Lucrare metodico -științifică [604942]

1 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
MINISTERUL EDUCA ȚIEI ȘI CERCETĂRII ȘTIINȚIFICE
UNIVERSITATEA TEHNICĂ DIN CLUJ -NAPOCA
CENTRUL UNIVERSITAR NORD DIN BAIA MARE
DEPARTAMENTUL PENTRU PREGATIREA PERSONALULUI DIDACTIC
FACULTATEA DE LITERE

Lucrare metodico -științifică
pentru obținerea
GRA DULUI DIDACTIC I

COORDONATOR ȘTIINȚIFIC:
Lector Dr. LIGIA TOMOIAGA

CANDIDAT: [anonimizat]. ALINA MARIA IONAȘ

BAIA MARE
2016

2 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

CULT URAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS
GAINS AND LOS SES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

3 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
CONTENTS

CONTENTS ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …………………… 3
INTRODUC TION ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………….. 4
CHAPTER I TEACHING CULTURE ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………. 6
I.1. PROMOTING CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS ………………………….. …………. 6
I.2. THE IMPORTANCE OF TEACHING CULTURE I ………………………….. ………………………….. .
I.2.1. INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE ………………………….. …………….
I.2.2. CULTURAL IDENTITY , CULTURE SHOCK AND CULTURE BUMP …………………….
I.2.3. M ATERIALS USED FOR TEACHING CULTURE ………………………….. …………………………
I.2.4. TEACHING WORLD CULTURES ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………………….
I.2.5. TECHNIQUES AND ACTIVITIES USED FOR TEACHING CULTURE ………………….
CHAPTER II MOTIVATION ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………………….
II.1. METHODS ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………
II.2. GROUP PROCESSES AND MOTIVATION ………………………….. ………………………….. ………….
II.3. DEMOTIVATION FACTORS ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …….
CHAPTER II I READING LITERATURE ………………………….. ………………………….. ………
III.1. TRANSLATING CULTURE, PROBLEMS, STRATEGIES AND PRACTICAL
REALITIES ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………
III.2. CULTURE, LANGUAGE TEACHING AND COURSE BOOKS, CURRICULA …………
III.3. TRANSLATION: PROCEDURE AND STRATEGIES ………………………….. …………………….
III.4. CULTURE IN THE 21ST CENTURY ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………………
III.5 . TRADITIONAL METHODS OF TEACHING CULTURE IMPROVED WITH
TECHNOLOGY ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……….
III.6. READING AS A SKILL ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………..
III.7. DIFFERENCES: READING SKILLS AND READING STRATEGIES ………………………
III.8. EXTENSIVE AND INTENSIVE READING ………………………….. ………………………….. ………..
III.9. READING OF LITERATURE ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. …..
III.10. FROM BOOKS TO MOVIES ………………………….. ………………………….. ………………………….. ….
CHAPTER IV PRACTICAL PART ………………………….. ………………………….. ……………….

4 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
INTRODUCTION

We live in a world where the book begins to lose its impact and importance on the new
generation. More attractive alternatives tend to capture the attention of our students.
The fact that students tr y to replace reading by spending time in front of the television
could be because of the media and the Internet which provide information for granted. I
had a few students who refused to read either because they had difficulties of
perception, or because t hey had problems in expressing opinions and judgements, or
because they had problems in writing relevant and consistent messages about the
books.

Reading is not among the students ’ passions maybe because of the present curricula
which offers a technical a nd abstract vision of what reading a book means. The
theoretical concepts tend to turn reading into a chore, an obligation and not into
something noble, modelling and attractive.

This paper addresses the need for students to broaden their horizons of know ledge in a
modern era in which the time we give reading decreases. It wants to be a scholarly and
artistic universe that could be the source of future passions or simply a warning of
values that modern society tends to avoid. It addresses the students of a ll ages, but
especially to my students from “ Măd ăraș Secondary School” , who are already familiar
with some notions of English literature, civilization, holidays, customs, traditions,
lifestyles. As I have said before st udents do not consider reading useful, attractive or
necessary for their intellect ual development, so I wrote this paper to give students the
opportunity to gain knowledge of literature, culture and civilization.

After watching famous movies, students will be the protagonists of group discussions
where they will be free to express thei r opinions, will be encouraged to develop their
creativity and artistic sense and to appreciate the movies watched.

I have used in this paper the works of two writers whose books are r ecognized all over
the world. ( C. S. LEWIS –THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA AND J. K. ROWLINGS – HARRY
POTTER ). These books are already screened for the public to move beyond reading, to

5 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
watch the created characters in order to engage further in action or to develop their
imagination by re -analyzing the characters in the books in te rms of viewing.

By reading excerpts from these works and by seeing the movies, students will discover
how attractive English can be.

This paper encourages students to acquire knowledge of culture and literature in
general by stimulating the desire for kn owledge and information in English and the
knowledge of English vocabulary and concepts through conversation and writing.

A teacher can ’t make his/her students to learn. He/ she can just provide the environment
where students are encouraged to learn. I alw ays try to make my class a place where
children feel comfortable and happy. It is an important step in learning. I agree with
Einstein who said that:
“I never teach my pupils; I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can
learn.” (Albert Eins tein)

For me as a researcher and a teacher, teaching is more than just instructing students to
be ready for the next day class, performing tasks, or administering tests. It ’s about
passion, being a role model, making connections, and touching lives.

In fact, learning a new language entails new ways of t hinking, feeling, and expression. I
believe in the idea that the more understanding about the world a person has, the more
sense the world makes and the more pleasing it is to live in this world..

I would like to end this introduction with a quotation which I believe and hope that will
guide my future career:
A mediocre teacher tells. A good teacher explains. A superior teacher demonst rates. A
great teacher inspires. (W. A. Ward)

6 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
CHAPTER I

TEACHING CULT URE

I.1 Promoting Cultural Literacy In The EFL Class

“To teach a foreign language is to teach a foreign culture ”, and it is important to be
sensitive to the fact that our students, our colleagues, and, if we live abroad, our
neighbo urs, do not share all of our cultural paradigms.

Teaching is more than just instructing students to be ready for the next day class,
performing tasks, or administering tests. According to Englebert teaching is about
passion, being a role model, making connections, and touching lives. In fact, learning a
new language entails new ways of thinking, feeling, and expression. I am certainly a big
believer in k nowing more rather than less (Englebert , 2004:37) .

The key concept in cultural literacy is familiarity. In its widest sense, cultural literacy is
about reading. It is about understanding the meaning of words based on a background of
common knowledge that enables one to make sense of what is read.

Learning English as a foreign is comprised of a number of components including
grammatical compe tence, communicative competence , language proficiency and cultural
competence, which is the knowledge of the conventions, customs, beliefs, and systems of
meaning of another country. When reading becomes a pleasure rather than a chore, one
becomes more culturally literate. It ’s a simple fact that the more one reads, the more one
can understand what is read; the more enjoyable reading becomes, the more c ulturally
literate one becomes Thanasoulas (2001) .

Language and culture cannot survive o ne without the other. It is impossible for one to
teach language without teaching culture. Language teaching is culture teaching and
teachers do their students a great disservice in placing emphasis on the former, to the
detriment of the latter. Students n eed to learn the language in order to truly appreciate

7 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
the culture, but they do not need to learn about the culture in order to truly comprehend
the language.

The need for cultural literacy in ELT arises mainly from the fact that most language
learners, n ot exposed to cultural elements of the society in question, seem to encounter
significant hardship in communicating meaning to native speakers. (Bada 2000: 101)

I.2 The Importance Of Teaching Culture In The EFL Class

Culture is the integrated pattern o f human knowledge, belief, and behavio ur that is both
a result and integral to the human capacity for learning and transmitting knowledge to
succeeding generations. Culture thus consists of language, ideas, beliefs, customs,
taboos, codes, institutions, t ools, techniques, works of art, ceremonies and symbols.

Every human society has its own particular culture, or sociocultural system. Difference
among culture is due to such factors as differing physical habitats and resources, the
range of possibilities inherent in areas such as language, ritual and social organization;
and historical phenomena such as the development of links with other cultures.

A person ’s attitudes, ideals, values and beliefs are greatly influenced by the culture in
which he /she liv es.

Culture in language learning is not an expendable fifth skill, tacked on, so to speak, to the
teaching of speaking, listening, reading, and writing. It is always in the background, right
from day one, ready to unsettle the good language learners when they expect it least,
making evident the limitations of their hard -won communicative competence,
challenging their ability to make sense of the world around them (Kramsch 1993: 1). In
general , culture as the fifth skill emphasizes the lea rners ability to pe rceive, to
understand and ultimately, to accept cultu ral relativity (Kramsch, 1993: 11).

8 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Communication requires understanding, and understanding requires stepping into the
shoes of the foreigner and sifting her cultural baggage, while always putting the t arget
culture in relation with one ’s own (Kramsch 1993: 205) .

Brooks (1968) emphasized the importance of culture not for the study of literature but
for language learning. There is an ongoing trend of treating culture as a “throw -in”
activity due to the b elief that culture is a peripheral consideration to the nature of
foreign or second language teaching (Warford & White 2012).

Many teachers avoid teaching culture for several reasons:
 They may feel that students at lower proficiency levels are not ready for it yet.
 They may feel that it is additional material that they simply do not have time to
teach.
 In the case of formal culture, they may feel that they do not know enough about it
themselves to teach it adequately.
 In the case of popular culture, they may feel that it is not worth teaching.

The exquisite connection between the culture that is lived and the language that is
spoken can only be realized by those w ho possess knowledge of both. ( National
Standards In Foreign Language E ducation Project , 199 9:47)

Language teachers need to go beyond monitoring linguistic production in the classroom
and become aware of the complex and numerous processes of intercultural mediation
that any foreign language l earner undergoes (Butjes , 1990: 55-56).

To hark back to the relationship between language and culture; Samovar, Porter, & Jain
(1981: 24) observe:
Culture and communication are inseparable because culture not only dictates who talks to
whom, about what, and how the communication proceeds, it also helps to det ermine how
people encode messages, the meanings they have for messages, and the conditions and
circumstances under which various messages may or may not be sent, noticed, or
interpreted… Culture is the foundation of communication.

9 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The teacher ’s role is t o stimulate students ’ interest in the target culture, and to help
establish the foreign language classroom not so much as a place where the language is
taught, but as one where opportunities for learning of various kinds are provided
through the interactio ns that take place between the participants (Ellis, 199 2:171, cited
in Kramsch, 1993: 245) .

Schumann ’s acculturation model explains that: the closer they feel to the target language
speech community, the better learners will ‘acculturate, ’ and the more su ccessful their SLL
will be. The more alienated from that community they perceive themselves to be, the more
pidgin -like their second language will remain. (Mitchell & Myles 2004)

Students can gain cultural competency and improve their interaction and spea king skills
through the teaching of culture in foreign language classrooms.

Students must now what it means to be part of a culture, their own culture. By exploring
their own culture, by discussing the very values, expectations, traditions, customs, and
rituals they unconsciously take part in, they are ready to reflect upon the values,
expecta tions, and traditions of others (Straub 1999) .

In a sense, cultural knowledge and experience should make us aware that, far fro m
becoming members of the same “monocu ltural global village” (Kramsch, 1987c), we can
actually become observers and participants at the same time, registering what is
transpiring in ev ery culture and trying to find “third places” (Kramsch, 1993), a third
niche, from which to divine pernicious dichotomies and bridge cultural gaps. After all, as
regards language teachers, we cannot teach an understanding of the foreign as long as
the familiar has not become foreign to us in many respects (Hunfe ld, 1990:16, translated
by, and cited in Kramsch, 199 3:234) .

Weaver ’s (1993) cultural iceberg (Figure 1) shows that a large proportion of our own
culturally -shaped knowledge is invisible and mostly subconsciously applied in our
everyday interactions.

10 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Figure 1
Linguists and anthro pologists have long recognized that the forms and uses of a given
language reflect the cultural values of the society in which the language is spoken.
Linguistic competence alone is not enough for learners of a language to be competent in
that language. La nguage learners need to be aware, for example, of the culturally
appropriate ways to address people, express gratitude, make requests, and agree or
disagree with someone. They should know that behavio urs and intonation patterns that
are appropriate in thei r own speech community may be perceived differently by
members of the target language speech community. They have to understand that, in
order for communication to be successful, language use must be associated with other
culturally appropriate behavio ur. In many regards, culture is taught implicitly,
imbedded in the linguistic forms that students are learning. To make students aware of
the cultural features reflected in the language, teachers can make those cultural features
an explicit topic of discussion in relation to the linguistic forms being studied (Krasner ,
1999) .

Teachers must allow students to observe and explore cultural interactions from their
own perspectives to enable them to find their own voices in the second language speech
community. Cult ural activities and objectives should be carefully organized and
incorporated into lesson plans to enrich and inform the teaching content (Peterson and
Coltrane 2003:1) .

Language expresses, embodies and symbolizes cultural reality clearly shows that
langu age and culture are bounded together . The relationship between language and
culture is made meaningful in language learning as the person who learns language

11 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
without learning cultu re risks becoming a fluent fool . (Benne tt, Bennett & Allen
2003: 237)

I.2.1 Intercultural communicative competence

The National Center for Cultural Competence defines culture as an:
integrated pattern of human behavio ur that includes thoughts, communications,
languages, practices, beliefs, values, customs, courtesies, rituals, ma nners of interacting
and roles, relationships and expected behavio urs of a racial, ethnic, religious or social
group; and the ability to transmit the above to succeeding generations.

The concept of “intercultural communicative competence” (Byram, 1997) ha s refocused
the goal of language education with culture integrated into language study. The use of
the term “inter -cultural” reflects the view that EFL learners have to gain insight into
both their own and the foreign culture (Kramsch, 1993). Intercultural communicative
competence refers to the ability to ensure a shared understanding by people of different
social identities, and the ability to interact with people as complex human beings with
multiple identities and their own individuality according to Byram, Gribkova & Starkey
(2002 :10).

This competency emphasizes the mediation between different cultures, the ability to
look at oneself from an external perspective, analyze and adapt one ’s own behavio urs,
values and beliefs An interculturally competent le arner therefore displays a range of
affective, behaviour al and cog nitive capacities as follows (Byram 2006: 22-26):

Affective capacities Behaviour Cognitive capacities
Acknowledgement of the
identities of others Flexibility Knowledge
Respect for othernes s Communicative awareness Knowledge discovery
Tolerance for ambiguity Interpreting and relating
Empathy Critical cultural
awareness

12 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
I.2.2 Cultural identity, culture shock, and culture bump

Some other culturally related terms include cultural identit y, culture shock, and culture
bump. Damen (1987) noted that cultural identity is associated with the relationship
between the individual and society, and it is at stake when the process of acculturation is
under way, because to become bicultural is to deve lop an altered cultural personality
and identity. Kramer (1994) indicated that foreign language learning is a hermeneutic
process where learners expose their own cultural identity to the contrasting influences
of a foreign language and culture.

Culture sh ock which is a common experience for a person learning a second language in
a second culture refers to the phenomena ranging from mild irritating to deep
psychologica l panic and crisis (Brown 1986: 2007). In terms of the origin of the term,
Damen (1987) poi nted out that it was coined in 1958 by Oberg who suggested that it
resulted from anxiety over losing familiar signs and symbols.

Damen further indicated that culture shock is an intermediate stage in the acculturative
process, and is particularly painful as it follows an initial period of euphoria and joy at
the new and strange. Culture shock may endure for some, whereas for others it is
quickly followed by a devastating period of depression, dislike of the new and strange,
illness, discouragement, and de spair (Damen , 1987). Using Pederson (1995) as a guide,
Brown and Eisterhold (2004) state that the classic model of culture shock has five
stages:
1. The honeymoon stage
2. The disintegration stage
3. The reintegration stage
4. The autonomy stage
5. The interdependence st age

Unlike culture shock, culture bump, as Archer (1986) noted, occurs when a person from
one culture finds himself or herself in a different, strange, or uncomfortable situation
when interacting with people of a different culture. Archer posited that suc h a
phenomenon results from a difference in the way people from one culture behave in a

13 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
certain situation from those in another culture. Moreover, a culture bump, as Archer
indicated, also happens when a person has expectations of one behavio ur and gets
something completely different; and an individual does not have to leave one ’s own
culture in order to experience a culture bump.

Jiang (2001) noted that for native English speaking teachers who work in English as a
foreign language contexts culture bumps a re inevitable, so whenever culture bumps
occur, those teachers should use the incident as an opportunity to teach their own
culture, since knowledge obtained from experience tends to be more deeply rooted than
from books. Culture bumps can happen to anyone who is not familiar with a new
culture; therefore, not only language students but language teachers may also encounter
such experiences which can turn out to be very instructive for teachers and students to
discuss in the class.

I.2.3 Materials used for teaching culture in the EFL Classroom

In order to get a comprehensive picture of the target culture from many angles, we need
to present our students with d ifferent kinds of information. By using a combination of
visual, audio and tactile materials, we are also likely to succeed in addressing the
different learning styles of our students.

According to Julian Edge, materials exist in order to support learning and teaching, so
they should be designed to suit the people and the processes involved. Where t his is not
the case, it is the materials, or the use of them, which need to change.

According to Edge , “Our purpose is not to teach materials. Our purpose is to teach
students, and to use materials in that process".

We should use materials with enthusias m. A negative attitude from the teacher towards
the materials is strongly demotivating for the l earners; it takes away their fe elings of
security and purpose. Certainly, some materials are better than others, but just about
any type of material can be used well by a committed teacher (Julian Edge 1993 :43) .

14 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Using authentic sources from the native speech community helps to engage students in
authentic cultural experiences. Sources can include films, news broadcasts, and
television shows; Web sites; and photo graphs, magazines, newspapers, restaurant
menus, travel brochures, and other printed materials. Teachers can adapt their use of
authentic materials to suit the age and language proficiency level of the students.

For example, even beginning language studen ts can watch and listen to video clips taken
from a television show in the target language and focus on such cultural conventions as
greetings. The teacher might supply students with a detailed translation or give them a
chart, diagram, or outline to compl ete while they listen to a dialogue or watch a video.
After the class has viewed the relevant seg ments, the teacher can engage the students in
discussion of the cultural norms represented in the segments and what these norms
might say about the values of the culture. Discussion topics might include nonverbal
behaviour s (e.g., the physical distance between speakers, gestures, eye contact, societal
roles, and how people in different social roles relate to each other). Students might
describe the behaviour s they observe and discuss which of them are similar to their
native culture and which are not and determine strategies for effective commu nication
in the target language (Peterson and Coltrane 2003:1) .

I.2.4 Teaching world cultures

According to the new Professional Teaching Standards, every teacher must promote
global awaren ess in classroom instruction (Regina Higgins 2012 :17) . Today the mission
of a teacher shoul d be to prepare students to be “globally competitive for work” .

Some teachers welcome the c hallenge of global learning, and look for every opportunity
to infuse their lessons with international content. Many teach cultures expertly, but
we’ve all heard horror stories of cultural lessons gone wrong – the discussion that
succeeds only in reinforci ng stereotypes, the “re -enactment” of cultural or religious
ceremonies that show gross disrespect.

15 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Lack of knowledge or understanding, or even good intentions but poor planning can mar
students ’ learning about cultures. Many teachers steer clear of cultu ral content for fear
of making embarrassing mistakes. But now that the North Carolina Professional
Teaching Standards stipulate that teachers must “demonstrate knowledge of diverse
cultures” and “ develop lessons that counteract stereotypes ” (Standard II ); and “promote
global awareness and its relevance” (Standard III ), teaching cultures is no longer
optional.

Using images, sounds a nd artefacts from world cultures in our teaching can help us
make our classes more interesting. It is important that when we teach cultural content
lessons to stress the similarities to establish a context that makes sense of the
differences.

For the fore ign language teacher teaching culture is valuable and the reasons are many.
Culture shapes our view of the world. And language is the most representative element
in any culture. Any item of behaviour, tradition or pattern can only be understood in
light of its meaning to the people who practice it. Knowledge of the codes of behaviour of
another people is important if today ’s foreign language student is to communicate fully
in the target language.

Humanistically, the study of different cultures aids us in g etting to know different people
which is a necessary prelude to understanding and respecting other peoples and their
ways of life . It helps to open our students ’ eyes to the similarities and differences in the
life of various cultural groups. Today, most o f our students live in a monolingual and
monocultural environment. Consequently, they become culture -bound individuals who
tend to make premature and inappropriate value judgments. This can cause them to
consider the foreign peoples whose language they are trying to learn as very peculiar
and even ill -mannered.

In 1980, the Presidents Commission on Foreign Language and International Studies
stated:

16 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Foreign language instruction at any level should be a humanistic pursuit intended to
sensitize students to other cultures, to the relativity of values, to appreciation of
similarities among peoples and respect for the differences among them . (Wilkes, p. 107)

We have to ask ourselves the 2 questions :
1. When should the study of culture begin? Ideally, the study of culture should begin on
the very first day of class and should continue every day there after. Because of the large
decrease in enrolment in second and third year language courses, the concept of culture
can be communicated to only a small number of st udents unless this is done in the
earliest phases of their instruction.
2. What type of culture should be taught in the foreign language classroom? Nelson
Brooks has identified five meanings of culture: growth; refinement; fine arts; patterns of
living; an d a total way of life. He believes that patterns of living should receive the major
emphasis in the classroom. It is patterns of living that are the least understood, yet the
most important in the early phases of language instruction. He labels this meanin g of
culture as culture 4 and defines it as follows:

Culture 4 (patterns of living) refers to the individuals role in the unending kaleidoscope
of life situations of every kind and the rules and models for attitude and conduct in them.
By reference to the se models, every human being, from infancy onward, justifies the
world to himself as best he can, associates with those around him, and relates to the
social order to which h e is attached (Brooks, p. 210) .

From the point of view of language instruction, c ulture 4 can be divided into formal
culture and deep culture. Formal culture, sometimes referred to as culture with a capital
C, includes the humanistic manifestations and contributions of a foreign culture: art;
music; literature; architecture; technology ; politics. However, with this way of looking at
culture, we often lose sight of the individual.

The most profitable way of looking at culture is to see what it does. Deep culture, or
culture with a small c, focuses on the behaviour al patterns or lifestyl es of the people:
When and what they eat; how they make a living; the attitudes they express towards
friends and members of their families; which expressions they use to show approval or

17 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
disapproval. In this sense, culture is a body of ready -made solutions to the problems
encountered by the group. It is a cushion between man and his environment. If we
provide our students only with a list of facts of history or geography and a list of lexical
items, we have not provided them with an intimate view of what li fe is really like in the
target culture.

Now that the what, why, and when of incorporating culture in the foreign language
classroom has been established, a focus on the how is needed. Better international
understanding is a noble aim, but how can the tra nsition be made from theoretical
matters to the active, crowded, and sometimes noisy foreign language classroom? One
problem in all classroom work is the involvement of students ’ interest, attention, and
active participation. Learning activities which focu s on active rather than passive
learning are the best.

Traditional methods of teaching culture in the foreign language classroom have been
focused on formal culture and passive learning. Students do need both a geographical
and historical perspective in o rder to understand contemporary behaviour patterns but
this can be done with hands on activities. Beginning foreign language students want to
feel, touch, smell, and see the foreign peoples and not just hear their language. From the
first day of class teac hers should have prepared a cultural island in their classrooms.
Posters, pictures, maps, signs, and realia of many kinds are essential in helping students
develop a mental image (all are available from Gessler Publishing Company).

Assigning students for eign names from the first day can heighten student interest. Short
presentations on a topic of interest with appropriate pictures or slides add to this
mental image. Start students off by making them aware of the influence of various
foreign cultures in th is country. Introduce students to the borrowed words in our
English language or the place -names of our country. This helps students to realize they
already know many words in the target language (i.e. poncho, fiesta, rodeo). Some of the
foods they eat are another example of the influence of foreign cultures (i.e. taco, bur rito,
chili) (Brown :56) .

2.5 Techniques and activities used for teaching culture

18 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

According to Omaggio, (1993: 357) teaching culture is considered important by mos t
teachers but it has rem ained “ insubstantial and sporadic in most language classrooms ”.
Omaggio gives several reasons for this including lack of time, uncertainty about which
aspects of culture to teach, and lack of practical techniques.
Oxford (1994) has used the term “cultural texture” to describe the many aspects of
culture that we need to teach to our students. To achieve this texture, we need to vary
three different parameters.
1. Information Sources
2. Activity -types
3. Selling -points

Many books which attempt to teach culture offer only discussion activities. Discussion is
a valuable form of learning in culture, but we cannot expect all students to be able to
discuss complex issues at a high level in a foreign language. Often, even high -level
students need some preparatory activitie s with clear goals before they can proceed to
discussion.

Traditional methods of teaching culture in the foreign language classroom have been
focused on formal culture and passive learning. Students do need both a geographical
and historical perspective i n order to understand contemporary behaviour patterns but
this can be done with hands on activities. Beginning foreign language students want to
feel, touch, smell, and see the foreign peoples and not just hear their language. From the
first day of class t eachers should have prepared a cultural island in their classrooms.
Posters, pictures, maps, signs, and realia of many kinds are essential in helping students
develop a mental image (all are available from Gessler Publishing Company).

I have noticed that quizzes are one of the more successful activity types. Quizzes can be
used to test materials that we have previously taught, but they are also useful in learning
new information . Some activities will be discussed below:

19 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 1
True/ false quiz. St udents work individually then check their answers in pairs. They
receive a short text and have to mark the sentences as T/F.
Read the text a nd circle the correct answer: T/ F
Paul has got a lot of friends, but his favourite friend is Mark. He is not in Paul ’s class, but
they go to the same school. They usually play together after they finish their homework
or on Saturday. Paul is 10 years old and Mark has the same age. Paul has got a little sister
and Mark has one, too.
1. Paul and Mark are classmates. TRUE / F ALSE
2. Mark has got many friends. TRUE / FALSE
3. Mark and Paul usually do their homework together. TRUE / FALSE
4. The two boys have little sisters. TRUE / FALSE
5. They play together at the weekend. TRUE / FALSE
It is not important whether students get the right an swer or not, students will become
more interested in finding out the right answer. The right answers can be given by the
teacher, through a reading, listening, or video.

Activity 2
Reformulation:
When students have read an activity or listened to a stor y, we may like to use
reformulation to allow them to check what they have learned and to reinforce it by
retelling it to a part ner. Reformulation simply means : to explain what you have learned
in your own words. It is a very simple technique, but has prove d very successful for
learning both culture and language .

We often give readings for homework and require students to take notes on the content.
These notes can be in the form of pictures, keywords, or mind -maps. We ask the
students to reformulate the con tent of the reading with a partner using their notes
without looking at the original paper. Reformulation is also effective after watching a
short video extract or listening to a story. Through reformulation, students check what
they have learnt, find out things that they have missed from their partner, and improve
their language by noticing gaps in their own ability to explain .

20 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Example :
Students receive a short text called
The joke about the genie
An Australian is sitting at a bar, and he sees a lamp on a table. He picks up the lamp and
rubs it, and out pops a genie. It s ays, “I will give you three wishes” .
The man thin ks for a while, then he says: “ I want a beer that is never empty” .
The genie waves his hand, and a bottle of genie appears on the bar. The Australian starts
drinking it. When it is almost empty it starts to refill. The man is very happy. The genie
asks about his next two wishes.
The man says: “I want two more of those” . (http://wk.baidu.com.cn/)

Activity 3
Find similarities and diffe rences :

Students work in groups of four. Each of the four members initially receives a
short written narrative which they read quietly. Then they must retell this story
to another g roup member. In the second round of story -telling, they change
partners and retell the story they just heard from their previous partner. After a
third round of story -telling, everyone in the group will have heard each of the
stories.
Before showing the p hoto, the teacher explains that a Hindu wedding ceremony
involves special clothes (especially for the bride) and displays of flowers, just like
a western wedding ceremony. The teacher asks students to look for bridal clothes
and flowers when they look at t he photo. Students have to find differences and
similarities in how we celebrate a wedding

21 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Image 1
This photo of a bride in a traditional Indian wedding provides an opportunity to
emphasize cultural simil arities as well as differences.
The teacher shows the class a photo of a traditional wedding in India. The bride ’s red
sari an d necklace of flowers becomes the focus of the discussion, and soon all anyone
can talk about how strange it is for a bride to be wearing a red (not white) dress, and
wearing flowers around her neck (not holding a floral bouquet).

ANALYSIS
We see differen ces more readily than we see similarities. In this case, students saw
something that seemed strange to them, and, because they hadn ’t been prepared, the
strangeness was all they could see. Naturally, it took over their discussion.
A single tradition doesn ’t define an entire culture. We have to remember that no world
culture or region is uniform. Every culture has sacred rit es and taboos. Before you teach
about a sacred ritual, research carefully, and, if possible, talk with someone from the
culture who can advise you a bout how to avoid disrespect. ( Regina Higgins ,
http://www.learnnc.org/ )

Activity 4
Celebrating festivals . – Halloween

22 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Image 2

According to Deborah Peck, celebrating foreign festivals is a favo urite activity of many
students. Even though th is activity takes a lot of planning, it works well as a culminating
activity. My Spanish -speaking students start by bringing in recipes from home and then
we put our own cookbook together . We then prepare for the festival by drawing posters,
decorating the room, and preparing some of the foods in our cookbook. At Christmas
time, we fill a pinata with candy and learn some folk songs and folk dances (Most
textbooks have songs at the back of the book). This kind of activity enables student to
actively particip ate in the cultural heritage of the people they are studying (Deborah
Peck , 2016) .

Objectives
 Enriching students general knowledge about Halloween
 Using their creativity and imagination for creating special decorations and Carnival
costumes
 Practicing com munication skills
 Stimulating the students competitiveness

Procedure
 PPT presentations
 workshops for making ghosts of napkins and carving pumpkins
 an exhibition of carved pumpkins
 costume presentation and a parade
 in the end, the jury will give diplomas

23 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Activity 5
Proverbs
Using proverbs as a way to explore culture, as well as a way for students to explore the
values that are often represented in the p roverbs of their native culture (Cicarelli
1996:45) .
In the following activity students have to match the proverbs with their definitions. And
then choose three of them and comment on them in no more than 5 lines.
Match the proverbs with their definition.
1. A good man is hard to find.
2. A cat may look at a king.
3. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
4. A fish always rots from the head down.
5. A dog is man ’s best friend.
6. A golden key can open any door. a. Money opens any door.
b. Difficulty of finding a male partner.
c. An inferior isn ’t completely restricted …
d. An animal that performs valuable services
to humans.
e. A friend in need, is indeed a true friend.
f. When a state fails, it is the leadership that
is the root cause.

Activity 6
Food hunting

Image 3
The teacher sends the students on cultural scavenger hunts to supermarkets and
department stores and have them make lists of imported goods that are not Romanian
traditional food.
The teacher can also ask the students before starting to ask their colleagues about those
types of foods that they used to eat regularly in their native country.

24 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
They children will then make a lis t of the shops they visited and the types of food they
found and also state the origin of the food.. then compare lists with their colleagues.
They can even bring pictures into class with the items they had selected.

Activity 7
Cultural names

There are l ots of sayings about names, and most of them are at best only partially true.
Students investigate the meanings and origins of their names in order to establish their
own personal histories and to explore cultural significance of naming traditions.
Student s begin by writing down everything they know about their own names, then the
teacher shares details about his or her own name story. Next, students use an online tool
to research their own or someone else’s name and share their findings with the class.

Activity 8
Cultural information
Cultural information should be presented in a nonjudgmental fashion, in a way that does
not place value or judgment or di stinctions between the students ’ native culture and the
culture explored in the classroom. Kramsch (1993) describes the "third culture" of the
language classroom – a neut ral space that learners can create and use to explore and
reflect on their own and the target culture and language.

The students are given clues or background information about the objects a nd ideas
brought in the classroom by the teacher so that they can incorporate the new
information into their own worldview. An example might be a cup of tea and some
biscuits. Students are told that the object is somehow used for a special moment of the
day, then they would either research or be informed about why, when and how the
object is used. This could lead into related discussion about foods eaten in the target
culture, the geography, growing seasons, and so forth. The students act as
antropologists, exploring and understanding the target culture in relation to their own .

25 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
CHAPTER I I

MOTIVATION

Goals , methods and motivation
Rivers (1972: 118) quotes Ausubel as pointing out that "Motivation is as much an effect
as a cause of learning" and “the relat ionship between the two, he says, is "typically
reciprocal, rather than unidirectional ”.

Motivation is a key issue in teaching a foreign language as well as other subjects. One
crucial difference is that teaching a foreign language has a significant impac t on the
social nature of learners since it sometimes requires learners to adopt new social and
cultural behaviour s (Gardner , 1979; Williams, 1994).

Motivation is a process rather than a product. Therefore we cannot observe it directly
but we can infer i t from actions and verbalisations. Motivation involves goals that
provide impetus for and direction to action (Schunk et al 2002:183)

Student motivation is influenced by both internal and external factors that can start,
sustain, intensify, or discourage behaviour” (Reeve 1996). The teacher has to activate
these motivational components in the students. Many teachers believe that by sticking to
the language materials and trying to discipline their refractory students, they will
manage to create a classroom environment that will be conducive to learning.

Nevertheless, these teachers seem to lose sight of the fact that, un less they accept their
students ’ personalities and work on those minute details that constitute their social and
psychological make -up, th ey will fail to motivate them. What is more, they will not be
able to form a cohesive and coherent group, unless they succeed in turning most
“curriculum goals” (goals set by outsiders) into “group goals” (goals accepted by the
group members, that is, stud ents).

26 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
II.1 METHODS

It is important that the students themselves recognize and understand the connection
between language and culture and encourage the development of cross -cultural
understanding.

There are many ways to incorporate culture in the classr oom.

The “process framework” is a seven -stage tool for lesson plan development that can help
integrate culture into lessons. The first four stages – presentation of new material,
practice, grammar exploration and transposition or use, are fairly common in language
education (Koning , 2012). The next three stages sociolinguistic exploration, culture
exploration, and intercultural exploration – bring cultural elements to the lesson.
Sociolinguistic exploration helps students understand how language changes in different
context and with different people and different topics. In culture exploration, the
cultural contexts of interactions are examined, and students learn how speakers interact
and behave during various functions. In the last stage, intercultural exp loration, the
systems of interaction used in the target language and in English are compared and
contrasted (Koning , 2012).

Another method for integrating culture into the classroom is the Sociocultural Model
Lesson Plan (SMLP). The SMLP uses literacy as a vehicle for transmitting cultural
information (Warford & White 2012). It is composed of five sta ges:
(1) Activation of Schemata;
(2) Text Interpretaton;
(3) Sociocultural Interpretation;
(4)Sociocultural Presentation and
(5) Sociocultural Debriefing.

In Activation of Schemata, the instructor poses leading questions about cultural
conventions that are pertinent to the text the students will explore.

27 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
During Text Interpretation, the instructor guides student readings with bottom -up and
top-down questi ons to help them process the text. Following the reading, the instructor
facilitates Sociocultural Interpretation by comparing elements of the target culture
found in the reading with elements of the student ’s culture and by discussing which of
their assum ptions were correct or incorrect.

During Sociocultural Presentation, students develop an adaptation or re -creation of the
presented text. Finally, the instructor and the students examine the appropriateness of
the students ’ simulations against the linguis tic and cultural elements previously
identified in the lesson. The process framework and SMLP are just two examples of
potential methods for integrating culture into lesson plans.

II.2 GROUP PROCESSES AND MOTIVATION

A discussion of motivation and motiva tional strategies would not be complete without a
consideration of group processes, in as much as there is usually a group of people that
we as teachers are called on to motivate. Tuckman (1969, quoted in Argyle, 1969)
established that a group went through four stages from its formation, which has
important implications for the study of the classroom and the use of group activities
during teaching.
 Stage 1 Forming : At first, there is some anxiety among the members of the group, as
they are dependent on the leader (that is, the teacher) and they have to find out what
behaviour is acceptable.
 Stage 2 Storming : There is conflict between sub -groups and rebellion against the
leader. Members of the group resist their leader and the role relations attending the
function of the group are questioned.
 Stage 3 Norming : The group begins to develop a sort of cohesion. Members of the
group begin to support each other. At this stage, there is co -operation and open
exchange of views and feelings about their roles and each ot her.
 Stage 4 Performing : Most problems are resolved and there is a great deal of
interpersonal activity. Everyone is devoted to completing the tasks they have been
assigned.

28 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Experience shows that almost every group goes through these four (or even more)
stages until it reaches equilibrium and, thus, taps into its potential. In reality, this
process may go on forever, since student lethargy and underachievement norms in the
classroom are considered to be basic hindrances to effective teaching and learning
(Daniels, 1994). Against this background, we will try to design a framework for
motivational strategies.
As we have already said, skill in motivating students to learn is of paramount
importance. Until recently, however, teachers were forced to rely on “bag -of-tricks”
approaches in their attempt to manage their classroom and motivate their learners.

Good and Brophy (1994: 212) hold that these approaches have been influenced by two
contradictory views:
a) that learning should be fun and that any motivation pr oblems that may appear should
be ascribed to the teacher ’s attempt to convert an enjoyable activity to drudgery; and
b) that school activities are inherently boring and unrewarding, so that we must rely on
extrinsic rewards and punishment with a view to fo rcing students to engage in these
unpleasant ta sks.

II.3 DEMOTIVATION FACTORS

In the education field, demotivation hinders people from pursuing their goals. It plays
the bad -guy role in English education, leading great deal of students to give -up.
Furth ermore, it is easy for highly motivated students to become demotivated, puzzling
instructors who have been teaching passionately with proven methods. According to
Trang and Baldauf Jr. (2007:102)

Research has shown that motivation is crucial for L2 learni ng because it directly
influences how much effort students make, how often students learn L2 learning
strategies, how much students interact with native speakers, how much input they
receive in the language being learned., how well they do on curriculum -related

29 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
achievement tests, how high their general proficiency level becomes, and how long they
reserve and maintain L2 skill s after language study is over.

According to Trang and Baldauf Jr . there are two groups of demotives: internal
attributions and exter nal attributions. The internal attributions include stude nts’
attitudes towards English, their experiences of failure or lack of success, and the
incidents related to their self -esteem, the external ones contain teacher -related factors,
the learning enviro nment, and other external factors ( ibid.).

According to Thanasoulas (2003) “demotivated” learner is someone who was once
motivated but has lost his or her interest for some reason. In t he same layer, we can
speak of “demotives” , which ar e the negative cou nterparts of “motives” . Whereas a
motive can be said to raise an action tendency, a demotive decreases it” . Dornyei
(1998:142) recognized three negative factors:
1. An attractive alternative action that serves as a powerful distraction (e.g. watching
TV in stead of doing one ’s homework).
2. The gradual loss of interest in a longlasting, ongoing activity.
3. The sudden realization that the costs of pursuing a goal are too high (e.g. when
someone recognizes how demanding it is to attend an evening course while working
during the day).

Anxiety also plays important role in le arning second/foreign language.

Mitchell & Myles (2004) believe that the anxious learners are also less willing to speak
and develop in class or to engage target language speakers in formal interaction. The
learner can not build a positive relationship with success in learning if there is a
language anxiety. In this regard, it is important to make studen ts enthusiastic about
learning.

Learners ’ motivation can differ extremely due to their a nxiety and confidence they have
toward the language they are learning and the classroom atmosphere they are in. In that
sense, not only is the anxiety connected to motivation, but also connected to proficiency

30 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
and more so to communication proficiency, as a rgued by Clement, Dornyei, and Noels
(1994).

The behaviour of the teacher influences the behaviour of the student, subsequently
affecting learning outcomes. Student motivation is affected by a variety of factors, some of
which are directly inf luenced by w hat a teacher does how the teacher structures the course
and how he/she behaves in class). (p. 101)

The role of teacher is that s/he must know about his/her student and the kind of
motivation s/he needs. In fact, the effective learning in the classroom de pend on the
teacher ’s ability in knowing that students are different in their characteristics and each
student has his own features and treats them accordingly. And because a student comes
from different background, it is natural that they are different in their interaction and
they need different kinds of motivation that enhance their interaction.

Davis (2002) suggests that it is necessary to give frequent, early positive feedback that
supports students ’ beliefs that they can do well and helps them feel t hat they are valued
members of learning. The learners in this stage need positive reinforcement to motivate
them to learn. The teacher is supposed to promote cooperation instead of competition
and help the students understand that mistakes are natural. It is also advocated to
design tests that are clear and involve the students in negotiating the final grades.
Teachers should also allow learners to maintain a positive social image while engaged in
the learning tasks. It is recommended that the teacher selec t activities that contain
positive role for the participants. It is also suggested that teacher avoid face -threatening
acts such as humiliation or criticism. Teachers are also to not to put students on the spot.
These strategies confirm that motivation is something all our students carry with them
in one form to another. It is not the case that all we need to do as a teacher to recognize
it, encourage it, feel it, and watch it grow. The teacher ’s job is also to teach how to
develop and increase motivation b y using appropriate motivational strategies
framework in the classroom.

31 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
CHAPTER I II

READING LITERATURE

III.1 Translating culture: problems, strategies and practical realities

Introduction
Literature is a form of knowledge, thus capable of revealing d eep aspects of the
human being, always transgressing the level of the visible and the superficial
(Dobrinescu Anca Mihaela, 2010:134)

Herein lies the role of literature in the foreign language classroom. Rather than being a
fifth adjunct to the four skill s (reading, writing, speaking, and listening), culture can best
find its expression through the medium of literature. Moreover, trying to interpret and
account for the values, assumptions, and beliefs infusing the literary texts of the target
culture is in strumental in defining and redefining those obtaining in the home culture
(Gantidou, personal communicatio n).

Of course, literature can extend to cover the use of film and television in the FL
classroom, for they "have the capacity…to present language and situation simultaneously,
that is, language in fully contextualized form" (Corder , 1968, cited in Jalling, 1968: 65).

A major shortcoming, though, is that the viewer can only be an observer, not a
participant. There is only reaction but no interaction on her part (ibid.: 68). It is simply
accepted as given that literature is a viable component of second language programs at
the appropriate level and that one of the major functions of literature is to serve as a
medium to transmit the culture of the people w ho speak the language in which it is
written. Literary texts are often replete with cultural information and evoke memorable
reactions for readers. Texts that are carefully selected for a given group of students with
specific goals in mind can be very help ful in allowing students to acquire insight into a
culture.

32 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Literary texts display many linguistic peculiarities, as well as social and cultural aspects
of our lives and, thus, we can assert that literary translation is one of the main ways of
communicati on across cultures.

Translating literary texts, however, is not an easy task, since it certainly poses many
problems for the translator. One of the problems a translator can face arises from the
fact that some words or phrases denoting objects, facts, ph enomena, etc… are so deeply
rooted in their source culture (SC) and so specific (and perhaps exclusive or unique) to
the culture that produced them that they have no equivalent in the target culture (TC),
be it because they are unknown, or because they are not yet codifi ed in the target
language (TL).

When discussing the problems of correspondence in translation, “differences between
cultures may cause more severe complications for the translator than do differences in
language structure” (Nida 130). Moreo ver, several theorists, such as Santoyo, García
Yebra and Yifeng, amongst others, support untranslatability when we face texts with
terms which are so culture -bound and culture -specific as to defy translation (cf.
Fernández Guerra, “The issue” , p. 41).

In all cases, when cultural differences exist between the two languages, it is extremely
difficult to achieve a successful transfer, if not impossible (whatever the competence of
the translator in the two languages involved). And even the slightest variation from the
source language (SL) cultural term can be taken as an act of subversion against the
culture it represents. Literary translation itself can even be regarded as an act of
subversion, or a means of providing an altern ative or subversion of reality.

As Levine affirms, “ the literary translator can be considered a subversive scribe ” (7). In the
same line of thought, when talking about the task of translating literature, Silver states:
“I understand subversion as at the core of the translation project i tself ” (Silver , p. 5).

33 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
III. 2 Culture, language teaching and course books, curricula

a) What is language good at?
Language is our best instrument of knowing and our instrument of ordering the
surrounding reality and it is what helps us put order in the rea lity. Language is also
capable of expressing consciousness, the mind, which is complex and extremely
disordered. (Dobrinescu Anca Mihaela, 2001 :11, 12)
As Kaplan, R. (1986:19) points out , we do not have good definitions for either culture or
language; beca use we are enmired in both, it is hard to get outside them enough to try to
define them.

b) The roles of teachers, curricula, and textbooks in culture learning in second
and foreign language learning.
Several different factors may have an impact on the succe ss and failure of culture
teaching in language classrooms. Teachers, curricula, and textbooks are among the most
important factors to take in to consideration. Damen (1987: 5) postulated that there are
reasons for the “limitations of teachers” efficiency as cultural guides:
1. Teachers do not know what “culture” to teach.
2. Until recently only a few textbooks of methodologies have been available to assist
teachers in the direction of culture learning.

Assuming that language teachers can naturally teach cult ure is a serious mistake, for
defining what culture is not easy, and neither is deciding on what culture to teach.
Furthermore, without proper training in instructional methods to teach culture, it is not
likely that teachers can do the job of teaching cul ture as effectively as expected.
Regrettably, guidance on culture teaching may seldom be overtly stated in the
curriculum of second or foreign language teaching programs.

Lafayette (1988:47) pointed out that among the three main components of the language
curriculum (language, literature, and culture), the greatest amount of time and energy is
still directed to the grammatical and lexical aspects of language; nonetheless, culture
remains the weakest component “due to its uneven treatment in textbooks and t o the lack
of familiarity, among teachers, with the culture itself and with the techniques needed to

34 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
teach it” However, it may seem that culture is getting some more attention in the
curriculum, as culture has been increasingly advocated as an integral par t of the
curriculum in foreign language education (Tang, 2006).

The development of intercultural communicative competence in language learners
requires linking knowledge of culture to the curriculum, teaching -learning methods,
techniques, and use of mater ials. As Byram and Risager (1999) point out, culture is a
significant dimension of communicative competence and therefore should receive
specific attention of teachers, curriculum, and material developers. One of the practical
and convenient means of achie ving the aim might be seen as course books. Course books
are assumed to supply a route into the target culture learning. The common framework
followed in course book writing presents cultures in four categories namely the
aesthetic, sociological, semantic, and pragmatic (Gray, 2010) .

The distinction between second and foreign language teaching -learning settings is worth
taking into account as the nature of EFL context puts the learners at a disadvantage in
terms of the quality and the quantity of the cultu ral input presented. Especially in a
course book -driven EFL context, this scrutiny should be carried out more thoroughly, for
the course books constitute the main component of English language teaching process,
provide teachers with a road to follow in the course of their instruction and remain
almost as the only source of input for EFL students. For these reasons, it could be
hypothesised that course books assume a significant role in shaping the perceptions of
EFL learners and teachers with regard to the ownership of target language and culture.

Course books should include local and international settings that are familiar to the lives
of learners. Course books should also help learners to gain an intercultural awareness
and insight which will enable them to spot the differences and similarities across
cultures and act strategically (Hyde, 1998).

As James (2002) highlights, language teachers are challenged to be experts of culture as
well. That is the reason why most teachers look upon a coursebook as „th e most
convenient means of providing the structure th at the teaching -learning system … requires”
(Hutchinson and Torres , p. 317).

35 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

I claim that it is the coursebook which should be the most important source for teaching
culture and language together. The qu estion raises whether English textbooks are
reliable enough in terms of their cultural content.

There are many coursebooks on the market and though more and more are conscious
about transmitting the target culture, most of them do not explore the possibil ity. The
teacher therefore must be resolute to apply her cultural knowledge driven from both her
own personal experience and from handbooks and other written, visual or audible
sources. The challenge for the teacher is to use them with communicative
method ological techniques as additional materials to the textbooks. Enthusiastic
teachers can consider this energy and time consuming activity as a permanent self –
education and self -development.
Many scholars agree with the fact that language is an expression o f culture and
individuality of its speakers and have, hence, deeply examined cultural terms, as well as
the problems involved in their translation when there is a lack of equivalence between
two languages and cultures (Kade, Kutz, Nord, Rab adán, and Venuti , for example).

Vlakhov and Florin seem to have been the first ones to coin the term realia to refer to
cultural elements, and the term has now been generalized and is frequently used to refer
to objects, customs, habits, and other cultural and material a spects that have an impact
in shaping a certain language (Cerdá Massó, p. 248).

It is known that a perfect translation of culturally -bound texts is impossible. The
translation focusing on the purpose of the SL text writing is, however, always possible.
This can be proven with the translation of so many literary works into other languages
(Hariyanto).

It is true that translating realia or cultural terms causes many translation difficulties, but
this does not mean that they cannot be translated. In fact, al ong the lines of some
translation scholars, particularly those of the Leipzig school (Kade, Jäger, Neubert), all
languages can say (or are capable of saying) the same things; but, as a rule, all of them

36 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
say it in a different way. Indeed, should two languag es say it in the same way, then we
would not be speaking of two languages, bu t of one and the same language.

The translator can have recourse to several devices for solving the problem of bridging
the gap across cultures, providing that she is culturally aware of those differences. She
can rely on various procedures, techniques or strategies to deal with such translation
problems
The translator can coin or borrow the term from the SL into the TL, or adapt it to suit the
TC. It is also possible to explain the conceptual differences in a footnote or in the text
itself , and so on. .It is up to the translator to choose the most suitable way to render it in
the TL, and for the TC, depending on the aim, the time available, the potential readers,
etc. of the tran slation.

Damen (1987: 213) postulated that when educators are committed by the
communicative approach to second language learning and teaching to provide
opportunities for meaningful communicative interaction for the learners and to give
priority to learne rs needs, educators should examine their personal commitment to the
five hidden assumptions (see Table 1) before, after, and during training periods .

Table 1

We assume that…
1. Nothing human is off limits nor to be
arbitrarily ignored.

2. Culture or cu ltural patterns are learned
or taught. Such learning is additive rather
than replacive.
3. Culture learning and language learning
are inextricably linked so that the question
is not whether to teach culture, but whose
culture to teach.

Which means that …
1. Cultural relativity is the golden rule for
those who would communicate
interculturally.
2. Learning a new culture is part and
parcel of learning a new language, but it is
not a similar process.
3. There are many ways to approach
cultural instructions and learning. No
approach will serve all teachers and all
students in all contexts. Choices must be
made.

37 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
4. Cultural patte rns within a given culture
are as parts to the whole; they exhibit a
cultural rationality within that context.
5. Ethnocentrism is not necessarily a dirty
word. 4. Cultural patterns reflect a general
consistency at any given time, although
individual manifestations vary.
5. Man is a culture bearing animal. Loss of
cultural identity should not be a goal of
cultural instruction
Table 1: While riding the communicative competence bandwagon

Damen (1987) further elucidated the hidden assumptions. The first assumption implies
that the principles of cultural relativity must be welcomed and practiced in the language
classroom. It is also pointed out that: “… cultural relativity, the nonevaluative acceptance
of the logic and holism of a given cultural system, precludes attitudes of chauvini sm,
especially on the teachers ’ part” (Damen 1987: 212).

The second assumption implies that the goals and objectives of cultural learning in the
classroom should be carefully chosen and honed to the needs and desires of the learner.
The third assumption clearly states that as culture learning and language learning occur
together, the question of whether c ulture should be taught or not is not valid.
The fundamental question in terms of cultural instruction has to do with the selection of
content and approach. The fourth assumption entails that to embrace the concept of
cultural relativity is to recognize th at the cultural patterns within a given culture
function as parts to the whole and exhibit a general consistency at a certain point in
time.
Finally Damen suggested that the final assumption shows th e need to maintain
individuals ’ psychocultural identity. Ethnocentrism which, as Damen pointed out, is
synonymous with adherence to a given set of cultural options adjudged right, is a natural
and necessary human attitude.

38 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
III.3. Translation: procedures and strategies

According to Krings (263 -275) or Lörsch er (76 -81), among others, translation strategies
are usually defined as the procedures leading to the optimal solution of a translation
problem.

The procedures or strategies that are usually mentioned in academic publications serve
both to analyse and cat alogue translation equivalence and to improve the acquisition of
translation competence, since knowing and comparing them is definitively necessary to
obtain an adequate translation.

It is also worth mentioning that some studies focus only on specific tra nslation
procedures that should be used when dealing with cultural elements. Some procedures
will now be briefly described and illustrated:

Adaptation i s used in those cases in which the type of situation being referred to by the
SL message is unknown in the TC and translators create a new situation that can be
described as situational equivalence (Vinay and Darbelnet , p. 52-53). There are
situations in which adaptation seems, to some extent, necessary: in advertising slogans,
or children ’s stories, for ex ample. In other cases there are certain conventions, more or
less generalized, as regards adapted translations of foreign cultural elements in the TL.
This applies, for instance, to weights and measures, musical notation, generally accepted
titles of liter ary works or geographical names, etc. The basic goal of the transl ator when
trying to “adapt” the translation is to have a sim ilar effect on the TL readers,
“domesticating” , in a way, the cultural terms.

Borrowing a term is taking a word or expression str aight from another language,
without translation. The procedure is normally used when a term does not exist in the
TC, or when the translator tries to get some stylistic or exotic effect. It can be “pure”, if
there is no change of any kind in the foreign t erm (broker, chip, clown, feeling, stop, etc.),
or “naturalized”, if the word has some change in the spelling, and perhaps some
morphological or phonetic adaptation (as in diskette “disquete” , format “formatear” ,
indent “indenter” , reset “resetear” etc.).

39 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

As far as English is concerned, Wagner states that it is “ the only language whose elements
are seventy -five percent of foreign origin” (cf. Fernandez , p. 514).

When translating texts with a great amount of cultural terms, however, we should be
cautious (G arcía Yebra , p. 340), unless we want to maintain a certain local colour or
exoticism. Compression/reduction/condensation/omission of information is not
common when translating cultural terms and, when it occurs, it is usually to avoid
repetitions, misleadi ng information, or lack of naturalness.

Literal translation, or word by word, occurs when a SL word or phrase is translated into
a TL word or phrase, without worrying about style, but adapting the text to the TL
syntactic rules, with minimal adjustments, so that it sounds both correct and idiomatic
(word order, functional words, etc.).

In Vinay and Dalbernet ’s words (48), it is the direct transfer of a SL text into a
grammatically and idiomatically appropriate TL text in which the translators ’ task is
limited to observing the adherence to the linguistic servitudes of the TL.
An example of literal translation could be John loves Mary “Juan ama a María”, in which
the preposition “a” has been added because it is a requirement for direct objects
denoting a p erson.

Jaaskelainen considers that the strategies used by a translator are skills and procedures
that promote the acquisition and use of information, and may be associated both with
the product (the translated text), as well as with the process of transla tion itself, whose
strategies “are a set of (loosely formulated) rules or principles which a translator uses to
reach the goals determined by the translating situation” and can be global or local
strategies: “global strategies refer to general principles a nd modes of action and local
strategies refer to specific activities in relation to the translator ’s problem -solving and
decision -making” (Jääskeläinen, p. 16).

40 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
III.4 CULTURE IN THE 21 ST CENTURY

“The digital revolution is far more significant than the invention of writing or even
of printing. It offers the potential for humans to learn new ways of thinking and
organizing social structures.” Douglas Engelbard (1997)

Although teachers have begun to incorporate more culture in the lesson, the major
conce rn that remains is finding effective ways for integrating culture and language that
prepare the learners to come.

Although foreign languages may be no longer taught as a compendium of rules through
drills and contrived dialogues, culture is still often t aught separately and not integrated
in the process of foreign language learning.

According to the Standards for Foreign Language Learning (National Standards in
Foreign L anguage Education Project, 1999: 43):

“the true content of the foreign language cour se is not the grammar and the vocabulary of
the language, but the cultures expressed through that language” .

Below we will review the research pertaining to the three components – 3 P’s, inquiry –
based instruction, and technology that supports the importa nce of incorporating them in
the teaching of culture.

Products, Practices, Perspectives (3P ’s)
Germane to this discussion is an examination of the currently available most effective
practices in teaching culture to achieve the cultural goals stated in the Standards for
Foreign Language Learning (1999):

2.1 Students should demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the
practices and perspectives of the culture studied.
2.2 Students should demonstrate an understanding of the relationship betwe en the
products and perspectives of the culture studied.

41 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Cultural perspectives can be described as popular beliefs, values, attitudes, and
assumptions held by the members of L2 culture.

Figure 2 depicts the relationship of the three components of culture (3 P’s) according to
the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Centu ry (1999 :47). This
triangle model of the cultural framework represents how products, practices, and
perspectives are interrelated, and allows teachers to see the relationshi ps among the
three elements of culture to consider when planning instructional lessons.

Figure 2
The most significant improvement of the 3P framework in comparison to its preceding
concept of the “big C” and “little c” cultures ( Alatis, Straehle, Gallenberger, & Ronkin,
1996; Phillips & Terry, 1999) is the expansion of the definition of culture to include how
a specific culture behaves and interacts.

According to Lange (1999: 60), defining culture in terms of the 3Ps avoids “the c ommon,
overworked conflict between C and c by interweaving the formal and informal aspects of
daily life, as one normally lives it in any culture” .

Regarding materials and resources for teaching culture, the 3P approach “p ermits the
use of any document – be it an advertisement, newspap er article, or literature text – for
cultural learning where appropriate ” (Lange , 1999: 60).

One of the challenges teachers face when introducing cultural products or practices is
that delivered information, such as bits of trivia, can appear to be disconnected, and

42 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
possibly lead to stereotypes. By using the 3P cultural framework in their planning,
teachers can ensure that culture is explored in a systematic and contextual way, as well
as allow for some flexibility (Lange, 19 99).

In addition, this framework helps teachers tie together the disparate knowledge about
products and practices, while helping students begin to relate products and practices to
perspectives and acquire a deeper understanding of culture overall.

Peter Newmark (1988:6) is entirely correct when he states: “No language, no culture is
so ‘primitive ’ that it cannot embrace the terms of, say, computer technology”.

Technology has changed the nature of instruction and learning. Teachers are exploring
digital technologies to make learning more effective and engage students actively.
Technology promotes socially active language in multiple authentic contexts due to its
“accessibility, flexibility, connectivity speed and independence of methodological approach ”
(Gonzalez, 2009: 62).

It gives foreign language teachers various opportunities to create better and more
effective instructional materials to teach not only the language structure, but also the
target culture.
In the age of the internet, there are endless cultural resources available to teachers
There are a multitude of travel videos and blogs that can show students what life is like
in another country. Students can also create their own blogs in the target language to
respond to or be assessed on cultural topics. Music videos, television shows, radio
channels and movies can be streamed online in the classroom. Aside from internet
resources, inviting native -speaker guests into the classroom for interviews or role –
playing activities can also prove to be a gr eat way for students to learn about proper
cultur al interactions (Koning, 2012).

Likewise, folk tales and myths can be used as a launching point for cultural discussions
(Koning, 2012). The resources and options available for teaching culture are virtuall y
endless. Various researchers support the use of technology to foster learning in
culturally responsive classrooms.

43 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Students can take advantage of technology by learning in formal and informal settings
through interactive social spaces (Kukulska -Hulme, 20 10). Technological devices such
as smart phones, laptops and computers, PDAs, etc., as well as Web 2.0 technologies are
widely used to support student learning in a classroom setting, and they have opened
new vistas for language learning and teac hing in pa rticular (Lee, 2009).

One of the alluring benefits of technology is that it provides authentic communication in
an interactive environment that facilitates the t eaching of culture (Lee, 2009).

Through the use of interactive media, students become less de pendent on the printed
word and more engaged with authentic cultural content they can access and explore
freely, because they have more control of the selection and application of materials and
resources. These numerous resources and materials allow teache rs to tailor digital
media to make culture learning more relevant and accessible to the students in their
classroom (Moore, 2006). With the incorporation of technology, both the teacher and
the students become part of the interactive environment. Technolog y creates an “o pen-
ended” (Hellebrandt, 1996: 257) learning environment in which the results are not
predetermined.

More importantly, with interactive web resources that provide the benefits of
networking and real time communication, the students can conti nue to learn the target
language and enhance their cultural understanding outside the classroom (Moore,
2006).

Technology permits both teachers and students “to go beyond quick and superficial stops
on the information highway and establish meaningful inte ractive learning scenarios”
(Hellebrandt, 1996 :263).

A number of researchers have investigated the use of technology in an L2 classroom. For
instance, Levy (2009) describes technologies that can be used in a foreign language
classroom in relation to skill s, including grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing,
pronunciation, listening, speaking, and culture. Le vy (2009: 776) says that “simply
accessing an L2 Web site can expose learners to numerous aspects of the target culture” .

44 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
However, when exploring the webs ites, learners are engaged passively, which may
result in low retention. Similar results were found in Moore ’s study (2006), in which it
was concluded that the majority of classroom students simply “surf the net” rather than
being engaged in the learning. On the other hand, only a few teachers indicated that they
use Internet for meaningful activities.

Kukulska -Hulme (2010) and Lee (2009) provide a list of various activities, which have
emerged during the period of 2005 -2010, that can be used in a FL class room. These
activities include social applications (e.g., Facebook) and blogging (e.g., Twitter); mobile
Internet access (browsing websites and reading news); use of multiple media (watching
movies, listening to audio books, podcasts and vodcasts); locatio n-based activities (using
GPS to find a place); and usercreated content (making a film, creating a podcast)
(Kukulska -Hulme, 2010 : 8).

Such activities allow language learners to maximize the opportunity to be exposed to L2
in meaningful and authentic con texts and audiences. This leads to learners ’ construction
of their own L2 cultural knowledge (Kukulska -Hulme, 2010).

In addition, these tools increase opportunities for students to communicate in L2 not
only within the classroom walls, but also outside th e classroom (Lee, 2009).

Lee (2009) considers that “learning the target culture from native speakers ’ experiences
and perspectives is more meaningful than the surface learning of a set of simple facts
about the target culture in a traditional classroom se tting.

Incorporating virtual worlds in classroom instruction presents an opportunity for
learners to experience L2 culture online (Levy, 2009).

III 5. Traditional Methods of Teaching Culture Improved with Technology

The more traditional methods and app roaches to teaching culture, such as movies and
video, can be enhanced through the integration of digital media. Feature films have

45 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
become readily available and have been included in numerous textbooks and designed
to actively involve the learner (Aparisi, Blanco, & Rinka, 2007; Blanco & Tocaimaza –
Hatch, 2007). Foreign language instructors are beginning to incorporate more movies in
the FL classroom as “an a ccessible window” (Bueno, 2009: 319) to the target culture
through “combined effects of images, sounds , camera, plots and dialogue” (Stephens,
2001:2).

According to Bueno (2009: 10, 11,12), media literacy promotes cross -cultural
competence and comprehension focused on meaning rather than on form, as well as
repeated exposure to L2 cultural products, pract ices, and perspectives, and the target
language itself.

Videos place students in the role of observers of first -hand images of L2 culture, social
norms, habits, and interactions. This helps students be less apt to make judgments on
whether these practice s are “good” or “bad.” In turn, this leads to less stereotyping and a
realization that customs, values, and language vary by regions, country, or culture .

For example , Power Point presentations can be effectively used in classrooms. Their
visual nature e ngages students and attracts attention while reflecting the culture of the
creator in explicit and implicit ways.

Another technology -based application that can be implemented in culturally diverse
classrooms to enable students to share their cultures with their classmates is digital
storytelling tools such as Microsoft Movie Maker or Photo Story 3. According t o Robin
(13) digital storytelling encourages learners to be creative storytellers “through the
traditional processes of selecting a topic, conducting some research, writing a script, and
developing an interesting story” .

The learners then can insert various types of multimedia into their digital story and
make it more appealing with some computer -based graphics, music, computer –
generated text, video c lips, and they can play their story on a computer, share it on the
web, or burn on a CD.

46 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The effects of inc orporating audio -visuals in classrooms have been stresses with the
Audio -Visual Method. Digital storytelling not only brings audio -visuals into the
classrooms but also puts the learners to the centre of material development process.
Along with the motivation that they bring, digital stories give the members of a
culturally diverse classroom to share and reflect their cultures in class. Teachers can us e
digital storytelling as a group work activity in which each group member belongs to
different cultural background. In addition to encouraging constructivist learning in class,
group work digital storytelling tasks would increase the students ’ awareness o f each
others ’ culture. Such form of applications would also allow the students to exhibit their
talents as well as demonstrate their understanding of the subject matter.

Teachers can also exhibit their understandings of the cultures of the students in t heir
classes with the tech -based stories they desig n. Avgerinou and Ericson (1997: 287)
summarise the use of visuals thus:
The way we learn and, subsequently, remember bears a strong realationship to the way
our senses operate. This means that we, as educa tors, cannot afford to ignore the fact that
a very high proportion of all sensory learning is visuals.

This introductory quotation helps provide support for the use of visuals within one ’s
teaching (here film) , which is arguably a more innovative and mode rn approach. If we
consider that most students are nowadays more “visualised” than ever before, and then
incorporated film clips, for example, as part of one ’s lesson, can be a way to grab their
attention.
Furtherm ore, according to Barrata (2004: 5)
… in today ’s world, more than ever, we (especially children) are bombarded with visuals on
a daily basis, such as advertisements on billboards and in magazines, Play stations, the
internet, pop -up ads, text message emoticons and much more. In fact, it can be sai d that
today ’s children are growing up in a world much more visual then their parents. Therefore,
if we are truly preparing children for the real world in which they will find their eventual
careers, then it makes sense for us as educators to incorporate e lements of that real world
in the classroom; the real world that students are exposed to in their lives outside the
classroom. In doing so, we help to create a classroom en vironment that is just as real.

47 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The use of film/ TV in the EFL classroom is especiall y useful as "no teacher alone can
reproduce the variety of situations, voices, accents, themes and presentation techniques
that are a feature of this medium" (Hill, 1999 :2).

Hill (op. cit) also states that the use of video in the classroom can involve rea l –life
exemplars, which is very relevant to a teaching approach which seeks to prepare
students for real life. Finally , he mentions that “television can provide a range of
paralinguistic clues, often essential for successful comprehension and accurate
understanding ” (ibid.) .

Film can be both entertaining and educational.
Folklore and fairytales have been examined as effective venues for teaching culture in a
foreign language classroom (Akpinar & Ozturk, 2009; Davidheiser, 2007; Gholson &
Stumpf, 2005; Kow alski, 2002; Morain, 1997; Seelye, 1993) because they are an integral
part of people ’s everyday life (Gholson & Stumpf, 2005).

Morain (1997) proposed the idea that folklore is superior to literary writing because it
depicts the attitudes of large groups o f people.
According to Seelye (1993: 19), a study of carefully selected folk materials could illuminate
some of the important cultural themes that underlie a country ’s thought and action .
Gholson and Stumpf (2005) believe that folklore might help promote cultural dialogue in
which L2 learners gain respect for differences between their native culture and L2
culture, as well as acknowledge the similarities in both cultures.

Akpinar and Ozturk (2009) suggest that folklore can be taught in an L2 classroom
through an inquiry approach. Folklore engages the students in exploring the theme and
structure of a folktale, relating these to their L1 background knowledge, and then
drawing conclusions about the target culture, its beliefs, values, lifestyles, history, e tc.).
Furthermore, such use of an inquiry approach to teaching L2 culture through folklore
“broadens the pool of ideas from which they [L2 learners] expand their problem -solving
and decision -making skills” (Temple, M artinez, Yokota, & Naylor, 2002: 160).

48 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
In particular, fairytales provide students with opportunities to explore not only the
historical background information, but also learn about values and morals and to
construct their ow n judgment (Davidheiser, 2007).

As one of the ways to incorporate tech nology in teaching culture with folklore and
fairytales, a teacher can ask the students to write their own conclusion to the fairytale or
folklore story they are reading, or create their own story using storybird.com.

Storybird is a virtual collection of artwork writers can use to build their stories. Students
can work either independently or collaboratively, and the finished work can be easily
shared with peers and even with a global audience. Such a learning activity fosters
interpretation of the cultura l information the students learned from the fairytale,
promotes creative writing, and contextualized language practice. Having the students
write their own conclusion, or a new fairytale, makes them process cultural knowledge
they gained while working with the authentic fairytale, as well as its vocabulary, on a
deeper level (Davidheiser, 2007).

The availability of technology resources at a teacher ’s disposal has made it easier for
teachers to find culturally authentic materials (Bush, 2007). When instruct ors integrate
authentic images found online, the teaching of cultural awareness becomes more
motivating and effective, as it increases the cultural content of the course (Bush, 2007).
In addition to authentic pictures, art is another venue for teaching cu lture in an L2
classroom. Berho and Defferding (2005) propose the incorporation of target culture
artwork, as well as student -created art pieces.

Since culture is claimed to be an integral part of language learning, using art, as well as
the study of art ists’ lives, presents L2 learners with the opportunities to explore the
values and themes of the target culture (Berho & Defferding, 2005).
One of the ways to incorporate art that can be used to visit museums in the target
language country is Google Art Pr oject It allows the learners to virtually tour museums
and peruse artwork. Students can collect pieces of art that appeal to them and save them
in their own collection using “Create an Artwork Collection” feature. They can also add
comments to each paintin g explaining why they chose that particular artwork. The

49 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
whole collection can then be shared with the teacher and the classmates by either
presenting it to the whole class or discussing it in small groups. The students can
analyze the common themes, write stories inspired by the art piece, research the artists ’
lives, and what inspired them to create their particular masterpieces. These can then be
shared digitally with audiences using Prezi , a free Web 2.0 presentation tool.

The digital resources allow te achers to create new techniques, as well as reevaluate and
improve the more traditional techniques that help bring the target culture into the
classroom. Research has shown that language learning should occur in a dynamic and
active manner. Technology -base d activities together with an inquiry learning approach
allow students to interact directly with the second language and its culture without time
and place restrictions and to explore and construct a deeper understanding of L2
cultural knowledge.

III. 6 R EADING AS A SKILL

“The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be
intolerably stupid." (Jane Austen; Northanger Abbey )
Reading skill is one of the major skills of language. Reading means “reading and
understanding” (Ur, 1996).
A foreign language learner who says : “I can read words but I don ’t know what they mean”
is not, therefore, reading, in this sense. It is merely decoding the written symbols. Here
comprehensible input stands for that input which they can understand . Text
comprehension involves the construction of an integrated and coherent representation
of a text ’s meaning (Gernsbacher, 1997). Therefore, we might predict a relation between
a reader ’s ability to comprehend text and their ability to produce a structu rally coherent
narrative.
It is said that reading is an interaction between reader and text.

Students of any language need to be able to read in that language. Native speakers ‘read ’
and process an enormous amount of material each day, and they approach it in different
ways depending largely on their motivation for reading.

50 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Catherine Wallace (1992: 6, 7) has identified three general purposes which readers have
when reading: Reading for Survival, Reading for Learning, and Reading for Pleasure . A
tourist ch ecking the signs in a station in order to find the right train; a student poring
over a thick textbook, stopping every so often to make notes; a young child following a
story in the book as his mother reads it to him: all these people are reading, but in e ach
case the reading clearly serves very different purposes and involves very different
processes. In the case of foreign language students, what is important is the extent to
which they can recognise this, interacting with and making sense of a particular text in
whatever way.
We all know that most of the students don ’t like to read nowadays. So we have to ask
ourselves a question: Why is reading so unpopular?

I believe that there are several reasons for this, which all stem from one general problem
– deep-rooted fear of reading in English. What they all too often lack is the confidence to
attempt to enjoy it, or the realisation that Reading can be anything other than just
another classroom chore.

EFL students may study English for a number of years , dur ing which time reading is
“taught” through a succession of random texts in coursebooks, which may or may not be
“authentic” or even interesting to the students. The only two things which connect these
texts with one another are the inevitable comprehension questions following the text,
and the fact that the passages themselves generally get longer and more complex as the
student progresses through the course.
Wallace (1992: 7) points out that if readers do not read for pleasure in their mother –
tongue they ar e highly unlikely to do so i n a second or foreign language.
This may be true, but it does not justify the fact that students neglect reading. We must
make it very clear to our students that reading does not necessarily have to mean classic
literature A stu dent who enjoys reading film reviews will benefit far more from simply
reading the latest review in English on the internet, and enjoying it, than he would from
ploughing through an article on the present political situation, however objectively
“interesti ng” it may be, or “relevant” to the unit of the coursebook.

51 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Nevertheless, if we wish students to read a variety of texts purely for interest of
enjoyment, then we need to provide them with opportunities of simulating ‘real -life’ and
dealing with these opt ions in class.

III .7 Differences between reading skills and reading strategies

A reading skill is a helpful tool that a student practices in order to improve reading
(Hollas, 2002). Teachers teach various skills to improve the understanding of readin g.
Unfortun ately, many of the students while decoding do not comprehend what they are
reading. On the other hand, a reading strategy is a plan or way of doing something; a
specific proc edure one uses to perform a skill (Hollas, 2002).

Weinstein and Mayer (1986) defined strategies as behaviours and thoughts that a
learner engages in during learning that are intended to influence the learners encoding
process. Further, Alexander, et al. (1985) defined a strategy as a procedural, purposeful,
effortful, wilful , essential and facilitative. They asserted that strategies are mandatory
for academic development.

Students today have difficulty getting through a short reading assignment, such as a
newspaper article. This difficulty is associated with the lack of ability to focus and
concentrate on written words. Due to this, many students need guidance and strategies
to help focus on reading and to do more than just read the words on a piece of pa per.

The skills of a strategic reader in the content areas can be broken down into seven areas
(Hollas, 2002):
1. Predict – declaring in advance or to foretell on the basis of observation and/or
experience.
2. Visualize – forming mental pictures of scene s, characters and events.
3. Connect – to link two things together or to associate and see a relationship.
4. Question – to inquire or examine.
5. Clarify – to make understandable or to become clear and free of confusion.
6. Summarize – to concisely obtain the essence or main point of the text.

52 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
7. Evaluate – to form an opinion about what you have read.

These seven areas can be linked to various strategies to improve the effectiveness of
each reader. The “predicting, visualizing and connecting ” areas are im plemented as
before reading strategies. The “question and clarification ” areas are implemented as
during reading strategies whereas, “summarizing and evaluating ” are implemented as
after reading strategies.

The goal of the teacher is to help students appl y reading strategies to become effective
readers. Furthermore, strategies help students when they are reading and strategies are
used in various tasks. For example, while students are predicting outcomes of a reading
passage, strategies assist them. Also i t is the same when students are summarizing what
they read.

Students use strategies as they are looking for clues; for example, context clues and
rereading to correct what they read.

They also need strategies either in interpreting main idea of texts o r in determining the
type of the texts.

53 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Difference Between a Skill and a Strategy
SKILLS STRATEGIES
Instructor decides what learner needs Learner ’s needs are anticipated by instructor
Skills are often taught in
predetermined sequence Self-direction/nee d is determined by learner
Skills are often practiced in isolation Strategies are taught in a meaningful context
The emphasis is often on practice for
practice ’s sake only Strategies are student -centered rather than
teacher -directed
An automatic respons e is usually
expected Activities are purposeful, interactive, and
independent
Applications to meaningful contexts
may not occur Continual observation is practiced for
evaluation of what is needed
Table 2

There are many reading strategies that appear to be very important according to a
multitude of researchers. It is a difficult task to decide which strategies are the most
significant.

Procedural prompts can be used to assist students to generate questions and gain the
ability to summarize what they hav e read. Rosenshine and Meister (1997) asserted that
this should be the first step in teaching students cognitive strategies. They asserted that
they serve to build upon students ’ background knowledge and provide a knowledge
support on which they may build. For example, in order to generate questions about
narrative text the authors recommended providing prompts that focus on a story ’s
grammar:

What is the setting?
Who are the main characters?
What problem did the main character face?
What attempts were mad e to resolve the problem?
How was the problem finally resolved?
What is the theme of the story?

54 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
III. 8 Extensive and intensive reading

To get maximum benefit from their reading, students need to be involved in both
extensive and intensive reading. Wherea s with the former a teacher encourages
students to choose for themselves what they read and to do so for pleasure and general
language improvement, the latter is often teacher chosen and directed, and is designed
to enable students to develop specific rece ptive skills.

But it is n ot enough to tell students to “read a lot” ; we need to offer them a programme
which includes appropriate materials, guidance, tasks and facilities such as permanent
or portable libraries of books.

Extensive reading materials
One of a fundamental successful extensive reading programme is that students should
be reading material which they can understand. If they are struggling to understand
every word, they will not read with pleasure and maybe they loose their interest.. We
need to provide books accessible to our students.

They can take the form of original fiction and non -fiction books as well as simplifications
of the established works of literature. Students at the appropriate level can read them
with ease and confidence. One example could be a short extract from th e second chapter
of a level 1 ( elementary) murder mystery for adults. In the first chapter a man in a
hospital bed appears to be suffering from amnesia. In the second chapter the same man
speaks to us directly :
Ther e is a ma n near my bed. His clothes are white. No. Some of his clothes are white. He has
a white coat, but his trousers are brown. He also has brown hair. The man in the white coat
says he ’s a doctor. He says his name is Doctor Cox. He tells me to call him Philip. He says he
is going to help me.
But he ’s not going to help me. They think I don ’t remember. They think I don ’t know
anything. They know nothing, the doctors. Or the police. Nobody knows who I am. I sit in
the bed and answer questions. They ask lo ts of questions.
“Do you know what amnesia is, John? Doctor Cox asks me. Doctor Cox. Doctor Philip Cox. He
thinks he ’s somebody. He ’s nobody. I know what amnesia is. (Harmer , 2001: 210)

55 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The language is simple and controlled, but the atmosphere – in true mur der-mystery
style – is satisfyi ngly creepy. A student who likes this kind of story and whose level of
English is fairly low should enjoy it enormously.

The teacher has an important role in the extensive reading programme.
Most students will not read if th ey are not encouraged by their teac her. So the teacher ’s
role is very important. For example, we can occasionally read aloud from books and
show how exciting books can be. We can teach them how to choose the books depending
on the kind of books (crime fict ion, romantic novels, science fiction, etc) that they enjoy.
Because students should be allowed to choose their own reading texts, they will not all
be able reading the same texts at once, so we should encourage them to report back on
their reading in a nu mber of ways.

For example, every two weeks students can ask questions and/ or tell their classmates
about books they have found particularly enjoyable, noticeably awful, or we can ask
them to keep a weekly reading diary, or they can write short book revie ws for the class
noticeboard or we can also put comment sheets into the books for students to write in,
as the following example for a book called The Earthquake shows : (Harmer , 2001: 212)

Rating Your comment and your name
5 I’m afraid earthquake happens to us.
Shoko
5 Great!
Gabriel is nice. He is cool.
TOMOKO
4 “Who is really taking care of m e”.
Ithink after reading this book.
YOKO
4 I think I had the chance to think what ’s the most important thing by
reading this book.
Hisako
Table 3

56 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Intensive r eading
In order to get students to read in class we have to create interest in the topic and tasks.
While teachers are encouraging students to read for general understanding, without
worrying about the meaning of every single word, the students are despera te to know
what each individual word means. We may encourage students to read for general
understanding without understanding every word on a first or second read -through. But
then, depending on what else is going to be done, we can give them a chance to a sk
questi ons about individual works and/ or give them a chance to look them up. A word of
caution needs to be added here. If students ask for the meaning of all the words they
don ’t know, the majority of a lesson may be taken up in this way. We need, theref ore, to
limit the amount of time spent on vocabulary. ( Harmer , 2001:213)

III .9 Reading of literature

Good books have the power to let the reader enter a new world, a world between his
own imagination and that of the author. Whereas it is impossible for anyone else to
conceive the way you imagine, for instance, a character in a novel, the characters in a
movie or a TV -show will appear fairly similar to all who see it.

The joke illustrates that literature can make people engage with stories, which again
makes them eager to communicate what they have read. Once I have finished reading a
book which I have enjoyed I want to talk about it with someone else, preferably
someone who also has read the book, to compare and talk about how we understood the
novel.

Literature plays a vital role in many people ’s lives. As it gives us opportunity to discover,
analyse and evaluate the world around us.

In responding to literature, alone and with others, at home and in school, pupils are
given a chance to put various em otions and experiences into words, and may thus
develop new ways of seeing themselves and the world. Such a development is invaluable

57 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
in preparing students for interaction with people from other parts of the world, one of
the main objectives of the English subject.

Studying literature in a foreign language gives a unique window into different cultures.
Combining so many aspects of learning, literature is believed to enhance Bildung and
intercultural competence. Bildung is concerned with the individual deve lopment of a
person, as well as his acquiring of knowledge and skills. Bildung should be promoted
through education, but is also a continuing process which is enhanced from experience
throughout life. An important aspect of Bildung is being socialised into a society, and
developing as a democratic, knowledgeable citizen.

According to Byram (1997), intercultural competence is a person ’s possession of
attitudes, skills and competences which enable him to communicate successfully with
people from other cultu res. This aspect of Bildung is often stressed in relation to reading
literature in the EFL -classroom. The concept of intercultural competence relates to the
concept of Bildung, but is specifically linked to foreign language learning . In English
teaching th e relationship between reading literature and the development of
intercultural competence is often linked to teaching novels in the classroom (Lütge,
2012; Burwitz -Melzer, 2001; Fenner, 2001).

Reading literature is important in the EFL -classroom for sever al reasons. First of all, as
to the development of the basic skill of reading, we know that reading proficiency
requires practice. In this respect, reading works of literature may help develop
proficient readers. Since working with English literature means that the students have to
read significant amounts of texts, literature is a great source of input for the learners,
and a way of “acquiring” the language, as opposed to “learning” it.

Literature offers extensive input and students will thus slowly acqui re the different
aspects of the language. Without being aware of it, literature may broaden their
vocabulary, and make clear to them how words can be used in many different ways in
different contexts. Also, it off Literature is believed to give access to a people ’s world of
attitudes and values, collective imaginings and historical frames of reference. As such,

58 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
literature in a foreign language opens up for an encounter with the Other . (Kramsch,
1993:175)
The choice of novels . It is very important for our s tudents to have the opportunity to also
read books they really enjoy.
Let books be your dining table,
And you shall be full of delights,
Let them be your mattress,
And you shall sleep re stful nights.
St. EPHREM the Syrian (303 -373)

In “Methodology and Wa ys of Teaching English, Module II”, Mihaela Dogaru ( pp. 41-44)
presents a list of activities designed for first encounters with the literary work, when
students need to be attracted to the text, so that their interest is aroused:
 Visual prompts. Photos or magazine pictures are useful in eliciting the response of
students to the central theme or situation they are going to meet in a literary work.
 Using the theme. The teacher takes a major theme from the text and explores it with
the class. They are to try t o identify how they feel about what they are reading and
note down their thoughts.
 Key words or sentences. The teacher selects a small number of key words or
sentences from the first part of the text. In groups, students brainstorm for possible
narrative l inks between the words, when each group decided on a preferred pattern
of connection, a story is built up orally or in written form.
 Questionnaires. Learners are given a questionnaire to fill in, to determine their
attitude to the issues raised by the book ’s central theme.
 What happens next? This activity can take the form of a role -play. Students , in groups,
discuss possible continuations, then either improvise and act them, or prep are, script,
and act them out e tc.

Age groups:
Teachers must make educat ed decisions as to what novels their pupils should read. In
this respect, it is interesting to discuss what types of literature can be recommended for
teenage readers.

59 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Novels from any English speaking culture, novels which have recently become popular,
or novels known as classics can readily be incorporated into the teaching syllabus.

Williams (2013:163 -189) has developed characteristics for different reader groups in
order to help teachers influence and encourage teenagers to engage actively with
readin g. The group of 16 -18-year -olds coincides with the pupils in upper secondary
school. She calls this group a “crossover” or semi -adult group, where pupils are likely to
be in the process of becoming more confident and mature, and they are considered the
mos t sophisticated and ambitious readers. She recommends novels which are somewhat
newly published and award -winning and which display real dilemmas in which there
are no simple solutions. According to Williams, novels should make readers engage
emotionally t hrough relating to the characters and the situations in which they find
themselves.

She argues that novels written from the first person ’s point of view are preferable in
order to let the learners into the main character ’s mind. Novels should be appealin g to
both teenagers and adults, since the pupils are in the process of growing into adulthood
and therefore want to read novels which discuss themes which challenge them and
make them re -evaluate and rethink their immediate emotions and reactions.

Also, the Bildungsroman which typically touch es upon topics such as growing up,
parents, authority and the future which lies ahead is recommended for this age group.
A similar, yet more comprehensive study of reader -roles has be en provided by
Appleyard (1991: 94-120), who has put forth a developmental perspective of different
roles which readers take on, loosely corresponding to age groups. The five roles
distinguished seek different experiences from reading novels. Appleyard discovered that
what characterises the adolescent reader , is a newfound interest in the inner lives of the
characters. Thus, an exciting story is no longer sufficient for them to enjoy a novel.

Appleyard identifies three qualities which young readers seek from reading novels.
Adolescents are in a process of discovering more about their increasingly complex inner
lives, and the world around them. When reading, young adults observe and evaluate not
only the fictional world and its characters, but also their own world, the people in it and

60 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
themse lves. First, therefore, they seek books in which they become involved and identify
with the character(s).

Young readers seek inspiration from the characters in the story, by reflecting on their
abilities, motives and feelings, which may be similar to or different from their own.
Secondly, they want the fictional world to be much like the real world, where characters,
like real people, have flaws, where life can be complicated, and where the limits between
right and wrong become blurred. Thirdly, adolescen ts crave books where they have to
think in order to understand the meaning of a text, or what is “hidden” in the text.

Fenner (2001: 19) supports the idea that young learners are in the process of
establishing their identity. One of the characteristics fo r this reader group therefore is
that they are often narcissistic and will compare themselves to the characters in a book.
Vicary (2013: 77-91) argues that learners of English should read extensively, which
ideally means that they should read whole books. I nstead of focusing on each word, in
extensive reading they should try to comprehend the overall meaning of the book.
Rather than reading challenging books, he claims, they should read something that is
easy to comprehend. For the learner, it should not fee l like work, instead it should be an
experience of delight, which invites the reader to read not little, but a lot. Resembling an
authentic situation, Vicary argues that the learner should get to choose from a wide
range of books independently, stop readin g if it is not interesting, and then pick up
another one. Fenner claims that if the readers find the content interesting, they are
willing to struggle to understand the text.

Since the reality of a literary text lies within the reader ’s imagination, it is different from
other texts in that it has a greater chance of transcending both time and place. It opens
up a possibility for the reader to place himself within a story and for him to interpret it
in his own way. This means that the reader will learn not only about what he is reading,
but also about himself as he is given access to other worlds. This means that the more
gaps there are within a literary work, and the more meaning the reader can add to the
text himself, the more effective this learning proce ss is.

61 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
As shown, literature is considered a cultural artefact which may help develop
sociocultural knowledge.

Although nowadays most of our students would rather use the internet or watch a film
than read a book, they are open to reading literary texts i f they are interested in the
topic. As foreign language teachers, we should put them next to the beautiful and
fascinating world of literature that has already captivated us.

III. 10 From books to movies

Image 4
Reading movies
After many years of dis credit because of the stress on communication as the main goal in
learning a language, literature has made a grand comeback on the stage of language
teaching… playing an essential role in TEFL .

Bouman (1991:15) thinks that literature is, in fact, an ideal form of communication, and
has the power to create a whole reality through the written code chosen by the writer.
This medium has another advantage: it allows autonomous learning, as students can
increase their contact with the second language outside the classroom by reading (I
hope, for pleasure). Perhaps the only drawback of literary works is that they do not
allow for immediate interaction: the reader cannot establish a process of negotiation of
meaning with the writer, and he/she cannot listen to thos e written words. A way to
compensate for this lack is to combine literary works with their filmed versions, as w e

62 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
are using the written medium – literature – and the visual and aural one – films – for
teaching the second language.

Difficulties Arising fro m Trying to Combine Literary Works and their Filmed Versions

Image 5

According to (Ellis, 1990) we could start by arguing against this type of combination.
Many people strongly dislike watching a movie after having read the book, perhaps
because the im aginary world depicted by the writer and imagined – or rather, visualised
by the reader does not coincide with the version as seen by the film -maker or director.
The typical comment of those daring enough to take the risk of vi ewing a film they have
alread y “read” is that “the film was not as good as the book ”. The power of the written
code is such that it can create a mental image in the mind of the reader that cannot
compete with its visual adaptation, a finished product as seen by its director, although
the world of the mind when reading has no limits of space, time, or resources.

To the problem of the dislike some people show when watching a film after having read
the book, a second problem could be considered: when combining both modes, the
difficulty arises of trying to depict, through images, words that suggest figures of speech,
or archaic registers, or peculiar combinations, or even descriptions of imaginary words
that many computer designers would be at pains to adapt. Nevertheless, the latter is n ot
a problem anymore, as film technology is progressing at full speed.

According to Wood a third problem could arise if learners, usually more inclined
towards video than print as a source of information and stimulation, presuppose the
filmed version may be a means of saving time and effort not to read the literary work.

63 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Even though the movie provides a wider visual and aural background through the use of
paralinguistic features (Wood, 1999), the written text is a unique source of linguistic
input.

What I ’m trying to say is that watching the movie version of great books is a bit like
eating vegan f ood or listening to cover bands – even when it ’s good, it ’s just not as good
as the real thing. Why? Because you ’re only getting one interpretation of the real t hing
when in fact there could be many. A picture may be worth a thousand words, but a
thousand words may paint a thousand different pictures. Movies will only give you one.
When you read a book, your interpretation of it is unique to you.

Both literary wo rks and films are authentic materials that can be exploited in and
outside the classroom, motivating the students to work with two codes which also have
a great value as a source of entertainment. Films, in particular, constitute a stimulating
and appealin g activity in our everyday life, and books should also be part of it. If they do
not, watching the film may stimulate the students ’ interest in reading the written
version.

Both films and books are very good sources of comprehensible input, which in turn is
essential – though not sufficient – to promote acquisition (Larsen -Freeman and Long,
1991; Ellis, 1994).

The use of both “tools" can be justified by many of the theories that explain L2
acquisition, particularly if we combine viewing or reading with c ommunication -based
activities with a focus on some grammatical considerations. Ortega, 2000).

Moreover, both films and books have the potential to create a very wide linguistic and
extralinguistic context that provides a relevant schema background, making language
relevant and comprehensible (Stoller, 1988). In the written mode we can see not only
isolated words and sentences, but also discourse and textual elements such as reference,
deixis, time and place clauses. They might offer difficulties for the st udents ’
comprehension, but with the help of the linguistic context students may be able to

64 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
understand or infer unknown words and structures, or even acquire – incidentally –
some specific vocabulary (Watanabe, 1997).

On the other hand, the paralinguistic features of the filmed version allow learners to see
and understand how discourse elements link all the parts of the text, especially with the
use of images, music, movement, and the like. These contextual cues enrich or at least
improve the students ’ comp rehension, and probably can also improve their competence,
and even though the realisation of both modes is obviously different, they still constitute
part of a context for comprehension and, hopefully, learning.

Furthermore, if students are familiarised with the story line of the book or film, they can
concentrate their efforts on the linguistic features (Hemphill, Picardi and Tager –
Flushbert, 1991).

In particular, we can take advantage of the universality of mass media (Mandler,
Scribner, Cole and DeFo rest, 1980) both to develop cultural awareness and foster an
interest in reading – for pleasure the written version of that story they have seen on TV
or in their classroom.

Also, the comparison of both modes can evoke a critical analysis: how the filmmak er
conveys metaphors and descriptions, figures of speech… in shor t, how he makes it
possible to “see” rather than to “read” (Ross, 1991). And most important of all, how the
director makes it possibl e to spend one hour and a half “watching” a story that has taken
many long hours, and days, or even weeks, to read.

Nevertheless, we think it more advisable to choose books which use current English; it is
better for our purpose – that of improving students ’ competence and also they are closer
to the students ’ interests, which in turn make it easier for them to learn. Besides, their
filmed version are easily accessible, either because they have a fashionable topic or
because they form part of a series of filmed versions of the same story. There is still
another r eason for our choice: the world depicted in the written works and their
adaptation should not be too far removed from the students ’ current reality, or if it is, at

65 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
least it should show some degree of connection with their culture and background
knowledge (and the culture/s we want them to learn).

A lot of parents want their kids to read the book then watch the movie. But why? My
opinion is that if you read the book, you have an image in your head of what the
character looks like, what their voices sound l ike, and what the scene looks like, and
usually it is pretty good. But when you watch the movie, all those images get shattered.
When you watch a movie, you start thinking that the characters in the book actually look
like the actors that are in the movie. The movie producers use famous people to act out
the characters in the book. When you read a book, there may be parts of the book that
you really like that you would like to see on the TV screen. But then, when the movie
finally comes out, the part you li ke isn ’t even filmed!

Like in “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe ”, there was one part that always made me
laugh. It was the part when the giant turns from stone to a living thing, and walks
around looking for “ the little witch that was running around on the ground ”. I really
wanted to see that part in the movie, but when the movie finally came out, that part of
the book was not even in the movie, and you don ’t even see the giant change back to a
living thing at all. I bet that this has happened to a l ot of people and that they were all
disappointed.

Writing a book is a lot easier than making a movie. With a book you can describe places
that come out of your imagination, which could never become “reality” no matter how
hard Hollywood tries. But movies can also be better than a book. With a movie, you don ’t
have to read anything, you can watch a movie while doing homework if you wanted to.
But with a book, the only thing you can do is read, you can ’t read a book and do
homework at the same time, that ’s impossible. I ’m not saying that I wouldn ’t read a book
just because I had to actually read it, but when you ’re reading a book, all you can do is
read the book.

But, with a book, you can bring it anywhere you want, and stop whenever you like and
later, jus t start reading exactly where you stopped. But with a movie, you kind of have to
watch it at home, and you have to remember when you stopped in order to start again.

66 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
One thing that I don ’t like about movies is that people only make movies around 3 -4
hour s long because they are afraid that people won ’t watch it if it ’s too long, which
means they have to cut a lot of parts out and then put some more parts in to let it make
sense. But with a book, it can be as long as the author wants it to be, as long as it all
makes sense. I ’ve seen people who read books that are over 600 pages long and not
mind a bit, but when a 3 hour movies comes, they just can ’t concentrate that long.
So I conclude that books are better than the movie.

67 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
CHAPTER I V

PRACTICAL PART

I think that we live in a world where the book as a cultural object begins to lose its
importance and impact on the new generation. Seemingly more attractive alternative
and, in any case , more comfortable , they tend to captur e the attention of our students .
When the teacher asks the students questions related to reading books, students answer
with other questions like:

Is there a movie made after the book? Or Is it on the internet? Or i s it enough just the
summary (possibly downloaded from the internet) ?

A natural question must be asked : why students refuse to read ? We can find many
answers : reading versus television , reading versus computer , reading versus various
ways of leisure activities, etc. For all these confronta tions book seems to lose ground .
The at tempt of replacing reading with spending time in front of TV or computer can be
explained in the light of the new lifestyle in which the media and the Internet provide
information for granted. The consequences are alarming.

In this regard, and to take the pulse of the new generation about its attitude to reading , I
applied in May 2016 a questionnaire on 66 students from classes V -VIII at Scoala
Gimnaziala Madaras.

The purpose of the questionnaire was to see what is the place of reading in the lives of
my students, what types of texts they like, to see their attitudes to the texts studied in
class, what other preoc cupations they have and the liaison between book and computer.
By interpreting the data correct conclusions will be drawn. It consists of 6 ques tions,
each of them trying to point out students’ opinion on different aspects of their lives. The
purpose was to see how useful / unuseful reading is and how much does enhance
students motivation for learning English.
Appendix 2 ( questionnaire)

68 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Results of the questionnaire:

The first question is related to check how much students like to read. Just 12%
consider it to be passion ,unfortunately 50% obligation, 20% a way to be educated, 17%
a way to spend your spare time and 1% a way to forget your pro blems. So the result is
that most students read because they have to and not for pleasure.

The next question was about what kind of texts do they like . I wanted to find out their
choices in order to use the books in class and to stimulate them to read. : 28% fairy tales,
20% novels, 10% poetry, 40% science fiction, 2% other .

The third question about the texts studied in class: 50% consider they are for general
knowledge, 5% boring, 10% mandatory, 30% easy, 5% other . Maybe they don’t read the
texts because they find them hard or boring .

Regarding the texts in their books . This question was used to see how important is
reading for them and how much do they like / don’t like to read.. : 50% say they read the
whole text not jut the fragment in the book, 20% d on’t read the full text, 15% watch the
movie, 10% don ’t read at all, 5% other.

The fitth question regarding reading as a free time activity replaces . Here I wanted so
see what do they like doing in their free time. : 20% listening to music, 20% sports, 10%
spending time with friends, 30% watching a movie, 20% other.

On the last question the results are alarming because: 30% consider that reading could
be replaced by computer, 20% don ’t know, 20% maybe, 25% no, 5% other. Just a
quarter answered that reading could not be replaced by movie.

The conclusion is that reading is more an obligation than a passion and that
students are more interested in watching television or in doing some other
activities, or perhaps reading just what they like or just what they are interested in.

69 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

To see the students ’ reactions to books they like. I have let them choose a book that has
been made into a movie. I have worked with grades VII -VIII on Harry Potter and the
Order of Phoenix and with grades V -VI on Chronicles of Na rnia – The Lion, the Witch
and the W ardrobe.

70 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 1
LESSON PLAN

TEACHER:

GRADE: VII-VIII
LEVEL: Upper -intermediate
NO. OF CLASSES/ WEEK: 2 classes/week
TOPIC: Fictional Heroes
LESSON: “Harry Potter a nd the Order of Phoenix"

MOTIVATION: This lesson was conceived in order to provide the students with more in –
depth information on one of today ’s highly popular fantasy series, Harry Potter , helping
students to analyse the hero status of its protagonist in relation to the general features
of this archety pe. The use of critical thinking strategies will allow the students to express
their thoughts, opinions and feelings on the subject in a personal manner, motivating
them to actively participate in the class activities.

PRELIMINARY CONDITIONS: The students will base their new acquisitions on the
knowledge they have already acquired during classes on fantasy literature and on the
information taken from the media on the Harry Potter series, and on the fact that they
have already seen the film. They are also f amiliarised with some of the critical thinking
strategies to be used in this lesson.

COMPETENCES:
 to be able to brainstorm on a given topic
 to analyse ideas in a text and then share them with a classmate
 to express and argument their opinions
 to feel confident about engaging in a debate on a given subject

MATERIALS: worksheets, notebooks, blackboard, picture

71 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Rowling, J. K. 2004. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix , Bloomsbury, London
Whited, L. A. (ed.) 2002. The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter. Perspectives on a Literary
Phenomenon , University of Missouri Press, Columbia and London.Available at:
http://books.google.ro/books?id=iO5pApw2JycC&printsec= frontcover&dq =
*** SparkNotes – Harry Potter. Available at:
http://gsearch.sparknotes.com/search?q= harry+potter& searchbg=&template
=default&output= xml_no_dtd&oe=UTF -8&ie=UTF -8&client= default_frontend
&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&site=default_ collection&x=17& y=28)

THE LESSON STAGES:

I. Warm up: (lockstep) (5 minutes)
The students are told they are going to see the picture of one of the most famous
fictional characters nowadays; they have to guess who it is. The answers may be: Frodo,
Spiderm an, Superman, etc. Some students will probably guess it is Harry Potter. The
teacher shows the picture and sticks it on the blackboard; underneath she writes his
name: HARRY POTTER. The students are asked to find at least three words that can be
formed wit h the letters that form the name: “potter”, “pot”, “art”, “try”, “heart”, etc. At
least one student will probably discover the word HERO – the theme word of the lesson.

2. Clustering (individual work) (5 minutes)
The nucleus word, HERO, is written in the middle of the page, and for five minutes, each
student has to write down around it any idea that comes to mind on this topic. Then,
connections may be drawn between ideas. The students should make no judgement
about the thoughts, just put them down. When the time is up, the students will read their
ideas, and as many as possible will be written on the blackboard.

The students might associate the theme word with: bravery, endurance, faith, strength,
optimism, reward, fight, good vs. evil, growth, fear, int elligence, Hercules, Harry Potter,
Frodo, Prince Caspian etc. The teacher then announces that, since they started with the
picture of Harry Potter, he will be the character they will discuss during this class.

72 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
3. Practice ( 15 minutes) group work
Some clas ses before students have watched the film Harry Potter and t he Order of
Phoenix. Now in groups they receive sheets with fragments from the book and after a
quick scanning they should be able to reorder the events.. They are then asked to fill in a
paper wi th differences: book versus movie. They work in groups then they come to fill in
on a flipchart. The teacher asks them:
Why do you think these changes were made ?

II. Reciprocal Teaching (pair work) 15 minutes
Now some of the students are given a photo of Harry and of Voldemort his enemy. Then
they are given sheets with the Venn diagram and they are asked to write some traits of
the two characters. The diagram will be done at the board too. Other students are
distributed a two -page worksheet presenting som e critical considerations on Harry
Potter ’s hero status. An explanation of some difficult words is also included. The
students must work in pairs, each member of the pair being responsible for one page of
the worksheet, read it and take out the main ideas. Then the members of the pairs take
turns playing the role of “teacher”, summarising what was just read, trying to clarify the
parts that are unclear. They try to extract the main ideas and to express their opinion on
the passages.

Students should notice that, while some of the passages present the general traits of a
hero and the way Harry Potter fits into this pattern, others present Harry as an anti –
hero, or at least an unlikely hero. Again, the ideas are then shared with the rest of the
class.

III. Refection (10 minutes)
1. Corners (group work)
The students have already reached the conclusion that Harry Potter can be seen either
as a typical hero, fitting perfectly into the pattern of this archetype, or as an anti -hero,
due to his weaknesses. His succ esses might be due to his good luck or to the fact that he
is protected by powerful forces and people (his mother ’s sacrifice, Dumbledore, his
friends etc.). A question arises: Is Harry Potter a real hero? This is the subject of the
next activity.

73 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The teac her asks the students to write for three minutes, presenting their opinions on
the subject. Then the students who believe that Harry is really a hero are asked to go to
one corner of the room. Those who believe the opposite is true should go to another
corner. There may be students who undecided, or who believe that Harry presents some
characteristics of the hero type, but these do not make him a real hero; they will occupy
another corner of the room.

The students in each group share their papers with the rest of the group for five
minutes. The group will then have two select two spokespersons to represent them in
the debate that will follow.

The teacher calls for a debate, by inviting each of the groups, in turn, to state succinctly
its position and the major reasons for supporting their view. Once the formal statement
has been presented by the spokespersons, other members of the groups should be
encouraged to participate in the debate. The teacher may stimulate the conversation
when necessary, by raisin g other issues, related to those that have been presented.
The teacher explains to the participants that they should feel free to switch groups at
any time, if they have been persuaded by another group ’s arguments. Participants
should also take notes on t heir thinking while they listen and discuss.

When the time is almost up, the teacher encourages the students to reach some
consensus and then stops the discussion.

IV. Homework
The students have to write a position paper, setting out their individual pos itions and
the reasons behind them (no less then 200 words).
The teacher praises the students and marks the best contributions. The class is
dismissed.

74 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Clustering:

Book vs. Movie:

Image 6
What am I noticing about the written text that is different fr om the digital text?
Things that were only in the book Things that were only in the movie

75 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Why do you think these changes were made ?

Figure 3

76 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Image 7

CRITICAL CONSIDERATIONS ON HARRY POTTER
Heroes respond to a call to sacrifice and to give their lives. Their lives begin in the ordinary
world, where they are summoned to adventure and perilous tasks. This involves, with the
help of a mentor, crossing a threshold into another world in which they undergo various
trials and encounter allies and f oes. There are other elements in the journey, but eventually
the hero returns to the ordinary world bearing something of benefit. The journey is an
archetypal pattern, and there are myriad ways in which a story may be told and yet display
the archetype […] Harry ’s great returning gift is that of hope – hope that seemingly
implacable evil will be overcome .

[Harry] is not in fact strictly a hero in classical terms, but an ordinary boy, mundane and
reluctant […]. Although he has remarkable gifts of magic, he has to rely on moral courage
and on his friends to accomplish his tasks. He is not the self -sufficient, individualistic hero.
In mythic terms, he is very like the ordinary hobbits Frodo and Sam in ‘The Lord of the

77 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Rings ’, whose weakness and small stature accomplish what the great and powerful cannot.
[…] Harry ’s testings and trials prepare him for his ultimate suffering in the last book, which
leads at last to healing and peace.
(Colin Duriez, The Unauthorized Guide to Harry Potter , 2007, pp. 168 -169)

Summon , tr.v. sum·moned = To order to take a specified action; bid.
Mundane , adj. = Relating to, characteristic of, or concerned with commonplaces;
ordinary.
Reluctant , adj. = Unwilling; disinclined.
Self -sufficient , adj. = Able to provide for oneself withou t the help of others;
independent.

Rowling has been very clear on the Bildungsroman aspect of her series, having said of
Harry, “I do want him to grow up”. […] Most heroes journey as part of their development.
[…] he journeys each year to Hogwarts […] a place of tests: some academic, some practical,
some moral. Many of these tests include adventure, danger, choice – heady stuff that forces
Harry to grow or fail. And failure in a univer se of magic is too often fatal.
(Mary Pharr, Harry Potter as Hero -in-Progress in The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter , 2002,
p.58)
Heady , adj. = extremely exciting.
[…] Harry is not the most focused or relentless hero, at least not until later in the book. His
tendency to stray from his quest is not literal or physical, but ment al and emotional. When
there are no clear leads and nothing to do, […] Harry tends to lose focus and drift, following
his emotions. This happens most dangerously in Godric ’s Hollow, when Harry leads them
into a trap, his real reasons for going there having nothing to do with the quest and
everything to do with his grief a nd doubt concerning Dumbledore.

Because Harry was famous before he even knew he was a wizard, much of his personality is
shaped by his desire to live up to his fame. He steers clear of sp ecial treatment, flattery, and
praise. He strives to live a normal wizard ’s life, and to a great extent he does. He has close
friendships, enemies, dilemmas, and triumphs just like any other twelve -year -old boy. But
Harry is distinct because of hi s courage and loyalty.

78 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Harry is not a typical or mythological hero. He is an underdog, with his skinny stature,
broken glasses, and relative inexperience in the wizard world. Yet he lives up to his fame by
bravely entering situations with the inborn faith that som eone – either himself or someone
he has befriended – will get h im through the situation alive.

(Spark Notes . Available at: http://gsearch.sparknotes.com/search?q= harry+potter&
searchbg=&template=default&output= xml_no_dtd&oe=UTF -8&ie=UTF -8&client=
defaul t_frontend&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&site=default_collection&x=17& y=28)

Relentless , adj. = Steady and persistent; unremitting.
Stray , intr.v . strayed = To deviate from the correct course.
Drift , n. = The direction in which something is going.
Unde rdog , n. = One at a disadvantage and expected to lose.
Inborn , adj. = Natural; possessed by a person from birth.
Picture to be presented during the Evocation stage of the lesson:

79 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Image 8

80 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 2

LESSON PLAN

TEACHER:
GRADE: VII-VIII
LEVEL: Upper -intermediate
NO. OF CLASSES/ WEEK: 2 classes/week
TOPIC: Fictional Heroes
LESSON: “Harry Potter – Wizard School without the Magic"

MOTIVATION : In this lesson students will learn more about Harry Potter , a character
they like very much. With the help ofa sh ort video we will introduce some new
vocabulary as : pop culture, mythology, archetypes, urban legends.
COMPETENCES: Students will:
 Reflect on the adaptation of favourite books into movies;
 Compare Harry Potter withHarry PotterWizard School without the mag ic;
 Find out definitions for the termspop culture, mythology, archetypes, urban legends
and introduce them into short film scripts;
 Write and produce short films based on their scripts.

MATERIALS: paper, board, video projector, Copies of Harry PotterWizar d School

BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Mitchell, Elvis , 2011, " Harry Potter Wizard School without the Magic" , New York Times
Company.
Meet Harry Potter (http://www.scholastic.com/harrypotter/home.asp ) is the U.S.
publisher site for the series, with chapter excerpts, discussion guides, fun and games
with Harry, and an interview with the author.
The Encyclopedia Potterica
(http://www.geocit ies.com/EnchantedForest/1900/index.html ) is all about Harry ’s
world, from A -Z.

81 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
THE LESSON STAGES:

I. Warm up (1O minutes), lockstep
Teacher writes on the board some questions and after thinking for a few minutes
students and teacher answer them together . The questions are:
1. Think about your favo urite book. If it were used as a basis of a movie, what elements
of the book would you expect to see in the movie?
2. How closely you would expect the characters, the plot, the setting to respect the
book?
3. How would y ou expect those elements to change in its movie form?

II. Practice (20 minutes) whole class
Students rec eive the movie review for “Harry Potter Wizard School without the magic ”,
by Elvis Mitchell ( appendix 2), they read it aloud and then discuss it with t he whole
class.
Teacher helps them by asking questions about the text. Like:
1. At the beginning of the review , to what does Mitchell compare Harry Potter? Why
does he make this comparison?
2. How does the film begin?
3. What is the movies most entertaining scene?
4. What did the critic noticed about the presence of minorities in the film and how does
this affect his review?
5. How did the critic feel about the movie? How do you know?

III. Practice new terminology (2O minutes) group work
Teacher writes on the b oard some words from the review : pop culture, archetype, urban
legend, mythology. Students have to give the right definition of the words using the
context. They write the definitions on the board.
Then in groups they have to write at least three examples for each word. Then they will
exchange their papers with other group. Then they choose one example for each
category and consider how to write a movie script for a short film that includes all the
four words.
For example, the plot might be based on an urban legend in which a particular pop

82 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
culture myth is exploited by a main character which represents an archetype.
They will begin in class for the teacher to help them and then continue at home. They
will then present their short video or script to the class next ti me.

Activity 3

Movie clips: listening activity
Objectives
 By watching the video students will:
 Learn real English vocabulary, as spoken by real native speakers;
 Practice and improve listening and comprehensive skills;
 Learn proper pronunciation;
 Feel th at learning English can be fun
 Learning through media ( movies, music, etc) is one of the best ways to learn a new
language.

We will use a short video called Adventureland. (YouTube)
Students in the V -VI th grade will watch the video, and pay attention to it. One of the
advantages of working with video is that you can pause it whenever you want. Students
will then have to answers a few questions related to the video.

Answer the questions:
1. How many giant pandas is James allowed to give away?
a) Two per day; b) none; c) three per day.
2. Which department does James want to work in?
a) Rides; b) games; c) food.
3. The general rule at the amusement park is that:
a) Nothing is free; b) you can let your friends ride for free; c) you can let family members
ride for free.
4. The man:
a) Seems somewhat interested in James ’ resume; b) wants to take a look at James ’
resume; c) doesn ’t really care about James ’ resume.

83 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 4
Wizardry at school

Objectives:
Students will:
 Brainstorm what aspects of their own school day could use a dose of wizardry to
improve them;
 Write a scene that shows what might happen on an average day at their school if
magic of some kind was suddenly injected.

Students work in groups and they will have to write and read a short passage in which to
imagine what would happen if Potters kind of wizardry was part of a day at their school.
Teacher asks students a question: What aspects of a typical school day could use a “dose
of wizardry” or magic to improve them?

The answers will be written on the board and they will have to choose some aspect of
the school day listed on the board.

Teacher tells them that they will have to write or think a scene in which some kind of
magic changes it. They will have just to prove how that magic affects just one place in
that school at a specific time. T hey then will read aloud.

Activity 5
Movie vs. Book – Compare and Contrast Guide and Critical Analysis

I have given students from VII -VIII th grade a movie vs book compare and contrast guide
to help them achieve more tho rough understanding of the text. They will be free to
decide which version did they like better.

The result was that have been both disappointed and delighted by the movie, but they liked
the book. They consider that many important parts were left out in the movie.

84 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
“Movie vs. Book”
Compare and Contrast Guide
BOOK TITLE

MOVIE TITLE
SETTING

SETTING
CHARACTERS AND DESCRIPTION

CHARACTERS AND DESCRIPTION
PLOT

PLOT
CONFLICT

CONFLICT
RESOLUTION

RESOLUTION
Table 4

“Movie vs. Book” Critical An alysis
I’m glad that the mo vie included this
from the book …

The movie brought a lot to life
including …
I didn ’t like that movie was different
from the book because…

I loved that the movie was different
because …
Table 5

85 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 6

Quizzes
Are one of the most successful activity types and a fantastic way to see what our pupils
have already learnt and they can be equally useful as a consolidation exercise. I will use
it here to test my students ’ knowledge regarding the Harry Potter book and movie. My
students love quizzes so it will be a pleasure for them to do it.

Harry Potter and the Order of the PhoenixBook vs. Movie Quiz

Question 1:
When Harry is sitting in the park at the beginning of the movie , what do Dudley and his
gang do?
They confront him and make fun of his nightmares.
They do not notice him and
continue walking.
They attack him.
Dudley ’s friends d epart and Dudley begins to
make fun of Harry.

Question 2:
In the film , where does Hermione first introduce Harry and Ron to Luna Lovegood?
in the Hogwarts Express
in the carriage l eading from the train platform to
Hogwarts
in the Great Hall
in Potions class
in the Room of Requirement

Question 3:
In the book , what must Mr. Wea sley and Harry do to enter the Ministry of Magic before
Harry ’s hearing?
He and Harry must step inside a London phone booth
Mr. Weasley must make a
phone call to the Ministry of Magic once he and Harry are inside the phone
booth
They use the Floo Network
They use a

86 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Question 4:
In the film , how are George and Fred ’s attempt at using Extendable Ears foiled?
Crookshanks eats the ear
Hermione cuts the string they are attached to
Mrs.
Weasley puts an Imperturbable Charm on the door to the Order of the Phoenix m eeeting
room
They are too far away for the ears to work

Question 5:
In the film , which charac ter alerts Professor Umbridge to the existence of Dumbledore ’s
Amry?
Marietta Edgecombe (Cho ’s friend)
Cho Chang
Draco Malfoy
Ginny
Weasley

Question 6:
In the book , what greatly angers the Centaurs?
Hagrid leaves them for a long period of time to search for giants
The ministry
restricts their territory
One of their members, Firenze, leaves the forest to teach at
Hogwarts
Professor Umbridge becomes Headmistress

Question 7:
In the film , OWLS are interrupted by what disruption?
Fred and George Weasley cause a stir before leaving Hogwarts for good
Hagrid is
sacked as a professor and is then chased from his cabin
Harry has a vision of Sirius
being tortured by Voldemort
A snow storm Question 7:

Question 8:
In the film , what do Fred and George use to mark their departure from school?
They create a lake within the castle
They poison Professor Umbridge ’s
food
They fly into the Great Hall and set off a huge fireworks display
They turn
Draco Malfoy into a ferret Question 8:

87 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Question 9:
In the book , how does Harry hear the Prophecy about himself and Voldemort?
He hears it from Professor Trelawney in Dumbledore ’s Pensieve
Dumbledore
tells him
He hears it from the crystal ball -like o bject he finds at the Ministry of
Magic
Voldemort tells him

Question 10:
In the film , which portrait howe lls angrily whenever there are visitors at The Order of
the Phoenix headquaters?
A portrait of Sirius ’s mother
A portrait of Sirius
A Black family
Portrait
There are no howling portraits in the film

(http://www.factmonster.com/quizzes/harry -potter -phoenix -movie/3.html )

With the V – VI graders the activities were as follows

Activity 7

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe begins during the World War II in London, during
which the German Nazis dropped bombs on the city. As a result, the Pevensie children
are sent to live with the old professor in his countryside house. The discovery of Narnia
happened quickly and you may have many questions about the children and the
professor that are left unanswered.

This exercise is intended to be one for a study group or class that can guide us in reading
and understanding a text.

In the first column, write what you already know about the topic. In the second column,
write what you want to know about the topic and after you have completed your
research, write what you le arned in the third column.

88 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Students have to fill in the table first individually then check the answers with the whole
class.

Image 9

Activity 8

Comparing the book and movie.
The book and movie versions of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe chroni cle the
same story, but in slightly different ways. On your own, try to come up with a list of five
differences you notice after reading the book and seeing the movie. Students work in
pairs then check their list with the class and maybe fill in with new i nformation.
BOOK MOVIE

After writing some differences students along with the teacher discuss and answer some
questions that remained unanswered.
1. How did the beginning of the book differ from the begging of the movie?
2. Was the scenery the w ay you imagined it?

89 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
3. Were there any characters or events that were present in the movie but not in the
book?
4. What was missing in the movie that was in the book?
5. How is the role of the professor different in the book than the movie?
6. Does the movie end in the same way the book does?

All the students participate more or less in the discussion.

Activity 9 – Debate

Good or evil
Objectives
Students will:
1. engage in informal group discussions, pose questions and debate answers, think
critically, and contribute th eir own information and ideas;
2. define good and evil;
3. support their ideas that human nature is good -or-evil.

Teacher reminds students a few things about the characters in the book. In the book and
movie, Narnia is divided into two parts. On one side are th e creatures that remain on the
side of Aslan, hoping of springtime and freedom to live peacefully . On the other side are
the creatures that side with the White Witch (to them she is the “Queen”), who support
her reign and the never ending winter that has b een cast upon the land. For the children
it is not easy to make a difference between good or evil when they reach Narnia.

In a conversation with Peter, Edmund argues that they may not really know who is good
and who is bad.:
If you ’re not still too high a nd mighty to talk to me, I’ve something to say which you ’d
better listen to.” “What is it?” asked Peter. “Hush! No t so loud,” said Edmund, “there ’s no
good frightening the girls. But have you realized what we ’re doing?” “What?” said Peter,
lowering his voi ce to a whisper. “We ’re following a guide we know nothing about. How do
we know which side that bird is on? Why shouldn ’t it be leading us into a trap?” “That ’s a
nasty idea. Still – a robin you know. They ’re good birds in all the stories I ’ve ever read. I ’m

90 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
sure a robin wouldn ’t be on the wrong side.” “If it comes to that, which is the right side?
How do we know that the fauns are in the right and the Queen (yes, I know we ’ve been told
she’s a witch) is in the wrong? We don ’t really know anything about eit her.
(C. S. Lewis. The Lion, the Witch and t he Wardrobe , pp. 58-59)

Narnia is split into two different sides during the battle. Teacher tells students that they
will have to create their own mock debate over the Wh ite Witch. Is she good or evil?

Half of your group will adopt the role of Peter, Susan, Lucy or a creature on the side of
Aslan. The other half will take on the role of a creature on the side of the Queen, as they
call her. Each side is trying to convince Edmund that she is either good or evil.
Remember to take on the perspective of the character you pick from the hat. If you are
assigned to be her dwarf, you will probably feel a lot of loyalty toward her. In one box
will be the good characters and in the other the bad ones. Students will have to pick the
cards and join their group on the correct side of the room. One of them will be Edmund
and he ’ll have the ri ght to choose a side at the end. S tudents work in groups and have 5 –
10 minutes to think of arguments against the other side. I will attach the table with
characters
EDMUND
PETER THE DWARF
SUSAN THE WOLF
LUCY GHOUL
MR TUMNUS, THE FAUN BOGGLE
FATHER CHRISTMAS HAG
MRS BEAVER MINOTAUR
MR BEAVER OGRE
ASLAN CRUEL

91 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Activity 10

Character web
Students receive a worksheet and they have to f ill it in with as much information as they
can.
1) On the left -hand side write down a few characteristics of each sibling prior to the
adventures in Narnia.
2) In the middle describe any events in the story that affect or change the character for
the wors e or better.
3) In the last column explain how this character ends up displaying the traits of his or
her title as king or queen. How did he or she make it there?
4) In the final row describe yourself prior to a changing point in your life so far. Descri be
this event or person who changed you.
In the final column give yourself a title that reflects who you are now or who you wish to
be in the future.

Character Events that changed them Title
Peter
Peter the magnificent
Susan
Susan the gentle
Edm und
Edmund the just
Lucy
Lucy the valiant
You
You

Table 6
My children ’s opinions on Harry Potter and the Order o f the Phoenix and on The
Chronicles of Narnia differ depending on age, on the fac t that they like or not
reading/ watching something. I will share some of their opinions.

92 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

Harry P otter and the Order of the
Phoenix Chronicles of Narnia
1. The movie is not as exciting as it could
have been;
2. There were many important and funny
scenes left out of the movie;
3. I never liked the movies;
4. I like bot h the movie and the book;
5. I like the book best because it shows
the full potential in each character;
6. I like the books better but the movie is
not at all bad;
7. I think the movie was really solid and
gaps can be left out to our imagination;
8. Beside the specia l effects there was
nothing interesting in the movie.
Action happens very fast; 1. It is fast to read;
2. I liked that there were pictures in the
book;
3. I liked all the character;
4. The book is a kind of summary of the
movie;
5. The battle scene in the movie was cool;
6. If you watch the movie, you don ’t have to
read the book;
7. I liked the movie better;
8. The movie was nice but nothing special.

Activity 11
Reading movies
Objectives :
1. To analyze the effectiveness of using movies in class.
2. To examine the results of using mo vies with reading activities.
Students work in groups. Half of them ( group I) have to read fragments from the
chosen books without seeing the movie and the other half ( group II) will watch the
movie without having read the book. Then group I receive a short list of vocabulary
words and phrases used in the book for a better understanding of the story
and they are given a cover picture and the book title for discussion . Group II is
shown the movie trailer to introduce the theme. After both groups finish their task,
they reunite together and exchange opinions.

93 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Another exercise for the same activity could be:
The teacher should sit students in pairs one facing the other one. But one of them
should be watching the screen, the other facing the back of th e class. The teacher should
select a short fragment of the video that contains visuals actions and the students who
face the screen will watch it but without any sound, so the watchers will describe what is
on the screen to their partner. After that, the s tudent who did not watch the video,
should talk about it, taking into account what his/her partner described to him/her.
This kind of activity offers them a lot of fun.

As students enjoyed these books and activities and they had a lot of fun being in the
characters place, living and creating their own world, I have decided to make an optional
course based on fairy tale.
It will be called Reading literature and it will look like this:

Optional Schedule
Reading Literature

The course addresses to my student s in the VIII grade who already have some important
knowledge in English.

The works I have chosen for reading and watching through their screening, try to make
English fun and more attractive and interesting, and also try to make students to be
more attr acted and interested in what they are studying. Through English classes
students are already familiar with some notions of culture, literature, civiliza tion,
festivals, customs, life style.

As I have said earlier, students do not consider reading as someth ing useful, interesting,
enjoyable and necessary for their general knowledge.
I will try with this course to give students the opportunity to escape from everyday life
through English.

In this sense the works I have chosen bring a little magic into our w orld because I think
we need it. The course is based on the works of writers whose contribution to world

94 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
literature is recognized and the world they offer our eyes is a world where purity and
innocence saves us and shapes us as adults, a world of fairy tal e.

By reading passages from the chosen books and by viewing their screenings, as well as
by introducing fantastic into reality offers new perspectives on our everyday life and on
ourselves and escaping from the real world will allow students to use their imagination
in creative purposes and to use expressions and language elements that could not be
used in other social contexts.

Students will discover how attractive English can be and interesting worlds with new
rules with which they could never encounter in other contexts.
The works offer a new perspective of the world, thus making students develop their
imagination through English.

General skills:

1. Obtaining information by receiving oral and written messages, in order to improve
language skills and d iscipline
2. Production of oral and written messages in English in order to issue some reflections
on writers and works studied;
3. Developing taste for cinema and literature;
4. Being selective in cultural and artistic area
5. Developing skills in analy zing a literary text
SPECIFIC SKILLS LEARNING ACTIVITIES
1.1 Recognizing of specific information
from a text read/ listened on familiar
topics , clearly articulated and at normal
speed.
1.2 Identifying the main ideas in a text
based on some support questio ns.
1.3 Decoding the meaning of unfamiliar
vocabulary fro m context, through
associations/ connections or using 1. Oral/ written presentations ( difficulty
and medium length ) on topics of interest
2. Dialogues , conversations
3. Text analysis, interpretations and
stylistic as sessments
4. Characterizations of the characters
adapted to the age -expressing opinions
pro and against
5. Press articles, reviews , literary texts

95 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
reference materials.
*1.4 Identifying quick reading of
information/ specific details of a longer
text in order to solve a task.
*1.5 The correlatio n of informati on from
various parts of a text/ from various
literary texts to solve a workload
6. Reference materials :
dictionaries , instructions, manuals ,
booklets, web pages , worksheets

2.1 Brief pre sentation – oral or written of a
simple description of an event or personal
experiences based on visual aids or ideas
2.2 Understanding , perception and
analysis of a literary text
2.3 Communicating and decoding the
message of a literary text .
2.4 Developin g a structured text data
based on a scheme , using appropriate
language
*2.5 Use of appropriate reference
materials to verify the correctness o f the
language used in drafting 1. Description of habits , events
2. Description of characters and
happenings deba tes pro and against
3. Personal editing
4. Text analysis, interpretations and
stylistic assessments
5. Characterizations of the characters
adapted to the age
6. Reference materials – *Dictionaries ,
glossaries of specialized terms and phrases
specific ; * Internet pages

3.1 The opinions expressing personal
position expressed in discussions on topics
of interest
3.2 Communication to achieve a task
requiring a simple and direct exchange of
information
3.3 Training, skills development and
consolidation of a literary text analysis
3.4 Understanding , perception and
analysis of a literary text .
3.5 Expanding , deepening and enriching
the knowledge of culture and civilization 1. Dialogue and convers ation .
2. Reading literary works and literary
summa ry, fragments of literary works .
3. Develop argumentative essays .
4. Comparing similar literary texts and
various film versions o f the same literary
work .
5. Applied research ( using the Internet ).
6. Expre ssion of pros and against
7. Text analysis, interpretations and
assessments characterizations of the
characters adapte d to the age .

96 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
and literature
3.6 Arguing some pers onal views on
literary subjects .
3.7 Clear expression , fluency in English to
their opinions and views on the topics
addressed.
3.8 Participation in conversations using
language appropriate to the context and
respecting the conventions used in
conversatio n and social and cultural
norms 8. Co mpletion of projects in English
Portfo lio.
Communi cation and language conventions :
for expressing relationships in
comm unications ( friends, colleagues )

4.1 Giving (oral and/ or written ) messages
with their own words , simple texts in
known areas
4.2 Tak ing notes in a group
discussion /reading on a topic of interest ,
in orderto report
4.3 Reformulation of ideas i ssued in a
dialogue on cultural/ literary utterance by
a larger explanatory , at the request of
party 1. Transformation exercises , oral and
written dialogue
2. Individual or group projects
* Daily dialogues
* Cultural dialogues

97 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Communic ative functions of the langu age
1. Making comparisons between characteristics of people , objects, places , events ,
activities , events , processes
2. Using appropriate formulas of context of initiation, maintenance and ending of a
conversation (including telephone)
3. Pausing politely
4. Asking and giving instructions
5. Asking and giving advice
6. Making a request for proposals and suggestions
7. Persuading, determining a course of action
8. Express ag reement/ disagreement with a course of action
9. Characterize people, facts, actions
10. Comparing states, actions and deeds present with the past
11. Formulate conclusions
12. Expressing conditions
13. Expressing causes and consequences
14. Expressing intentions, desires, preferences
15. Expressing emotional attitudes of sympathy, regret, t rust, doubt, worry, fear
16. Expressing opinions/ viewpoints personal
17. Arguing/justifying opinions/ viewpoints personal
18. Requesting opinions/ viewpoints personal
19. Expr essing satisfaction/ dissatisfaction with a view
20. Express and motivating agreemen t/disagreement with the opinions of others
21. Contradicting the opinions of others
22. Asking and giving clarification for understanding a message
23. Asking and give details and explanations

VALUES AND ATTITUDES :

1. Awareness of the role of English as a means of communicating ideas
2. Critical and flexible thinking
3. Positive relationships with others , respect for human diversity ;
4. Involve prospective thinking through understanding the role of history in the present

98 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
life and as a predictive factor o f changes ;
5. Resolving disputes about nonviolence , assuming ethnic , religious and cultural
tolerance
6. Develop pro -active attitu des in personal and social life .

CONTENTS
J. R .R. TOLKIEN , THE LORD OF THE RINGS
C. S. LEWIS ,THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA
J. K. ROWLING , HARRY POTTER
KATHERINE PATERSON , BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA
LEWIS CAROLL , ALICE IN WONDERLAND
MICHAEL ENDE , NEVER ENDING STORY
PHILIP PULLMAN , GOLDEN COMPASS

Assessment methods
1. ORAL
Predictive – to assess communication skills
Continuation direct o bservation and drawing an observation cards Working Group
2. WRITTEN
Initial – to verify written communication skills
Sumative – realizing essays
3. ALTERNATIVE METHODS
Works practice – realization and presentation of projects
Role play , dramatic interpret ation
Portfolio group and/ or individual
Creation of a group diary

Bibliography
1. Internet ( www. Grade Saver.com ) – Search literary texts
2. Literary works presented in Chapter Contents
3. Dictionaries , encyclopedias
4. Existing educational s ofts
5. Tucker Nicholas, 1999, Children ’s Literature in Education , Volume 3, Issue 4 , pp 221 –

99 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
234
6. McDowell Myles, March 1973, Children ’s Literature in Education , Volume 4, issue 1,
pp. 50 -63

No Thematic unit content Specific
skills No of
hours Week Observatio ns
1. Michael Ende – Never Ending S tory
 film presentation and debate
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 imagination and free spirit
 friendship and trust
 relationship
 fantastic world and reality
 childhood innocence 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 1-5
2. Philip Pullman – Golden Compass
 film presentation and deb ate
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 friendship and trust
 family relations 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 6-10

100 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
 fantastic world of reality
 childhood innocence
3. C. S. Lewis – The Chronicles of
Narnia
 film presentation and debate
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 mov ie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 family relationship
 aspects of friendship
 war perspective
 trust and harmony
 childhood innocence 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 11-15
4. Lewis Caroll – Alice in W onderland
 film presentation and debate
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speakin g exercises
 fantasy and reality
 friendship and trust
 childhood innocence
 real world seen through the
eyes of a child 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 16-20

101 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
 trust and faith
5. Katherine Pa tterson – Bridge to
Terabithia
 film presentation and debate
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 reality and imagination two
sides of the same coin
 childhood expectations
 fantasy and dream 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 21-25
6. J. K. Rowling – Harry Potter
 film presentation and debate
upon the movie
 reading an d free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation and
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 friendship
 fantasy and dream
 life expectations
 fantastic creatures 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3,
2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3 5 26-30
7. J. R. R. Tolkien – The Lord of the
Rings
 film presentation and debate 1.1, 1.2,1.3,
1.4, 2.1,
2.2, 2.3, 5 31-36

102 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
upon the movie
 reading and free discussion
over the read text
 group debates
 movie and text essay
 characters ’ presentation a nd
analysis
 reading and speaking exercises
 love and friendship
 madness, trust and faith
 war perspectives 2.4, 2.5,
3.1, 3.2,
3.3, 3.4,
3.5, 3.6,
3.7, 3.8,
4.1, 4.2, 4.3

At the end of the activities we have done during classes I have given my students a
questionnaire whose aim was to illicit students’ feedback regarding using movie in the
class and to investigate the relationship between movi e-viewing and their performance
and to establish how useful / unuseful t eaching with video is and how muvh does
inhance students motivation for learning English.
Questionnaire:
Q1. Do you think watching movies has a beneficial effect on learning English?
Q2. Do you think your movie preferences will affect your learning?
Q3. Do you think English subtitle are good in learning English?
Q4. Do you agree you have learned some English watching the film?
Q5. Do you think the dialogues in the film can be used in daily life?

At the first question 86% of the students answered that watch ing movies has a beneficial
effect on learning English. At the second question 55% think that movies can affect their
learning in the way that it depends on the movie watched. At the third question 72%
consider that subtitles are good at the beginning unti l they get used to just listen and not
to wait for the translation to be offered by granted. And another reason could be that
they didn ’t have to much exposure to the movie -based teaching activities. At the fourth
question 57% consider that they have learn ed many things and helped them understand

103 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
the story line of a movie and that movies motivated them to learn English. At the last
question 30% consider that scenes from the movies can be used in everyday life.
86
55
72 57 30 Movies
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
5th Qtr

The results of t he questionnaire were that students can learn better using this method
and they become more interested. T hey have learnt new words, new vocabulary and
thus they can express more fluently. This method increase s the efficiency of the teaching
and learning p rocess.

104 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 1
‘Harry Potter ’ Wizard School Without the Magic
– By ELVIS MITCHELL

The world may not be ready yet for the film equivalent of books on tape, but this
peculiar phenomenon has arrived in the form of the fi lm adaptation of J. K . Rowling ’s
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer ’s Stone . The most highly awaited movie of the year has a
dreary, literal -minded competence, following the letter of the law as laid down by the
author. But it ’s all muted flourish, with momenta ry pleasures, like Gr ingott ’s, the bank
staffed by trolls that looks like a Gaud throwaway. The picture is so careful that even the
tape wra pped around the bridge of Harry ’s glasses seems to have come out of the set
design. (It never occurred to anyone to show him taping the f rame together.)

The movie comes across as a covers act by an extremely competent tribute band not the
real thing but an incredible simulation and there ’s an audience for this sort of thing. But
watching Harry Potter is like seeing Beatlemania staged in th e Hollywood Bowl, where
the cheers and screams will drown out whatever ’s unfolding onstage.

To call this movie shameless is beside the point. It would probably be just as misguided
to complain about the film ’s unoriginality because (a) it has assumed that the target
audience doesn ’t want anything new and (b) Ms. Rowling ’s books cannibalize and
synthesize pop culture mythology, pro of of the nothing -will-ever -go-away ethic. She has
come up with something like Star Wars for a generation that never had a chanc e to thrill
to its grandeur, but this is Young Sherlock Holmes as written by C. S. Lewis from a story
by Roald Dahl.

The director, Chris Columbus, is as adept as Ms. Rowling at cobbling free -floating
cultural myths into a wobbly whole. The first film from a Columbus script, Gremlins , had
the cheeky cheesiness of an urban legend written for Marvel Comics . Mr. Columbus
probably felt like the right choice for Harry Potter because he has often used the same
circuit boards as Ms. Rowling to design his fables. H is Home Alone movies, Mrs. Doubtfire
and Step Mom employ the theme of abandonment by parents as if it were a br and name.
And like Mr. Columbus ’s films, Ms. Rowling ’s novels pull together archetypes that others

105 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
have long exploited. This movie begins with a shot of a street sign that will cause happy
young audiences to erupt in recognition, as the dry -witted giant Hagrid (Robbie
Coltrane) and Professor McGonagall (Maggie Smith) drop a baby at the Doorstep of
Destiny.

Years later Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), spo rting the jagged thunderbolt scar across his
forehead, is living there with his terrors of an aunt (Fiona Shaw) and uncle (Richard
Griffiths).

Harry is the kid all kids dream they are. His special abilities are recognized by people
other than the ones who have raised him. Hagrid returns to rescue him from his tiny
room under the stairs and clues Harry in about the boy ’s inn er force, which is why he
doesn ’t fit into the world of Muggles, the non -magical and nonbelievers.

Harry is shown the way to Hogwarts, an English boarding school for wizards run by
Professor Dumbledore (Richard Harris), where Harry pals up with the gawky but decent
Ron (Rupert Grint) and the bossy, precocious Hermione (Emma Watson). The
instructors, who rule the classrooms with varying d egrees of imperiousness, include the
acid Snape (Alan Rickm an) and the mousy stutterer Quir rell (Ian Hart).

The casting is the standout, from the smaller roles up; it seems that every working
British actor of the last 2 years makes an appearance. John Hur t blows through as an
overly intense dealer in magic equipment, schooling Harry on selecting his tools. While
shopping for his magic equipment, Harry comes across the Sorcerer ’s Stone, a bedeviled
jewel whose power affects his first year at the enchanted s chool.

Mr. Radcliffe has an unthinkably difficult role for a child actor; all he gets to do is look
sheepish when everyone turns to him and intones that he may be the greatest wizard
ever. He could have been hobbled by being cast because he resembles the Harry of the
book cover illustrations. It ’s a horrible burden to place on a kid, but it helps that Mr.
Radcliffe does have the long -faced mournfulness of a 60 ’s pop star. He also possesses a
watchful gravity and, shockingly, the large, authoritative hands of a real wizard.

106 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
The other child actors shine, too. Ms. Watson has the sass and smarts to suggest she
might cast a spell of her own on Harry in the coming years and, one supposes, sequels.
Mr. Grint has a surprising everyman quality, but the showstopper is Tom Felton as Draco
Malfoy. This drolly menacing blond with a widow ’s peak is Harry ’s plotting foe, and he
has the rotted self -confidence of one of the uppe rclassmen from Lindsay Anderson ’s If.
There has never been a kid who got so much joy from speakin g his oddball name.

Ms. Shaw and Mr. Griffiths are enjoyably swinish, the most resolute of Muggles. Mr.
Rickman, whose licorice -black pageboy has the bounce of a coiffure from a hair products
ad, is a threatening schoolroom don who delivers his monologues with a hint of mint; his
nostrils flare so athletically that he seems to be doing tantric yoga with his sinuses. The
mountainously lovable Mr. Coltrane really is a fairy -tale figure that kids dream about.

The movie ’s most consistently entertaining scene features a talking hat, and that ’s not
meant as an insult. The Sorting Hat, which has more personality than anything else in
the movie, assigns the students to the various dormitories; it puts Harry, Ron and
Hermione together.

But the other big set pieces are a letdown. The Quidditch match the school sport that ’s
part polo, part cricket and part Rollerball, played on flying brooms has all the second –
rate sloppiness of the race in Stars Wars Episode 1The Phantom Menace. It’s a blur of
mortifyingly ordinary computer -generated effects.

Given that movies can now show us everything, the manifestations that Ms. Rowling
described could be less magical only if they were delivered at a news conference. And
the entrance that may be as eagerly awaited as Harry ’s appe arance the arrival of
Voldemort (Richard Bremmer), the archvillain is a disappointment, a special effect that
serves as a reminder of ho w much he stands in Darth Vader ’s shadow.

This overly familiar movie is like a theme park that ’s a few years past its p rime; the rides
clatter and groan with metal fatigue every time they take a curve. The picture ’s very
raggedness makes it spooky, which is not the same thing as saying the movie is
intentionally unsettling.

107 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES

No one has given Harry a pair of Hogwarts -editio n Nikes, nor do he, Hermione and Ron
stop off to super – size it at the campus McDonald ’sexclusions that seem like integrity
these days. (There ’s no need for product placement. The Internet is likely to have a
systems crash from all the kids going online to order maroon -and-gold scarves, which
Harry and his dorm mates wear.)

Another kind of exclusion seems bothersome, though. At a time when London is filled
with faces of colo ur, the fleeting appearances by minority kids is scarier than Voldemort.
(Harry ’s gorgeous owl, snow white with sunken dark eyes and feather tails dappled with
black, gets more screen time than they do.)

Mr. Columbus does go out of his way to give a couple of lines to a little boy with a well –
groomed head of dreadlocks. This movie may n ot be whiter than most, but the peering –
from -the-side lines status accorded to minorities seems particularly offensive in a
picture aimed at kids. It ’s no different in the books, really, but young imaginations
automatically correct for this paucity.

A la ck of imagination pervades the movie because it so slavishly follows the book. The
filmmakers, the producers and the studio seem panicked by anything that might feel like
a departure from the book which already feels film -ready so Harry Potter and the
Sorc erer ’s Stonenever takes on a life of its own.

Someone has cast a sleepwalker ’s spell over the proceedings, and at nearly two and a
half hours you may go under, too. Its literal -mindedness makes the film seem cowed by
the chilling omnipresence of its own V oldemort, Ms. Rowling, who hovered around the
production.

The movie is so timid it ’s like someone who flinches when you extend a hand to shake.
This film is capable of a certain brand of magic it may turn the faithful into Muggles.
Harry Potter and the So rcerer ’s Stone is rated PG (Parental Guidance suggested),
probably so that kids older than 12 won ’t think it ’s baby stuff. It includes scenes of magic
someone must have found intense and threatening and a soup on of strong language.

108 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
HARRY POTTER AND THE SO RCERER ’S STONE

Directed by Chris Columbus; written by Steve Kloves, based on the novel by J. K.
Rowling; director of photography, John Seale; edited by Richard Francis -Bruce; music by
John Williams; production designer, Stuart Craig; visual effects superv isor, Rob Legato;
produced by David Heyman; released by Warner Brothers. Running time146 minutes.
This film is rated PG.

WITH Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley), Emma Watson
(Hermione Granger), John Cleese (Nearly Headless Nick), Robbie Coltrane (Rubeus
Hagrid), Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), Richard Griffiths (Vernon Dursley),
Richard Harris (Professor Dumbledore), Ian Hart (Professor Quirrell), John Hurt (Mr.
Ollivander), Alan Rickman (Professor Snape), Fiona Shaw (Petunia D ursley), Maggie
Smith (Professor McGonagall), Julie Walters (Mrs. Weasley), Zo Wanamaker (Madame
Hooch), Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy), Harry Melling (Dudley Dursley), David Bradley (Mr.
Filch) and Richard Bremmer (Lord Voldemort).

109 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 2

110 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 3

111 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 4

112 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 5

113 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 6

114 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 7

115 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 8

116 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 9

117 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 10

118 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 11

119 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 12

120 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 13

121 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 14

122 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 15

123 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Appendix 16

Conclusions

Literature and culture in the EFL Classes provide elements and perspectives
through which students cease to regard a foreign language as a harsh and cold code
used by people who have little to do with their own context or identity.
Through literature as well as culture, students establish an intimate connection with the
target language as they become aware of how much this is a living system that changes
and mutates according to the needs of its native and foreign language speakers. They
also realize that their own personal, social and historical context has been influenced by
a foreign language and a foreign culture. Culture opens the door for students to increase
their knowledge of the target culture.
As the study shows, literature, in spite of some weak points provides a motivating drive
for language learning and teaching due to its spectacular features.
We have seen that teaching literature through reading and watching, through group
work especially is effective in secondary class rooms. We as teachers are and should be

124 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
trained in doing such activities. Most students can work well if teacher offers assistance
and provides time for students to assess their own effectiveness, the case of my
students.
It is even possible to say that r eading can be better understood by sharing, exchanging
and socializing. The learners become freer and can explore and notice their own
improvement within a friendly and fellow feeling environment.
According to the present study children of all ages like to read fantasy books and enjoy
watching fantasy stories, including fairy tales, animal toy fantasies or sword and sorcery
stories. Fantasy literature is popular among children and teenagers because it
introduces them to the pleasure of reading from young ag e and as seen develops
children ’s imagination and creativity.
I have seen that the right choice of the book can offer students new vocabulary, and it
can be a pleasure for the student to finish reading it.

In conclusion:
What are th e advantages and disadvantages of some book screenings?
The disadvantages are particularly focused on education. For hundreds of
years, books were the basis for human imagination and vocabulary. They develop our
general knowledge, stimula te our feelings, imagination and love of art. Through reading
the reader gives life to the events and characters in the book. Movies do not allow
interaction between plot and characters by imagining them in our minds. . Some
students might resist viewin g the movie without or with English subtitles. These films
take more effort to follow because of the need to read the subtitles and watch the scenes.
The books serve to educate our mind and spirit.
The advantage is that , for some people they represent t ime and money gained by seeing
the movie, and the fact that it is convenient for us.
Films had a positive effect on students’ language learning process.

125 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Using films combined with reading helped students to become active participants in the
classroom activ ities. Films improve learners’ interaction in class and provide students
with more opportunities to use English. I faced difficulties while selecting suitable films
for different levels and that watching a movie might be very time consuming.
I have rec eived positive feedback from students when involved in films along with the
reading activities and as a result students were participating in the classroom debates
and vocabulary activities as well as written assignments related to the movie review.
They claim that they enjoyed the assigned activities in the classroom.
Students were more motivated to see and hear real life situation than to follow the
activities related to book. Their impression was that films also provide a relaxed
atmosphere. Students claim that using movie is a good way to improve English
vocabulary and gives them more chances to practice English.
Most of students said that they have learned new words , approximately 3 -5 mainly
because they have been repeated many times. While watchi ng the movie and completing
the vocabulary activities, students acquire and use new words. Learning new vocabulary
helps students become more fluent because the more words they know, the easier it is
to express themselves.
Films helped them improve reading comprehension, writing and speaking ability. After
watching the movie, they were motivated to read the book. They were able to discuss
and analyze the characters and had a better picture of the events.
Listening and reading are active process of trying t o understand the meaning of a word,
a phrase or a sentence.
Films draw their attention and captured their interest.
The use of film / TV in the EFL classroom is especially useful as " no teacher alone can
reproduce the variety of situations, voices, accen ts, themes and presentation techniques
that are a feature of this medium".( Hill, 1999, 2)
But I think people should read a book because they actually want to read the book and
every book should be a new story.

126 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
Books develop verbal abilities and improve o ur imagination. by reading a written
description of an event or a place, the mind is responsable for creating that image in our
head, instead of having the image placed in front of us when we watch TV.
So both reading a book and watching a movie have adv antages and disadvantages but
we have to struggle a bit to convince our students that reading is very important for
their development as humans.
In the world we are living, everybody should have at least a little knowledge
about a foreign language, especially English. It is a good thing to speak a foreign
language but teachers need to find interesting and enjoyable ways in order to involve
children in successful learning process and enhance their progress, which is mostly not
an easy task. For many children language learning is not the motivational factor.
Books and movies are like apples and oranges. They both are fruit, but taste completely
different . ( Stephen King)

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2. .http://busyteacher.org/7080 -top-10-ways -to-teach -culture.html)
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4. (. (http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Cullen -Culture.html)
5. http://www.weareteachers.com/
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7. figure 2. ( The Culture Triangle (National Standards in Foreign Language
Education Project, 1999, p. 47) [Note: Reprinted with permission from ACTFL.)
8. Figure 3. ( http://www.math -aids.com/Venn_Diagram/ )
9. image 1.( http:/www.flirck.Com/photos/anniemyers/1795432) photo of a Hindu
bride
10. image 2. ( http://kingofwallpapers.com/halloween.html ) Halloweeen photo
11. image 3. ( http://clclt.com/charlotte/hunting -for-local -food ) food hunting
12. image 4. ( http://www.playbuzz.com/moomimad1210/what -main -female -book –
character -are-you), picture of books and movies
13. image 5. ( http://bcbfagaras.org ),

131 CULTURAL LITERACY IN THE EFL CLASS. GAINS AND LOSSES ON MAKING BOOKS INTO MOVIES
14. image 6. ( https://tinyobsessions.wordpress.com/2014/03/21/harry -potter -and-
the-order -of-phoenix -book -vs-movie -part -1/) a picture of both the book movie
15. image 7.( http://www.southshorefamilyhealthcollaborative.com/taboo/ ) a photo
of Harry and Voldemort
16. image8(( http://www.filmofilia.com/wpcontent/uploads/2009/03/harry_potter_6
_poster_5.jpg )
17. image 9. ( http://www.weareteachers.com/ ) KWL activity
18. table 1. ( : While riding the communicative competen ce bandwagon)
19. table 2.
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%20Strategy ? Reading skills and strategies
table 3.
(https://www.google.ro/#hl=&q=extensive%20reading%20materials,%20harmer ),
20. extensive reading materials
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visual -literacy -and-literature -through -film ), compare and contrast guide
22. table 5.( http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/post/books -vs-movies -teaching –
visual -literacy -and-literature -through -film ) critical analysis
23. table 6. ( http://heartlandfilm.org/wp -content/uploads/FILM -the-chronicles -of-
narnia -the-lion-the-witch -and-the-wardrobe -film -curriculum.pdf )
24. http://english4success.ru/Upload/books/1418.pdf , Harry Potter and the Order of
the Phoenix
25. https://bracademy.wikispaces.com/file/view/The+Lion,+The+Witch+and+The+W
ardrobe+by+C.S.+Lewis.pdf
26. https://www.google.com/#hl=&q=google%20books

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