Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Vol.6. No.3 September 2015 Pp.244 – 260
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol6no3.16
An Exploration of Freshman Students’ Attitude towards English Literature
Raghad Dwaik
English Department, Hebron University, Palestine
Salah Shrouf
English Department, Hebron University, Palestine
Bassem Sahib
English Department, Hebron University, Palestine
Abstract:
Attitude has been considered by most researchers as an important variable that influences success in a learning task. Hence, analysing students’ attitude is an important step that should precede making any changes in the course plan or content. This gains more importance when dealing with college students who have already finished school and look up to college to provide them with more interesting and varied content that addresses their needs. This study explores the attitude of Freshman students who plan to specialize in English towards English literature in general, its value in language learning and the utility of different literary genres. Analysis of these students attitude is essential for making decisions with regard to the kind of preparation they should get prior to embarking on the study of literary courses in their sophomore year. A five Likert scale questionnaire was used to analyze the different aspects of the students’ attitude. Results showed that students have a positive attitude towards literature in general and fiction in particular. They believe that literary texts enhance their reading and writing skills and that they are a great source of learning about the target culture. Their attitude, however, is less favorable towards poetry and drama and towards the role of literature in enhancing their listening or speaking skills. Overall, they thought that certain literary genres are enjoyable and beneficial for language learning, yet they are not a core component of the language learning process.
Keywords: attitude towards literature, college students’ attitude, language and literature, literature in the classroom, Palestinian students’ attitude
Cite as: Dwaik, R. Shrouf, S., & Sahib, B. (2015). An Exploration of Freshman Students’ Attitude towards English Literature. Arab World English Journal, 8 (3). DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol6no3.16