Reading Literature and Language Awareness.docVIP

Reading Literature and Language Awareness 　　Reading literature can help students to increase their language awareness (LA). The definition of LA is necessary before the following questions are answered: Why LA is so important for language learners? How does reading literature help increase students’LA? 　　Even though LA has been the center of discussion about language education in the last two decades, it is still a controversial issue to define LA accurately (Andrew, 2000, p. 11). Among all the definitions, the way James Garrett (1998) define LA is more concrete and understandable. They define LA in terms of main aims of its five domains: the affective domain, the social domain, the ‘power’ domain, the cognitive domain and the performance domain. The affective domain aims to ‘form attitudes, awaken and develop attention, sensitivity, curiosity, interest and aesthetic response’, as Donmall (1985) writes (p.7; cited in James Garrett, 1998, p. 13). The social domain of LA, according to Donmall (1985), can be used to ‘foster better relations between all ethnic groups by arousing pupils’ awareness of the origins and characteristics of their own language and dialect and their place in the wider map of languages and dialects used in the world beyond.’ (p.8; cited in James Garrett, 1998, p. 13). To quote James Garrett (1998), the aims of other three domains are: 　　Power: to give the individual control over language and language learning for the achievement and expression of, as well as sensitivity to, identity and purpose. 　　Cognitive: to improve intellectual functioning. 　　Performance: to improve proficiency. (p. 310) 　　James Garrett (1998) also emphasize that these domains do not exist independently. One domain can have influence on another domain, for example, ‘affective’ learning can lead to better performance (p.15). 　　The definition of LA given by James Garrett (1998) answers also the question why LA is so important for language learners. In other wor