The Learning Teacher

It is that time of year when I work with my students on how to develop their scheme of work for teaching the literature component. Each year, I tell my students how impossible it must be for Form 1 and Form 4 teachers to teach all the poems and short stories in a year.  In Form 1, students need to study 3 short stories and 3 poems while in Form 4 , students need to study 5 short stories and 6 poems.

It is a easier lot for Forms 2, 3 and 5 teachers who need to teach just a novel and maybe do some revision of the texts read in the previous year(s).

I would think that a more manageable distribution of texts would have been the case. A short story and/or poem could have been added into Form 2, Form 3 and Form 5, reducing the lopsided number of texts being taught in Form 1 and Form 4.

Teachers who work out the scheme of work for teaching the literature component within the English Language paper know the limited time they have to teach the texts. On a paper, teachers are supposed to teach literature in English only one period a week. However, there are some schools who have allocated a double period - a god sent for the teachers.

At best, I calculated that after deducting time taken for examinations, sports day and other school activities, Form1 teachers at the most will have about 5 or 6 lessons per text and Form 4 teachers will have between 3 to 4 lessons per text. I wonder how much can be taught during this limited time. 

I would really like to get some honest response and feedback from teachers in schools on how they manage to actually teach all the texts in Forms 1 and 4 or do they not teach all the texts, especially those who teach weak and weaker classes. What strategies do these teachers employ in the reading of the texts or preparation for the PMR and SPM papers?

Also, even as texts are being selected for the second cycle, I hope not only will the choice of texts be given great care, I hope there will be a rethink on how they texts will be taught. Let there be a fair reading load at all the different levels.

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I am rereading The Bhagavad Gita and I find it a comforting text. This has not always been the case. My first attempt at reading it was a miserable one when I was in my early twenties. Maybe because it was required reading this somehow made it less palatable or I was too steeped in Christianity and quite close-minded to other religious texts then. So my first reading was indeed superficial and cursory, enough to answer the questions for my vacation reading examination at the English Dept. in University of Malaya.

Thinking about religious texts and vacation reading, I recall a difficult and rather unexpected situation I found myself in as young lecturer at Universiti Putra (then Pertanian) Malaysia. Having been given The Bible, The Quran, The Bhagavad Gita and Analects as vacation reading texts, I would set a text as vacation reading for my own students which will result some unbelievable consequences.

In my enthusiasm to help my Matriculation TESL students better understand literary texts, I had asked them to read two books from The Holy Bible - Genesis and Mark. Having asked a Muslim colleague if this would be alright for Muslim students to read them and getting his ok, I thought all will be well.  My colleague said the 2 books from The Bible were part of the Torah and Injil and it should be acceptable for the students to read them.

A few weeks later, in the middle of the long vacation, I got a call from my Head of Department. A concerned parent had called the Vice Chancellor’s office to find out why his 19-year old Muslim child was asked to read these two books from The Bible. So after a few telephone calls from the top, it soon reached me.

I was very lucky to have a Head of Department who knew me and the work I do. So when I explained my intent - which was in no way to attempt to convert my students but to provide knowledge - I had really hoped the reading of the 2 books will help them understand the many Judeo-Christian references in many Western literary texts. My colleague also mentioned that I had discussed the matter with him.

My Head of Department managed to convince everyone concerned that it was for literary studies and had nothing to do with religion. However, to appease all concerned, my students were asked to return their photocopies of the 2 books and the books were then disposed of. Though disappointed how my action had been misread I was glad it was all behind me.

Over the years, I continue to read religious texts from the many religions. My all time favourite is The Ramayana (again I had studied a few courses on this text as an undergraduate, never really enjoying it much then) followed by The Mahabharata, The Bhagavad Gita. My being an Indian might have something to do with it. I still enjoy reading The Bible, especially Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon.  My all time favourite passages from The Bible still remain Ecclesiastes 3: 1-9 and I Corinthians 13. The parables of Jesus Christ are equally insightful and instructional.

I know I will continue reading these texts with all the other literary texts that I read. Each serves a different function and meets a different need.

After much thought, I have set up a new Yahoo group on teaching literature in English. It will provide a platform for discussing various issues related to teaching literature in English. 

The group is open to all who are interested in participating in the discussions. However, it is a moderated group and permission is required to be registered as a member.

The discussions will cover a whole range of topics on teaching literature in English, with reference to Malaysian schools - primary, secondary and  also tertiary education. I do hope to give some attention to the SPM Literature in English Elective paper and also to the STPM Literature in English Paper.

The following is the web address: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/teachlitmalaysia

Look forward to your participation!!

There is so much fear and anxiety on what the year has in store for us. We are asked to be prudent and cautious in all that we do - how we spend our money, should we consider career moves  or consider any kind of activity which has an element of risk in it.

How we will survive the next 12 months, time will tell. But surely it can’t be all bad. There must be a ray of hope somewhere?  This we may have to create for ourselves. I believe we will have to make sense of all that is happening in our own ways and come to terms with it at a personal level.

Guess there won’t be too many words of wisdom to guide us as each one of us tries to understand what is happening and makes the best of things.

No resolutions for the new year for me. Just best wishes to all!!

Have a good year!!