Reading fiction aloud in grade nine – student perspectives on reading and literature instruction

Abstract

Young people's interest in reading is an issue that engages on several levels. In school, the subject of Swedish shoulders a great deal of responsibility for the students' development as readers. Reading aloud as a method to promte reading motivation and engagement is gaining ground even in higher grades. The purpose of the article is to shed light on a student perspective on reading fiction and reading fiction aloud in school and seeks answers to the following research questions: What do the students’ statements tell us about their literary thinking and literary envisionments?, What picture of literary reading in general and reading aloud in particular do the students express? and How do the students think that literature teaching can be developed? Through focus group discussions with students in year 9, this article contributes from a student perspective.

The study is based on theories about literature in education, with a special focus on reading aloud. Langer's (2017) concept of envisioning literature, and the stances that readers work through when building envisionments, also contributes to the method, and are used in the analysis.

The results show factors that limit students’ reading engagement but also point to potential for development in literature instruction. Further, in the focus group discussions the students are engaged, and the qualitative analysis shows that they are developing their ideas on the novel they read and other texts, according to Langer’s theory on envisionment-building, and thereby show examples of literate thinking. Their view of reading in school can be described as utility-driven and they are partly critical of reading aloud, as it seems slow. To make the literature instruction more interesting, the students wish for a larger range of different texts, the option to choose for themselves what to read and to have more book talks. Further, the results show that the literature instruction could make better use of potential teaching and learning moments grown from the literature discussions, which is what the students’ engagement calls for.