PELAS Study Day: Analytical Approaches to Literature in Secondary Education in the Context of Curriculum Reform

The first PELAS workshop will take place at ENS/IFÉ in Lyon on October 19, 2017.

It is organized in collaboration with the teacher training institutions (ÉSPÉ) of the Bordeaux-Aquitaine, Grenoble-Alpes, Languedoc-Roussillon, Lille-Nord de France, Midi-Pyrénées, and Versailles school districts / Catholic University of Louvain / IFÉ / ENS LYON / CRIPEDIS, LIRDEF, LITEXTRA (LITT&Arts), LLA-CREATIS, TEXTES ET CULTURES, and TELEM laboratories

Download the program

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STUDY DAY:
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2017 (10 a.m.–5 p.m.)

ENS/IFÉ LYON

Analytical Approaches to Literature in Secondary Education
: In the Era of Curriculum Reform

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For nearly two decades, the field of research in the pedagogy of literature has been developing dynamically, constructing or reconfiguring notions and concepts (the reader as subject, the reader’s text, literary reading) and carving out (or seeking) a place for itself within the fields of literary studies and French language pedagogy. This development is based in particular on a scientific paradigm shift, as Annie Rouxel noted in 2006 during the opening session of an interuniversity seminar (Mazauric, Fourtanier, Langlade, 2011:19–20): “
” Our research on literary reading is characterized, at the theoretical level, by a paradigm shift: the shift from a conception of literary reading rooted in text theory—which posits the implicit or virtual reader (in other words, from the perspective of reception theorists)—to a conception of literary reading that focuses on the reconfiguration of the text by the real reader and involves multiple modes of realization. There is thus a shift in focus: from the virtual reader to the real reader, and, consequently, from the “text of the work” to the “text of the reader.”

But what exactly are the implications of this “research on literary reading” for everyday classroom practice in secondary schools—particularly with the implementation of new curricula in middle schools in France and in vocational programs in Belgium, on the one hand, and the use of digital resources and tools, on the other?

Research conducted in the field of literature education appears to influence institutional decisions, as reflected in particular in France by the General Inspectorate and in Belgium by official guidelines. Nevertheless, for reasons related to its emergence, the conditions of its development, and the complexity of its subject matter (Ahr, 2015), this field of research has thus far prioritized “the speculative (or epistemological, if you will) dimension […] over the praxeological dimension ” (Daunay & Dufays, 2007: 12). However, “the development of instructional practices cannot do without reflection on the reality of actual practices” (Chanfrault-Duchet, 2001: 115), as these practices are not limited to innovative ones or to those of novice teachers. It is therefore necessary to examine the conditions under which analytical approaches to literature are actually implemented in classrooms and, by extension, to “confront concepts with real-world practices [because] one can only act upon a situation if one understands it; theory [has] no meaning unless it is linked to facts” (Dufays, 2006: 79).

The notions and concepts of the reader as subject, the reader’s text, and literary reading have been introduced in classrooms, particularly in connection with the cursive reading of literary works. However, it is difficult to date to measure the impact of the scientific paradigm shift underlying these notions and concepts on the renewal of analytical approaches to literature in secondary schools and their effects on students’ actual learning. This is why the PELAS team (Effective Practices in Analytical Reading in Secondary Education) launched a five-year research program (2014–2019) on this pedagogical topic, the scope and specific characteristics of which also remain to be identified, particularly from a curricular perspective. Comparing the results obtained in French classrooms with those gathered in Belgian classrooms—where the analytical approach to literature does not rely on exactly the same classroom exercises—should facilitate this identification.

The PELAS team invites various stakeholders interested in the teaching of literature in secondary schools to share their thoughts and experiences regarding analytical approaches to literature. The aim of this workshop is to explore the many questions raised by the potential renewal of these approaches. This study day will also seek to examine the effectiveness of the methodological tools developed for processing the collected data (audiovisual recordings of classroom sessions, semi-structured interviews with students and teachers, written assignments, etc.). The results of this collective reflection will be further discussed at the conference “Analytical Approaches to Literature in Secondary Education: An Academic and Didactic Subject to Be Identified,” which the PELAS team will organize on October 18 and 19, 2018, also at the ENS/IFÉ in Lyon.

In order to encourage the exchange of perspectives on current practices in the analytical approach to literature, the discussions will focus on the following themes:

• Current programs in France and Belgium from a research perspective: challenges in their renewal and obstacles—whether perceived or observed—to their implementation.
• Continuities and Discontinuities in Actual Practices for Teaching Literature Reading at Different Educational Levels.
• Analysis of Actual Practices: Challenges and Methods for Processing Data Collected in Classrooms.

Bibliography
AHR, S. (2015), Teaching Literature Today: French “Disputes,” Paris, Honoré Champion, “Didactique des lettres et des cultures” series.
CHANFRAULT-DUCHET, M.-F. (2001), “Literature Pedagogy: Approaching the Analysis of Practices,” in Research in Literature Pedagogy, M.-J. Fourtanier, G. Langlade, A. Rouxel (eds.), Rennes, Presses Universitaires de Rennes, 2001, pp. 115–122.
DAUNAY, B. and DUFAYS, J.-L. (2007), “Research Methods in the Didactics of Literature,” in *La lettre de l’AIRDF*, no. 40, Villeneuve d’Ascq, pp. 8–13.
DUFAYS, J.-L. (2006), “Literary Reading: From ‘Field Practices’ to Theoretical Models,” in *Lidil*, No. 33, Grenoble, Ellug, pp. 79–101.
MAZAURIC, C., FOURTANIER, M.-J. & LANGLADE, G. (eds.) (2011), *Le texte du lecteur*, Brussels, Peter Lang, ThéoCrit series, vol. 2, pp. 19–25.

PELAS Team
, Ahr Sylviane, Bazile Sandrine, Boutevin Christine, Brunel Magali, Cahen Françoise, Couteaux Cécile, De Croix Séverine, De Peretti Isabelle, Dufays Jean-Louis, Le Goff François, Moinard Pierre, Perrin-Doucey Agnès, Plissonneau Gersende