We should use literature to develop our reading culture

Paul Swaga Literature in English is offered by very few schools in this country and there are few students doing the subject. Many of our students find it hard to read passages, newspapers, novels and text books for the other subjects yet it is through reading that they can widen their scope of knowledge and develop important skills. Literature in English can be used to develop a reading culture among students which is a prerequisite to developing critical thinking and creative writing skills. It is crucial to introduce Literature in senior one as a strategy of developing the reading culture and to reinforce the other English Language skills among students right from the lowest level of high school. At this stage, learners should be exposed to the oral traditions of Rwanda and poetry. They can narrate fables and folktales based on the Rwandan culture as we set the foundation for Literature in English. They can also recite some poems that appeal to their interests and they should be encouraged to write their own poems with guidance from their teachers for English Language. As they progress to senior two, teachers may introduce the abridged series of some novels which are referred to as class readers. The selection of such texts should be based on the ones that portray situations that are quite related to the students’ experiences. Teachers should guide them on how they should read in order to understand the story line, characters and events of each text. Teachers can as well give them some guiding questions that should provoke them to read with a sense of purpose. After reading a given chapter, they should always work in small groups to make summaries basing on the main events and characters and each group should make presentations in class. Teachers should challenge them to relate what they read with what they observe in real life. Let them know that Literature is life and that it is a sort of religion that we read. As they share ideas about the texts, they get motivated to read more. During certain English Language lessons, students may go to the library and pick any novels they want and read as they summarise. Thereafter, they should be able to make presentations in the lessons that follow. By so doing, teachers are able to kill many birds using one stone. The students are able to read, summarise and share what they have read with the entire class. They can even be encouraged to go to the library during their free time and read books of their choice at least once a week such that by the end of the year, they can boast of having read a variety of novels. However, there is need for the teachers to keep track of what learners read by asking them to provide adequate information about the books that they may be reading at a given time. Whenever they complete reading certain texts, teachers may ask them to write book reviews that they should present in class or publish in their newsletters. Teachers may also consider extracting some passages from some of the novels and use them to teach or test reading comprehension in English Language. Focus should be on the action-packed situations that arouse their interests to visit the library and find out more about what is portrayed in the reading comprehension passages. Building a reading culture among the students requires the parents also to come on board by buying some interesting novels for their children. Parents should encourage their children to read books especially during holidays and the children should be able to share with the parents and siblings what they have read. Such moments can be very exciting at home and they can help to inspire the young people to love reading especially when they realize that their parents are very supportive about it. It is also one way through which home libraries can be established to promote reading at family level. It is just a matter of buying a variety of interesting books that cater for the various levels of education. With due respect to the parents, I wish to suggest that they should also do some bit of reading in the presence of their children because it may be difficult for us to encourage our children to read widely when they do not see us read. Sometimes, it is important for us to read with them just like what the teachers usually do at school. It can be very enjoyable when the parent reads a certain text and shares with the family members what he or she has read. I strongly believe that as we wait for the education policy makers and curriculum developers to consider introducing Literature in English as a subject at Ordinary level, parents, teachers and school administrators should encourage young people to read by providing books that are interesting and creating an environment that is conducive for reading. Together we can promote reading! The writer is an English Language Instructor.

Education

We should use literature to develop our reading culture