by:
Koppula Ujwala
Lecturer in English
TSWRDC 
Ibrahimpatnam
Dr. Mellisa Helen
Assistant Professor
Nizam College, Osmania University
Abstract:
Language is a powerful tool that not only enables communication but also serves as a gateway to understanding diverse cultures, traditions, and perspectives. For English language learners (ELLs), the journey of acquiring a new language is a profound and often challenging experience. In this context, the development of linguistic intelligence takes center stage, offering ELLs a unique opportunity to harness the transformative potential of language through reading and critical thinking. This article explores the vital connection between linguistic intelligence, reading, and critical thinking within the context of English language learning. It delves into the ways in which reading literary texts can enrich the linguistic skills of ELLs and enhance their capacity for critical thought. As ELLs navigate the complexities of a new language, they embark on a voyage that not only broadens their linguistic horizons but also nurtures their ability to analyze, evaluate, and interpret information critically.
Through the exploration of literature, ELLs can expand their vocabulary, deepen their understanding of syntax and grammar, and sharpen their listening and speaking skills. At the same time, reading exposes them to the intricate tapestry of cultural and social nuances embedded in language, allowing them to appreciate the depth and diversity of the English language. However, this article goes beyond the linguistic aspects of language acquisition. It highlights how reading and critical thinking serve as powerful tools for ELLs to engage with different worldviews, perspectives, and ways of life. By immersing themselves in literary works, they can relate to characters, empathize with their experiences, and gain insights into the human condition. These experiences not only nurture their linguistic intelligence but also foster a deep appreciation for the interplay between language and culture.
A literary text stimulates the language acquisition process of a student in comparison to informational materials. The introduction of a literary book in a language school can enhance the proficiency of the students. It facilitates the expansion of the learner’s imagination and awareness of language necessary for good debate or discourse. Reading literary writings from other eras can provide a comprehensive understanding of the various cultures, social conventions, and sociopolitical conditions that existed at the time, enabling the student to project them when participating in conversations or debates on the issue. The article will delve into practical strategies and best practices that educators and ELL instructors can employ to harness the synergy between linguistic intelligence, reading, and critical thinking. By doing so, they can empower ELLs to not only master the English language but also to become adept critical thinkers who can navigate a world characterized by diverse linguistic and cultural landscapes. This article aims to shed light on the immense potential that reading and critical thinking hold for English language learners, as they embark on a transformative journey of linguistic growth, cultural exploration, and intellectual empowerment.
Keywords: Literature, Literary Texts, Language Learning, Language and Literature, critical thinking.
Introduction
Literature and language are inextricably linked, a truth that no one can dispute. Brumfit and Carter (1986) have previously said that literature serves as “an ally of language.” The method of teaching language through literature is not a new methodology, but it has been frequently utilized as a tool for achieving educational objectives. Until now, there have been numerous adjustments to instructional approaches. Texts of the target language were read and translated using the grammar translation method of language instruction. The emphasis placed on grammar rules diminished interest in the text’s literary content. The structural approach to literature lost its legitimacy when it relied solely on the traditional canon. The functional notional approach placed less emphasis on reading and more emphasis on fixed communication using authentic language samples.
Literature and English Language Learning
According to Coleridge, the essence of literature is to beautify language. Language is a wonderful attire for touching human emotions. Literature and language are two sides of the same coin. Language, if literature is thinking, is for communication. It helps the development of English language skills through various genres, including plays, poems, short stories, novels, and lyrics. Literature is a learning instrument that assists the student to acquire English fluency. The learner will increase his vocabulary, word structures, and syntax through reading literature. It is essential for students to upgrade their English language skills in order to compete effectively in the global marketplace.
In recent years, teaching the English language through literature has gained considerable attention. According to researchers, literature enables students to become acquainted with vocabulary, dialogues, and writing that can be used to improve their language skills. Literature employs descriptive language and introduces a diverse cast of people. The students enhance their English language fluency and accuracy by developing their reading skills through the application of specific tactics. Students will develop knowledge of figurative language such as metaphor and simile, as well as demanding vocabulary. The study of literature for enjoyment is a potent educational instrument that instils ideals and cultural richness. Shakespeare’s works, such as Macbeth, Hamlet, Romeo and Juliet, etc., continue to pique the curiosity of modern readers due to their present relevance and potential in substance and structure. Ben Johnson says it accurately: “He was not of an age but of all time.” The phrases he coined in his works are still in use today. For example: All that glitters is not gold (The Merchant of Venice, 1596), All’s well that ends well and The game is up (Cymbeline, 1611), etc.
“Literary texts can develop the student’s knowledge of language at the levels of vocabulary, structure, and textual organization,” (Hedge 1985 p. 22).
In recent years, the importance of literature in a language classroom has grown substantially. Literature is a potentially rich source of relevant information outside the classroom, according to Pugh. Literature teaches the learner to recognize creativity and higher degrees of imagination in all aspects of his daily life. It aids in the development of the student’s reading, writing, grammar, and vocabulary. This contributes to the total linguistic competence, which includes syntax, phonetics, diction, etc. As poetry contains a great deal of figurative language and pictures, students may encounter difficulty in its interpretation. Teachers of the English language can, however, transform this resistance into genuine interest.
Students can obtain knowledge of diction and sentence usage. Through the interactions with literary books, students can improve their communication skills. Novels, plays, and stories provide learners with an understanding of the culture that existed during various time periods, so enabling them to understand the vocabulary of other eras. Students can improve their writing abilities by engaging with literary materials and expressing their ideas. This enhances their critical reasoning. They may choose an alternative ending to a short narrative or compose a brief analysis of what they have read. In an interactive session following the reading of a literary text, students can exchange ideas that enhance their comprehension of the text.
Literature imbued with words conveys the essence of existence. English Literature has become the zenith of linguistic excellence with considerable finesse. Even though there have been several changes in the use of language as a result of advancements in various industries caused by the entrance of technology components, it has never lost its allure and will stay lovely forever.
Literature and Critical Thinking
In recent years, literature and the teaching of language and critical thinking through linguistic intelligence have gained significance. Literature is recognized as a collection of works containing significant language teaching materials. It contains a vast array of language-focused stories, plays, and poems. Literature can be utilized as a legitimate strategy for enhancing language levels. Literature discusses the people, locations, sociocultural elements, and cultural backdrop of many historical periods. This permits the student to gain an understanding of human nature. These universal concerns can be used to enhance language skills, including reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Literature aids students’ cultural enrichment and personal development (Collie & Slater, 1991; Carter & Long, 1991).
When students develop critical literacy abilities, they are able to rely on a variety of arguments and evidence to support their claims. For instance, hard sciences such as physics and biology advance by incorporating lower levels of knowledge and comprehension into newly introduced ones. Each new area of knowledge is constructed using a pyramidal structure. In contrast, educational sociologists such as Basil Bernstein (1999) explains that the humanities, such as literature and visual arts, tend to develop as independent entities along a horizontal line. For this reason, critical thinking and reading skills are developed and exhibited differently across fields. It is necessary to urge students to pay attention to the specific requirements of various school disciplines and to request feedback from their teachers on manifestations of critical thinking that have been deemed worthy.
Bloom’s taxonomy places ‘comprehension’ at the bottom and ‘evaluation’ at the top, with analysis, synthesis, and evaluation as the three highest levels, which are essential for developing critical thinking. (Kennedy et al., 1991). Bloom’s taxonomy is consistent with a centuries-old Indian idea called “Pari-Prashna” that encourages critical, analytical, and autonomous thinking. The term ‘prashna’ means ‘questioning,’ while ‘pari’ indicates ‘depth and persistent’ It is essential to comprehend the above-mentioned definitions of critical thinking at the outset.
Critical thinking is not a new concept, but it has only gained attention in recent years. It is a component of the Vedic learning method from an eastern perspective. Cromwell (1992) states, “Almost everyone agrees that one of the primary aims of education is the enhancement of student thinking. In the past ten years, there has been a growing concern that graduates at all levels lack higher-order thinking skills. Our educational system emphasizes grammar at all levels but places less emphasis on literature. Memory is detrimental to comprehension and application. This will hinder their future employment, and Hirose (1992) laments, “Many of today’s youngsters lack the reasoning and critical thinking skills required to analyze and refine knowledge in order to perform effectively in the workforce.” It is now required to understand the significance of critical thinking and, more significantly, how it may be fostered in students. Utilizing literature in a language-based classroom is one technique for developing critical thinking skills.
Literature contains tales, plays, and poetry that can teach students not only the language but also real-world settings. Reading literary works in a language school helps students improve their language skills and enhance their critical thinking. Reading literature requires the reader to engage in analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of ideas. While examining the plot and interacting with the characters in a work, the reader is prompted to consider and reconsider his or her thoughts. A good literary work should be difficult in multiple ways. The experience obtained from reading a text enables the student to think critically and develop other attributes such as self-confidence, problem-solving, and an open mind.
Analyzing, drawing conclusions, assessing, and making decisions are all components of critical thinking. As it serves multiple purposes, a literary text affords linguistic chances in a variety of ways. Reading books is enjoyable and enriches the reader’s language. In addition, reading fiction, nonfiction, and poetry exposes the reader to the events and people of various eras. Thus, literature fosters the ability to comprehend culture and recognize the shared experiences that bind people from throughout the globe. Literature affords the reader the opportunity to develop their imagination. These abilities enable them to be inventive and productive in their daily lives. They begin to interact with others who share the same emotions, evaluate the nature of others, and make acceptable life decisions. Higher-order thinking skills are directly related with creativity and imagination. These skills help the learner to internalize knowledge and turn it through critical analysis into cognitive tools. In addition, they support the development of learners’ scientific-related knowledge through science fiction, despite their lack of expertise in science and technology.
Reading a literary text enables the development of the reader’s imagination. Numerous characters in various literature allow the reader to consider them from their point of view. Sometimes the stories and characters mimic the lives of the readers, providing them with hints on how to handle their problems or respond to specific situations. Literature encourages readers to expand their imaginations, form new concepts, and go far beyond plain facts. It is a rich trove of diverse civilizations and traditions that illuminate human nature. Human emotions and human situations are grasped through the study of literature. This allows for the activation of cognition. Questions arise axiomatically, giving rise to critical thought. Thus, the cognitive abilities of the student are also stimulated.
Relationship between Reading a Text and Linguistic Intelligence
When engaging with a literary text, individuals with strong linguistic intelligence have the ability to savor the intricate beauty of the written word. They can appreciate the author’s use of metaphors, similes, and symbolism, allowing them to delve into the nuances of the narrative. This deep connection to language enables readers to immerse themselves in the story and vividly imagine the scenes and characters described. The text becomes a canvas on which linguistic intelligence can paint a vibrant mental picture, enriching the reading experience. Moreover, linguistic intelligence empowers readers to explore the minds of the characters and empathize with their experiences. Through dialogue, inner monologues, and descriptive prose, readers can tap into the emotions and thoughts of the characters. They can analyze the characters’ linguistic choices, understand their perspectives, and even relate to their personal struggles. This process not only enhances their imaginative capacities but also nurtures their ability to see the world through diverse linguistic lenses.
The parallels between the lives of the readers and the characters they encounter in literature serve as a powerful tool for individuals with linguistic intelligence. They can extract valuable insights from characters’ journeys, applying the wisdom gained to their own lives. Whether it is dealing with love, loss, ambition, or ethical dilemmas, literature offers a treasure trove of scenarios and linguistic expressions to guide readers in navigating their real-world challenges. Through this symbiotic relationship between linguistic intelligence and literary texts, readers can find solace, inspiration, and guidance, empowering them to make informed decisions and craft their own narratives. As linguistic intelligence delves into the rich tapestry of civilizations and traditions found in literature, it also nurtures the reader’s ability to decode cultural nuances and linguistic subtleties. Readers with this form of intelligence can appreciate the beauty of idiomatic expressions, regional dialects, and the linguistic evolution of a language over time. This broadens their understanding of human nature, enabling them to connect with diverse cultures and societies, and fostering a deeper sense of empathy and inclusivity.
Thus, reading a literary text is an intellectual adventure that greatly benefits individuals with linguistic intelligence. The interplay between language and imagination creates a dynamic space where readers can explore the human experience, empathize with characters, and draw inspiration for their own lives. Linguistic intelligence breathes life into the words on the page, making literature an invaluable source of intellectual and emotional growth, and a testament to the enduring power of language in shaping our world and ourselves.
Conclusion
According to Povey’s (1972) observation “literature will increase all language skills because literature will extend linguistic knowledge by giving evidence of extensive and subtle vocabulary usage, and complex and exact syntax” (cited in McKay 1982: 529).
In the event that a difficulty arises in a brand-new circumstance, students typically rely on their former learning patterns or academic experiences. If they are armed with critical thinking skills, they will feel confident and come up with creative solutions to issues. Critical thinking enables the student to engage in relevant and engaging dialogues. This enables students to evaluate difficulties by gaining a thorough understanding of the available options, analyze through deft questioning, and synthesize by conceptualizing an original solution. All of these reside at the pinnacle of Bloom’s taxonomy. Questions spark curiosity in the minds of the learners, which ultimately leads to mastery. One of the fundamental purposes of education is to enable the student to achieve perfection through independent thought. Additionally, inquiries lead students to investigate. Therefore, learners/students should be enabled to formulate their own questions, albeit intensively at first, but progressing to a more extended level with the assistance of the teacher. The English language instructor may select basic passages, but pose questions that require students to sit up straight, think, and analyze while making decisions.
Students should be enabled to develop higher-order thinking skills. This is achieved by reading comprehension activities with unfamiliar passages. Collaborative learning can promote critical thinking since it allows for conversation, the generation of new ideas, questions, clarifications, and assessments. In order to improve critical thinking and problem-solving skills, technology-assisted collaborative learning might be incorporated into the objective if conventional methods fail to produce the intended outcome. Albert Einstein once remarked, “The significant issues we confront cannot be handled with the same level of thinking we used to create them.” In this period of fast change, students can no longer rely on outmoded ways of thinking. They must develop their critical thinking through assimilation in order to reach their aim of obtaining a higher education.
Reading and thinking critically are also required for research. To write a successful summary of a reading passage, for instance, students must be able to incorporate appropriate information, identify the most significant concepts, and be sufficiently detailed or generic. In addition, students must be able to supervise the process through which they read the section, form a thought, verify it with the source text, write the summary, and lastly compare the written summary with the source text. Additionally, it is vital to consider the target audience and goal of the summary, as both influence what will be written or kept (Taylor, l983). If critical thinking is essential for any student, it is absolutely essential for university students. Paul (1990) identified as a deficiency in the reading comprehension skills of university students the inability to “identify the evidence an author requires to explain the inferences that follow from what the author said” (p. 50). In an effort to remedy the deficiency in this academic cognitive skill, he argued that instead of approaching “written material as a collection of sentences,” a university student should experiment with “various interpretations until one fit all of the work, rather than ignoring or distorting statements that do not fit their interpretation” (p. 335). According to Paul and Elder (2014), the critical thinking abilities of university students are not limited to identifying the primary idea, critiquing it, or even accepting the materials you are reading; rather, they involve constructing a knowledge map and reading to comprehend systems of thought. They believed that “knowledge occurs in meaning systems with interconnected fundamental, secondary, and peripheral ideas” (p. 2). After gaining a comprehension of these conceptual layers, the reader would be able to think within the system.
In addition, the reader can determine the goal of the academic work by “taking command of the structures that are the basis of all thought” (p. 18) and by “actively initiating a dialogue with the writer” (p. 18).
In the pursuit of language mastery, English language learners embark on a remarkable journey filled with challenges and opportunities. The development of linguistic intelligence through reading and critical thinking emerges as a guiding light in this voyage. As this article has explored, the interplay between language, literature, and critical thought enriches the linguistic abilities of ELLs and nourishes their understanding of the world. English language learners are not merely acquiring a new means of communication; they are immersing themselves in a vast and intricate world of expression, culture, and imagination. Through the pages of literary texts, they gain not only vocabulary and grammar but also a profound appreciation for the subtleties and nuances of the English language. More importantly, they find in these stories a reflection of the human experience that transcends linguistic boundaries.
As educators and ELL instructors, we have the privilege of guiding these learners on this transformative path. By fostering a love for reading, nurturing critical thinking skills, and creating an environment where linguistic intelligence can flourish, we enable ELLs to navigate the complexities of language and culture with confidence and grace. The journey of linguistic intelligence through reading and critical thinking among English language learners is not just a quest for language proficiency; it is a voyage of self-discovery, cultural understanding, and intellectual growth. It is a testament to the power of language to unite, inspire, and empower. And it is a reminder that, in the world of education, we hold the key to unlocking the doors to a universe of possibilities for every English language learner.
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