helped to

illuminate the ways in which theory of meaningful study of literary classics can be

translated into successful classroom practice. The educators offered solutions that show

the way for literature teachers, in an endeavor to help students find personal connection.

Asking students to “step into the world” of the classic realist novel and explore its

version of reality is the key to opening up its imaginative, dramatic, and creative

possibilities. Active methods allow students to have some ownership in generating

meanings and understanding. We must emphasize how teachers can enable students to

connect quickly and powerfully with a classic text by using simple, easily organized

drama activities (Baxter, 1999).

Our approach to the teaching of drama as ESL instructors must be stimulating and

imaginative. The classroom environment must permit students to take on roles without

fear of embarrassment. Each must feel he or she is valued as a person, with a valid

contribution to make and must not be expected to subordinate perceptions and needs to a

pattern imposed by the teacher (Barnes, 1996).

In approaching a script an ESL teacher has two main options: (a) present a scene,

or even a whole play, to the students, let them read and try to act it, and then work out in

discussion which parts they should work on in detail; or (b) prepare an analysis before the

class approaches the text. The latter is certainly easier for the teacher, but less effective.

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The more the students participate in decisions and activities, the more they will gain from

the lesson. Thus, the teacher effectively makes students responsible for much of the

examining and recreating of the text (Barnes, 1966).

Barnes (1966) believed that our task as English teachers was to help our pupils to

use language to explore and develop the world in which they live. Teachers must accept

the uncertainty of a classroom in which the unexpected not only may happen but is

intended to happen. Successful drama teaching, Barnes believed, grows from a

combination of careful planning of the classroom situation and sufficient perceptiveness

of what is going on in it to make possible an inspired opportunism. Teachers should have

practical experience of dramatic work partly to enable them to teach it but especially to

help their own self-development, Barnes attested.

Furthermore, drama can create a great deal of enthusiasm and excitement in the

ESL classroom. By using films, records, tapes, dramatizations, or oral interpretations,

plays can be brought to life in the drama classroom. These films, records and tapes are

readily available in public libraries.

Furthermore, audiovisual aids give the ESL students an opportunity to engage in

such learning activities as comparing the play with its film counterpart and presenting

different interpretations of a given speech or scene, thus developing the creative efforts of

students.

In a study conducted by Ciaburri (1975), two methods of teaching drama as a

literary form in an Introduction to Literature course were compared. Classes taught in the

traditional lecture-discussion manner were compared with individualized instruction as

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prescribed by performance objectives written by the students themselves. The purpose of

the study was to determine whether more cognitive learning takes place when students

who are studying drama as a literary form in English 102 - Introduction to Literature are

taught through a student-centered method, which encompasses both traditional lecture

and group interaction as well as an individualized behavioral objective approach, as

compared to students who are taught solely in the traditional lecture-group interaction

method.

Clearly in directing dramatic activities - as in all teaching - the teacher must

constantly be aware of his student’s needs and vulnerabilities. The aim is to set a situation

of social interaction in which diversity in encouraged, in which students are partly free of

inhibitions (Barnes, 1966).

According to Courtney, (1985) “I can do little better than cite from one of the

great master-teachers in contemporary drama education. Dorothy Heathcote says:

Teaching is creative work, and creative work has five features: the drive to want

to do it; the feed-back to satisfy the having done it; the content of the doing of it - the

level of function within the topic area; the signals to communicate during the doing; and

the rituals of going about itwe must make certain they (teachers) are given experience

in committing others to work(Teachers must) rely on what they are, where they are in

their thinking and how they communicate their ideas” (p. 21).

In summary, as Courtney (1985) stated,

a drama teacher must be a GOOD TEACHER FIRST. Without the appropriate practical knowledge, a drama teacher will not be a success. Drama teachers MUST be good at what they do because he or she deals with the inner lives of their students. He or she is responsible for the

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thoughts and feelings of the students, for their actions and their forms of expression, and for the way they conduct their dramatic lives. In drama, students are rehearsing for life itself as for art and, as a result, a drama teacher’s responsibility is quite overwhelming in its power. (p. 19-20)

Teaching Shakespeare’s Othello

Students at Gaza University study numerous plays from various periods in

English literature including the Elizabethan Renaissance and modern period. Of all the

widely studied Shakespearean tragedies and comedies, including Hamlet, Midsummer

Night Dream, and King Lear, Othello is perhaps the most popular. (Othello, like all of

Shakespeare’s plays Othello is complex, subtly nuanced and, historically, is seen as

difficult for beginning non-English speaking students. As James (1996) stated, through its

complexities and subtleties, Shakespeare gives his readers the opportunity to care about

the characters in the play. “We understand their weakness and their strengths, their

passion and their nobility” (James, 1996).

By studying Othello students at Gaza University are exposed to Shakespeare’s

ability to involve the reader in the lives and fortunes of his characters. Consequently, this

is considered by most educators as one of the best reasons for reading, rereading and

teaching Othello.

If taught creatively, Othello can be of particular interest to ESL students. It is a play about passions and reason. Intense feelings are exhibited here: love, hate, jealousy, and envy, even lust. Students struggling with their own passions can empathize with both Rodrigo’s and Othello’s plights. The play also examines, as so Shakespeare’s other works, human relationships and interactions. For young people in the first rush of attempting to understand how romantic relationships work and when and why they might fail, this text provides much to reflect upon and discuss. In addition, Othello develops their critical thinking and analytical reading skills. The closer they examine Othello, the

· And all indignant and base adversities· Make head against my estimation. (1.3.295-309) (p. 33)

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To enrich student learning of literary works such as Othello, literary, dramatic,

and cultural approaches must be employed. We must engage students in the language and

the formal elements of the play: plot, character, setting, and theme. By involving them in

its dramatic action, Othello is brought to life and students understand the cultural and

social context of the play. Activities include visualizing, acting out, reading aloud, and

reinterpreting the roles. An effort has been made, too, to keep students involved in

thinking, reading, writing, listening, and speaking about various aspects of the play.

Students become a part of the Venetian scene and compare the world of Othello to their

own contemporary world (James, 1996, p. 3).

As language teachers we realize that stating that Shakespeare’s language is

difficult is an understatement. However, to state that “The words are archaic!” or that “It

is written in Old English and needs to be translated” or “You need to be English to do it!”

is also foolish. Dialogue exists in every play that is very easy for virtually all students to

understand. Through performance, we can learn to tackle more complex scenes and make

them interactive for students (Tolaydo, 1995, p. 42).

As stated in James (1996), one of the difficulties students frequently face in

reading Shakespeare is attempting to “decode the language” (p. 4) The instructor can set

up a number of activities to facilitate the decoding process: (a) encourage students to

select scenes from the play and then perform them in their own vernacular; (b) select a

scene from the play and ask the students to rewrite it as if it were a contemporary event;

(c) let the students view the scene in video format (i.e. the 1989 BBC/Time Life

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production, the Lawrence Fishburn/Kenneth Branaugh production, or the Orson Welles

version) (p. 5).

Many of Othello’s themes can be used as a foundation for reading and analysis.

The difference between appearance and reality is frequently explored by Shakespeare and

easily understood by adolescents. Students can relate to discussions about how friendship

can ultimately be detrimental. Likewise, the play gives ESL students the opportunity to

examine other themes that relate to their contemporary world: loyalty vs. treachery, truth

vs. falsehood, parental love vs. parental control, or other universal themes (James, 1996,

p. 8).

There are numerous reasons for the study of drama among ESL students in

English literature at the undergraduate level. For example, Othello can create all kinds of

literary opportunities and different types of learning exercises. It can engage the students

emotionally, sensually, cognitively, and physically (Jurczak, 1979). By exploring adult

roles and strange situations, students can be provided with skills for learning. In addition,

in the study of Othello students have the opportunity to experience the feelings of people

quite different from themselves. Through drama, students have the opportunity to use

language, position, gestures, and facial expressions (Moody, 1971). ESL instructors can

convert the printed text of Othello into a live performance in the realm of the students’

imagination as they read. In addition to the enthusiasm and excitement created, reasons

for studying works such as Othello include drama’s stimulation of high-level thinking

and collaborative work.

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ESL instructors can develop a comprehensive approach when teaching plays such

as Othello. They may use a teaching strategy that employs the necessary tools and skills

to examine even the more difficult and complex portions of the play and also promotes

students’ self-esteem and confidence in their own ideas and opinions. An introductory

approach to all the plays we teach can best be achieved through the performance of an

easily comprehended scene (Tolaydo, 1995).

Teachers must not act as “directors” in this introductory performance, since they

would be telling students what the lines mean, how they should act, what Shakespeare

“meant,” and what is right, what is wrong. Consequently, they do most of the interpretive

work, translating the scene for their students and passing on their own versions of

meaning. If we are attempting to teach, if we are interested in laying a groundwork for

our students to explore a Shakespearean play — and future plays — on their own and as

a group, if we want them to think meaningfully about what they are reading, if we want

them to have individual responses to texts and to discuss differing points of view, then we

need to allow our students to be their own directors A scene performed and directed by

students offers firsthand experiences and insights into the play than can be used later in a

variety of ways in the study of the play. The discoveries made by students during these

performances sessions will stimulate motivation throughout the rest of the study of the

play (Tolaydo, 1995).

Teaching Shakespeare’s Language

Shakespeare. Just saying this name frequently creates panic. Consequently, it is

important that students’ first experiences with a Shakespearean play such as Othello be

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dynamic, engaging, and easily comprehensible. A starting point for this objective is the

very heart of Shakespeare’s work — his language. As English literature instructors, we

may love its rich complexity, but teachers know that this same language can be a barrier

for students. Once students overcome this language barrier for them, they will have

access to the pleasures of the play — the jokes, the jealously, the fear, the anger, and the

many problems humans create for themselves (Biondo-Hench, 1993).

“That Shakespeare’s language was different from ours is evident when editors

provide glosses for words in his text that are no longer current or that have altered in

meaning. But the difference has more subtle dimensions that don’t show up in footnotes

but nevertheless affect meaning in important ways. One aspect of this difference is how

characters talk about themselves and how they address someone else. Modern usage in

this respect is fairly straightforward: “I” is the way to refer to oneself; “you” is the way to

address another person. Shakespeare’s language had more options, however, so that in his

dialogue these apparently simple conventions become complicated (Snyder, 1994).

According to Elstein (1993) Shakespeare’s unusual language may be summarized

as the following: (a) unusual word order, (b) ellipsis (omission of words), (c) archaic

words and idioms, (d) words with old meanings, (e) familiar pronouns and verb

inflections, and (f) old verb inflections.

Making students comfortable with Shakespeare’s language is quite essential.

Literature instructors can expose their students to the Shakespeare Lexicon and Quotation

Dictionary by Alexander Schmitt, a two-volume set recommended by Stephen Booth as

the best “Shakespeare dictionary” (Newlin & Poole, 1995, p. 161).

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In addition, students may find it helpful to take sentences in Modern English and

make them sound Shakespearean. As Newlin & Poole (1995) noted other ways to

untangle Shakespeare’s language included paraphrasing, asking questions, and

determining characters’ objectives.

The researcher’s goal is to have students: (a) develop an appreciation of

Shakespeare’s language, (b) use performance as a way to understand Shakespeare’s

language, (c) learn and use several close-reading techniques, and (d) recognize universal

themes found in literary works.

According to Biondo-Hench (1993), by acting and directing, students will practice

the strategies that will help them learn to work through seemingly difficult language by:

- hearing the words as well as seeing them on the page- using the words they know to understand the words they don’t- holding problem words in suspension until they get the main idea of the passage- feeling free to make guesses as to denotation- learning to use resources like glossaries of dictionaries- learning to rely on themselves to solve language problems- focusing on how puns operate. (p. 126)

To avoid the onset of boredom in works such as Othello in a classroom setting, it

is vital at the very beginning to capture the students’ attention and enthusiasm. One way

to do this and to initiate students to the idea of moving around in performance, is to

engage students in a series of warm-ups. Actors get ready to work by relaxing and

moving, vocalizing and concentrating; the same process helps students work with

Shakespeare. By having students participate in warm-ups, they will be acting before they

have had time to think about it, and they will become familiar with the process of

improvisation, a useful tool in the study of Shakespeare.

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As ESL teachers, we often forget great plays such as Othello were originally

created to be heard and seen, and that the text we read is actually only an attempt to

capture this real-life drama as performed on Elizabethan stages. When we read a play, the

performance language of the play is nonexistent; a line of text on a page does not exist as

a piece of theater. On the written page, the words, pauses, vocal and technical sounds,

movement, music, facial expressions, gestures, stage pictures, lighting, actors, costumes

are, of course, all lacking (Tolaydo 1993).

However, when creatively taught, Othello can work as well in the

In addition, like most Shakespearean plays Othello engages students’ emotions to

a great degree. This painfully modern-seeming story of a noble black general, tricked and

tempted into being his worst self by an evil man he mistakenly trusts, can ignite strong

emotions (Newlin & Poole, 1995).

Acting is another highly effective ESL method. Acting is really movement with

language. Get the students on their feet, give them a script of a Shakespeare scene,

practice the lines several times and have them move and interact in the manner that the

words suggest. But the method doesn’t stop there, for our purpose is not to help students

know more about acting but to help them know more about Shakespeare. Ask student

actors to use their experienced eyes to look more closely at Shakespeare’s language —

such as in consulting the Oxford English Dictionary about the denotation of a particular

word at the time Shakespeare penned it ((Newlin & Poole, 1995, p. 67).

Creative questioning, on the part of the teacher in teaching plays such as Othello,

often uncovers deeper meanings in a scene or truths about a character that simply do not

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occur to students who are discovering a play for the first time. It has been proven that

questions don’t inhibit students’ own ideas; on the contrary, they stimulate students to

look more closely, to respond more imaginatively. And, certainly, “questions about

actors’ or directors’ choices are fundamental to experiencing the play as a work for the

stage. The best questions, of course, are those that do not have an answer” (Newlin &

Poole, 1995, p. 134).

If students come to understand the text as a dramatic script with multiple possible

interpretations, they will keep on asking questions about it and will continue to try out

contradictory responses long after the classroom work is complete. They will have a long

memory for a work approached in this way (Newlin & Poole, 1995).

For shy students, choral reading is an excellent opportunity for students to

immerse themselves risk free in Shakespeare’s language. A choral reading of Othello’s

great speech describing his courtship of Desdemona will give everyone an opportunity to

participate in these famous lines. Reading chorally is an excellent way for students to

feel, collectively, the power and music of this passage, or of any other great poetry

(Newlin & Poole, 1995, p. 157).

Promptbooks are copies of scripts that contain notes about performance. They

include blocking, delivery of lines, setting, costumes, and other performance details.

They are used by directors, actors, stage managers, and other involved in a production

(Biondo-Hench, 1993). By having ESL student’s review used promptbooks (which are

often available in libraries), as well as write their own promptbooks, they are developing

both essential literary and writing skills.

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Tableaux vivants (living pictures) are used in the worlds of art and theater to

recreate famous works or art using backdrops, props, costumes, and live models. The

technique may also be used to recreate scenes from Shakespearean plays such as Othello

in the English literature classroom. These scenes are easy to develop because only a few

key lines from the original work are needed. Like frozen statues, the students as actors

arrange themselves in an appropriate opening tableau, then one at a time each actor

comes to life, speaks a line, and changes position (Biondo-Hench, 1993, p. 163).

Having students view a clip from Zeffirelli’s film of Verdi’s opera Othello,

starring Placido Domingo can be highly motivational. The images are more lushly visual

than any of the available videos of Shakespeare’s play. Furthermore, seeing a piece of the

story in a different medium is quite stimulating (Newlin & Poole, 1995, p. 167).

Other effective teaching strategies may include developing a “play map” By

using play maps as a guide, instructors can draw on the board a diagram showing the

relationship of the major characters of the play. Create an “acting circle” by explaining to

the class that throughout this unit they will approach Othello as actors and that they will

perform some of the major scenes (Newlin & Poole, 1995).

By establishing acting companies, groups of four or five students will meet

throughout the unit on Othello to participate in group activities such as helping each other

paraphrase and comprehend scenes, planning and performing scenes, and discussing

critical issues and interpretations of the play (Elstein, 1993).

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In addition, brief improvised role-play will offer students opportunity to

experience the central triangle of Othello and to connect the emotions of Othello,

Desdemona, and Iago to their own (Newlin & Poole, 1995, p. 137).

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As homework assignments, have students respond personally to Othello by

writing frequently in logs. Newlin & Poole (1995) suggested using the word “log” rather

than “journal” because one meaning of “log” is, specifically, the record of a journey —

the study of a Shakespearean text is an intellectual and emotional journey. The Othello

log consists of specific log-writing assignment, but ideally, students make other, non-

assigned entries: personal reactions and observations, new vocabulary worth “saving,”

comments on character, action, or language.

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In addition to their ongoing log assignments, Newlin & Poole (1995) suggested having

students complete a free-writing exercise such as: Write about a time when you resented

someone who received an honor you were hoping to get. How did you feel about the person who

received it, and how did you feel about the one who chose the other person instead of you?

All of the above teaching strategies will greatly assist students in understanding fully not

only the words but also the meaning imagery and atmosphere present in Shakespeare’s Othello.

In summary, ESL students as readers of drama are not to be looked upon as emty glasses

waiting to be filled with instructors’ interpretations of the literary works. On the ontrary, each

student brings his or her own unique life experiences to each work read. Students must be

challenged to discuss, analyze, interpret and evaluate drama. While reading a literary work, the

instructor must try to have the students develop a partnership between themselves and the author.

By developing this partnership, the drama will be brought to life through such activities as

discussion, analysis, and interpretation.

The Purpose of the Study

The present study investigated the perceptions of students at Gaza universities, whose

first language was Arabic and who were candidates for a B.A. degree in English, toward the

drama and short stories areas of English literature with respect to (a) specific problems,

(b) benefits, (c) reasons for studying literature, and (d) teaching approaches and strategies.

Furthermore, the study examined the effects of area of concentration and classification on the

perceptions of student study participants about English literature. The broader purpose of the

study was to find more efficient and meaningful ways to teach foreign languages to university

students. This goal was approached through soliciting the opinions and reactions of students,

who were studying English as their major subject and were enrolled in The Gaza Strip

universities. A major aim was to elicit the students’ feelings about the target language in the

target language.

Methodology

A survey design was selected to collect and analyze the data because of its properties as

the most efficient and practical means for studying the perceived effects of specific behaviors

(Kerlinger, 1986). Additionally, a survey design allowed the researcher to efficiently collect data

for several variables.

When research for the study began during the spring of 2000 at several Gaza universities,

500 students were majoring in English literature. The population included both male and female

students, similar in terms of cultural and educational background, who were enrolled in the

second, third, and fourth university levels. Their ages ranged from 21 to 24 years old.

Additionally, all 500 students had received the same amount of pre-university instruction in

English language and literature.

A simple random sampling procedure was employed. All of the 500 students majoring in

English had an equal chance of participating in the study. Students majoring in English were

identified from student rosters provided by the universities and assigned a sample code from 001

to N, where N was the total number of students. Forty percent of the students (200) were

randomly selected from the pool of 500. Fifty-three students declined to participate, resulting in a

sample of 147 student participants.

Instrumentation

Two instruments were used to gather data: Learning Difficulties of English Literature

Survey (LDELS) and Oral English Literature Survey (OELS).

The LDELS, designed by the researcher, was a questionnaire with five major sections:

1. demographic data, which included age, gender, marital status, classification, and

area of concentration;

2. potential problem areas related to learning drama (15 items in a Likert format),

which included vocabulary, conflict, symbolism, cultural values, theme, plot, and

other related difficulties;

3. potential problem areas related to learning short stories, which included flashback

techniques, figures of speech, physical setting, character role, use of non-English

vocabulary (e.g., Latin, French), and character cultural values;

4. English literature teaching techniques (10 Likert-scale items and 1 open-ended

item), which included linguistic analysis, historical approach, translation,

discussion, and cultural and ethnic background of authors and subject matter; and

5. benefits of learning English literature and the learners’ fields of interest after

graduation (14 Likert-scale items and 1 open-ended item).

All Likert scale items required that participants check one of five fixed-alternative expressions.

Each of the stated expressions were assigned a weight for analysis purposes: Strongly Agree (5),

Agree (4),Undecided (3), Disagree (2), and Strongly Disagree (1). The items were scored from 1

to 5, with the highest score representing a favorable perception and lowest score representing an

unfavorable perception.

The OELS, also developed by the researcher, consisted of seven open-ended questions,

each of which asked participants about some aspect of English literature:

1. Did the homework assigned by your professors facilitate your learning of English

Literature?

2. Which (if any) visual aids used by your professors were most helpful and why?

3. Which teaching strategies currently used by Gaza University professors in the

English Department do you find most effective?

4. In which English literature class did you learn the most and why?

5. Was there adequate class time for discussion during the class periods?

6. Would you recommend the English literature classes which you have taken to

others and why?

7. If you were in charge of the English literature department at Gaza University,

what would you like to see changed?

Validity and Reliability of the Learning Difficulties of English Literature Survey (LDELS)

Validity of the LDELS was tested by administering the instrument to a group of

professors who taught in the various areas of English language instruction at Gaza universities.

The panel of professors were asked to assess the content of each item, and of the test as a whole,

using a scale of 1 to 3 (1 meaning not valid, 2 meaning not sure, and 3 meaning valid). The

assessment responses resulted in a mean score of 2.81, and a field test of the instrument was

subsequently conducted.

Rational Equivalency Reliability (Kerlinger, 1986) was computed for the LDELS. The

final tabulation yielded internal consistency reliability coefficients for four subscales of the

investigative instrument (learning drama, learning short stories, English literature teaching

techniques, and benefits of learning English literature) and for the test as a whole (see Table 1).

Table 1 about here

Using the criterion that an instrument is reliable at .70 reliability value (Brunie and Kintz,

1986), the LDELS was found to be reliable.

Data Collection Procedure

In the spring of 2000, a pilot study was conducted to determine the appropriateness and

clarity of the items on the LDELS, as well as to estimate reliability of the survey. Twenty

participants were randomly selected from among students enrolled at Gaza University. The field-

tested surveys were examined, and revisions were made.

Having been advised by letter of the theoretical framework and the methodological

procedures for the study, the Dean of Academic Affairs at Gaza University granted authority to

commence the research, and survey questionnaires were delivered to a contact person appointed

by the Dean. The appointed contact distributed the questionnaires to participating students,

collected them upon completion, and returned them to the researcher. To ensure anonymity of

participants’ responses, names were omitted. All completed surveys were logged and examined

for non-responses and errors. Coded data was entered into a computer, using applications from

the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences to treat the data.

Analysis of Data

Percentage analysis was used to analyze data collected from responses to the seven

questions on the OELS questionnaires. The ANOVA was employed in analyzing the data from

the completed LDELS questionnaires. If a difference was found among the sample means, the

researcher then employed the Scheffe Post Hoc Procedure to identify where differences

occurred. All hypotheses were tested at the .05 level of significance.

Demographic Profile of Study Participants

Of the 147 participating students, 32 (21.8%) were male and 115 (78.2%) were female.

Additionally, 22 (15.0%) reported that they were married, 124 (84.4%) identified themselves as

single, and there was one missing case. Frequency distribution of participants by age,

classification, and area of concentration are summarized in Tables 2, 3, and 4.

Tables 2, 3, and 4 about here

Research Questions

Research Question 1: What specific problems are encountered by students in learning drama in

English literature?

Items 1 through 15 on Part II of the LDELS asked respondents to what extent they agreed

that the following items were a problem with regard to their learning experience with

Shakespeare’s Othello: (a) length of play, (b) use of Old English, (c) extensive use of symbolism,

metaphors, and similes, (d) writing style, (e) grammatical structures, (f) character (use of abstract

characters such as ghosts), (g) physical setting, (h) theme, (i) tone, (j) extensive use of figure of

speech, (k) speaker’s voice, (l) conflict (central conflict, internal conflict, external conflict),

(m) use of non-English vocabulary (such as phrases in Latin or French), (n) characteristics of

plots and subplots, and (o) lack of familiarity with culture and social context. Each of the 15

items was scored on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Reported in Table 5 are the results of a percentage analysis of responses. A majority of student

participants rated 11 out of the 15 items as major problems. Over 86% of the students were in

agreement that “theme” and “conflict” were major problems in their study of Othello. Moreover,

more than 70% of the students were in agreement that “length of play” and “writing style” were

French), (n) character culture values, and (o) flashback (shift in time and place). The response

Table 6 about here

Research Question2: What are the benefits of learning English literature as perceived by Gaza

university students?

Benefits of learning English literature were measured by participant responses to items 1

through 7 on Part V of the, which asked respondents to what extent they agreed with the

following seven statements: (a) Understanding English literature gives me an understanding and

full appreciation of other cultures; (b) understanding English literature helps me to understand,

evaluate and create new ideas; (c) understanding English literature promotes

language development; (d) understanding English literature gives me a personal sense of human

pleasure; (e) understanding English literature helps me in building up my character;

(f) understanding English literature helps me in dealing with people properly; and

(g) understanding English literature helps me in appreciating language. Respondents rated these

items using a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree).

Reflected in Table 7 are the percentage analysis findings relative to the perceptions of

student participants regarding the benefits of learning English literature. Over 85% of the

students reported that the understanding of English provided them with a full appreciation of

other cultures, assisted them in evaluating and creating new ideas, and promoted language

development. Additionally, over 70% of the respondents rated a personal sense of human

pleasure and appreciating language as important benefits from studying English literature.

Finally, the students also rated building character (62%) and dealing with people properly (58%)

as benefits of learning English literature.

Table 7 about here

Research Question 3: What are the reasons behind students studying English literature?

Reasons for studying English literature were measured by responses to the four items on

Part V of the LDELS: (a) You are studying English to become a journalist, (b) You are studying

English to become a teacher, (c) You are studying English to get a better job in the future, and

(d) You are studying English to live abroad.

Descriptive results using percentage analysis are presented in Table 8. Slightly over 76%

of student participants indicated that the major reason they studied English literature was to get a

better job in the future. Additionally, over 50% indicated their plans to become a teacher was a

major reason for studying English literature.

Table 8 about here

Research Question 4: What teaching approaches do students think are the best ways of teaching

drama and short stories in English literature?

Teaching approaches were measured by responses to items 1 through 10 on Part IV of the

LDELS. Participants were asked to rate the extent to which they agreed with the following

statements: (a) Teaching English literature through linguistic analysis is the best way to

understand this subject; (b) teaching English through historical approach helps me to understand

it; (c) using psychoanalytic approach helps me to understand English literature; (d) teaching

English literature through translation helps me to understand it; (e) teaching English literature

through discussion helps me to understand it; (f) encouraging students to act out various parts in

English literature helps me to understand it; (g) selecting literary items related to my own style of

life helps me to understand English literature; (h) using effective audiovisual aids in teaching

English literature helps me to understand it, (i) providing students with a detailed cultural and

ethnic background of the work of art to be taught helps me to understand English literature; and

(j) encouraging students to express different views from their teachers is useful in learning

English literature. The response categories ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly

agree).

Reported in Table 9 are the results of the percentage analysis regarding the best

approaches in teaching English literature as perceived by student study participants. Over 90% of

the students indicated that a teaching approach which included discussion (91.2%) and the

different views offered by teachers (91.9%) were among the best approaches in teaching English

literature. In addition, over 80% of the participants reported play acting (86.4%) and audiovisual

and cultural awareness of the art (88.4%) as important approaches to teaching English literature.

Moreover, over half of the respondents expressed that linguistic analysis (59.2%), historical

analysis (58%), psychoanalytic approach (62.6%), and literary work related to personal lifestyle

(72.8%) were also effective approaches in teaching English literature. Finally, only the item

regarding translation (46.9%) received less than 50% in agreement regarding the best approaches

in teaching English literature.

Table 9 about here

Qualitative Analysis

A qualitative research application (Boydon & Bilken, 1992) was employed to report the

results of the data gathered from items 2, 3, and 6 on the OELS. The themes, or clusters, used for

this section were teaching strategies and instructional tools.

Research Question 6: What teaching strategies currently used in the teaching of English

literature do you find the most effective?

Responses to question 3 on the OELS reflected the perceptions of students on the various

strategies employed by teachers to teach English literature. The following comments highlighted

the influence that various types of teaching strategies had on the learning behavior of the student

study participants.

· Discussion is the most appropriate strategy. It helps to create new ideas.

· Making free discussion with the students. It develops the students’ opinions and

personalities.

· Students are the center of discussion and the teacher only facilitates.

· Actually, the way of discussion [is important] because you learn in a very simple,

easy way and it makes it more practical.

· Free discussion; every student expresses his/her opinion as he or she likes.

· Presentation is an effective strategy: It develops a relationship between the teacher

and student, adds entertainment.

Additionally, students reported that effective teaching strategies regarding

English literature should allow students the opportunity to play act. In other words, playing out

the parts helped students understand what the literary work was about, as well as enhanced their

language skills. The following are representative of comments regarding play acting.

· Asking students to act out the parts (performance).

· Presenting the cultural background.

· Discussion and presentation. This makes them familiar with the spoken language and

to improve the spoken language.

Research Question 7: What visual aids used by professors are the most helpful in

teaching English literature?

Below are representative responses to question 2 on the OELS.

· TV and video are the most helpful; they give us the opportunity to see the play which

we have learned.

· Yes, they make a connection between what is watched and what is discussed.

· Yes, it helps students to analyze and understand characters, action, etc.

· Yes, they help students understand the secondary events which might not be

discussed in the classroom.

· Videos have advantages. They breathe life into the character, make the events more

memorable, and of course for entertainment.

· With a video, it is more easily understood, it makes you live with action, and is more

memorable.

·. With videos we are interactive. We can see and reflect the words and the actions.

Examination of Hypotheses

Four major statistical hypotheses were formulated to explore links between the

independent variables, classification and area of concentration, and the dependent variables,

perception scores regarding drama and short stories as measured by 15 items each on Parts II and

III, respectively, of the LDELS. In the service of brevity, let it be simply said these analyses,

which were reported in detail in Keshta (2001), did not reveal any noteworthy relationships.

Discussion

The typical study participant was a single female, 21 or 22 years old, who majored in

English literature or grammar. Judging from participant responses to queries regarding their

experiences in studying Shakespeare’s Othello and Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily,” only about

15% were not having problems with their English literature studies. It could be argued that 15%

would be a representative figure for superior comprehension in the study of any topic at any level

of study. Nonetheless, knowledge of the areas where student participants were having problems

is useful in future curricula decisions.

Specific Problems

Slightly more than 40% of participants found 12 of the measured problem areas in the

study of Shakespeare’s Othello to be generally difficult and problematical, whereas more than

60% found 12 problem areas in the study of Faulkner’s “A Rose for Emily” generally difficult

and problematical. Though conflict and theme were difficult in the study of both pieces, students

found Shakespeare’s conflict and theme far more difficult (85.8% and 85.1%, respectively) than

Faulkner’s (67.4% and 78.9%, respectively). It was clear that the students found Faulkner’s

American South far more foreign to their sensibilities than Shakespeare’s Elizabethan England.

For instance, Faulkner’s vocabulary baffled 74.9% of the students, whereas Shakespeare’s

stymied only 27.2%. Likewise, 67.3% struggled with Shakespeare’s plot, while 78.2% had

problems with Faulkner’s.

It is somewhat remarkable that 56.4% of respondents found cultural values a difficulty in

“A Rose for Emily,” yet only 30.6% thought familiarity with culture was a problem in the study

of Othello. There were hints that students were having culturally related problems, though

relatively few participants recognized the links in their responses. That is to say, with slightly

under 31% of respondents claiming culture was not a problem in the study of Othello,

nonetheless, symbolism, metaphors, and similes – which may be labeled cultural artifacts borne

of the historical experiences of the people who speak the language – were a problem for 63.3%

of the responding students. Thus, problems with theme, plot, vocabulary, character role, and

writing style indicated a need to bridge the gap between cultural differences. In situations such as

these, Harris (1993) suggested that teachers select material which portray the character, setting,

and theme through everyday activities with which the students would easily identify.

Benefits of Learning English Literature

Another major finding was the type of benefits students felt they received by

understanding English literature. Student study participants expressed that an appreciation for

other cultures, developing new ideas, and promoting language development were the most

beneficial components of learning and understanding English literature. These findings were

similar to those of Shanahan (1997); Al-Azzawi (1989); Brown (1995); Quirk (1981); and

Merino, Trueba, and Samaniego (1993), who found that understanding other cultures, promoting

language development, and development of new ideas were among the benefits of understanding

and learning English literature.

Reasons for Studying Literature

Two major reasons for learning English literature emerged in study participant responses.

Not surprisingly, students revealed the most pragmatic reasons: (a) to get a better job in the

future and (b) become a teacher.

Teaching Approaches and Strategies

The strategies perceived as the most effective by students were student centered as well

as teacher centered. The students felt that the strategies that allowed them to communicate with

the teachers were important in their understanding of the literature. In their discussions, teachers

allowed students to express their ideas and make a connection between their culture and the

physical setting presented in the literary work. Student participants indicated that teaching

approaches, and strategies with emphasis on the discussion method that allowed teachers and

students to communicate their different views regarding drama and short stories, were the most

effective. In addition, the student study participants reported that being able to act out various

parts of literary work was also very helpful for them in their understanding of English literature.

The above findings were consistent with the work of Foster and Thornton (1991) and Smith and

Metcalf-Turner (1997), who reported that the most effective teaching approaches and strategies

should include communication where teachers are able to interact with the students and where

students are able to discuss work and act out the various roles.

There was another notable finding on the current study pertaining to the influence of

visual aids on the teaching of English literature: Student study participants reported that

television and videos were the most helpful visual aids in teaching English literature. These

findings correspond to those of Carter and McRae (1996), who revealed that audiovisual aids had

a valuable role in teaching and learning foreign languages.

Conclusion

Educators, especially those who teach English literature to non-native English-speaking

students should be aware of cultural factors, as well as teaching approaches and strategies that

allow students to interact with their teachers and peers. There is a need for ongoing revision of

the English literature curriculum to reflect current students’ perceptions of relevance; instructors

must stress not only literature but also the usefulness and practicality of the English language.

When English literature is taught effectively, students attain a greater understanding of the

English language.

Few would disagree that our world would be impoverished if deprived of great masters

like Dante, Shakespeare, Milton, Whitman, and T. S. Eliot. However, the researcher is

thoroughly convinced that other forms of representational media such as television and cartoons

cannot be ignored, precisely because they are central to people’s lives today in The Gaza Strip as

the most essential source of information and entertainment. In our literature classrooms they can

provide instructors with an enormous range of texts for comparative studies. Instructors must get

out of the constraints of traditional definitions of literature with a capital “L” and expand it to

include other representational texts.

In modernizing the Gaza English curricula, the author would hope to include literature

written by native Middle Eastern authors to help students make meaningful connections with the

language. Additionally, modernized curricula would hopefully include intercultural learning,

wherein the instructor helps students understand the intentions and expectations of the culture

from which the language they are learning has evolved. Intercultural learning is best taught from

the perspective of action and communication theories. Through intercultural learning, the

student’s picture of the world, through the eyes of his own culture, is transformed into a

multicultural worldview.

There are many other approaches and activities that would be included in new, modern

curricula for Gaza students of English literature. An English literature program most suited to

The Gaza Strip would consist of a balanced program that is sensitive to the interests of the

students, fulfills the needs of the community, and helps the overall language development of the

student. The author is convinced that efforts should be directed towards maintaining the students’

awareness of the importance of knowing foreign languages (in particular, English) in The Gaza

Strip as well as around the world and raising their interest in learning English as the international

language.

If teacher education programs in the area of English literature are to reflect the diversity

of their participants, the kinds of theories and models to which the students are exposed should

explore how English is learned and taught around the world, including the Middle East. A World

English perspective introduces such theories and models. Thus, representation of a World

English perspective in teacher education programs helps internationalize the discipline. Teacher

education programs in the area of World English develop skills, values, and attitudes in

educators who will shape what their learners acquire for an entire generation. A World English

perspective draws upon the truly global nature of language teaching. By incorporating a World

English perspective throughout the English literature program, ethnocentrism is reduced.

Recommendations for Further Study

The subject of learning English as a foreign language is rich in research possibilities in

this era when English has become so much more than the native language of Britain and certain

of its former colonies (most notably, United States, Canada, and Australia). Seven studies are

particularly suggested by the present study and the authors’ interests:

1. Compare the results of the present study to the perceptions of non-native English-

speaking students from various other countries regarding their understanding and learning of

English literature;

2. Examine the effectiveness of teaching strategies utilized by professors at Gaza

universities and compare them to the effectiveness of foreign-language teaching strategies in

other countries;

3. Construct profiles of non-native English-speaking students who are successful in

achieving advanced degrees in the area of English literature;

4. Investigate the role of cultural, psychological, and social factors in non-native-

English-speaking students’ understanding and learning of English literature;

5. Repeat the present study in Gaza following one or two years of implementing a

modernized curriculum;

6. Examine student reactions to various types of English-language literature, e.g.,

British, American, Middle Eastern, African, among others; and

7. Examine student perceptions of English as a “language of oppression.”

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