The Use of Literature in Teaching English Communication to Asian University Students

The Use of Literature in Teaching English Communication to Asian University Students

This essay notes challenges encountered during almost thirty years of teaching English communication to Korean and Chinese university students, and it indicates how literary works can help meet these challenges. The English program of my Korean university focuses on literature. In line with reader response criticism, I use questions that get students to understand. discuss, and write about a literary text as they relate it to their own personal experience and attitudes toward life. Chinese university students focus more solely on learning English skills, and the challenges of teaching them are greater than in Korea. To meet these challenges, I use short works of fiction and employ the same kinds of questions used with Korean students. I am often successful in whetting students' interest in reading English books, fostering communication, and getting them to think on their own.