Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Dissertations Graduate College 8-2002 How Does It Mean? Literary Theory as Metacognitive Reading Strategy in the High School English Classroom Lisa J. Schade Western Michigan University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations Part of the Curriculum and Instruction Commons, Educational Assessment, Evaluation, and Research Commons, and the Other English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Schade, Lisa J., "How Does It Mean? Literary Theory as Metacognitive Reading Strategy in the High School English Classroom" (2002). Dissertations. 1331. https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/dissertations/1331 This Dissertation-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HOW DOES IT MEAN? LITERARY THEORY AS METACOGNITIVE READING STRATEGY IN THE HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH CLASSROOM By Lisa J. Schade A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of The Graduate College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of English Western Michigan University Kalamazoo, Michigan August 2002 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. HOW DOES IT MEAN?: LITERARY THEORY AS METACOGNITIVE READING STRATEGY IN THE HIGH SCHOOL ENGLISH CLASSROOM Lisa J. Schade, Ph.D. Western Michigan University, 2002 In the last two decades, serious scholarly attention has been paid both to theories of teaching reading and to theories of literary interpretation. These potentially related fields have been treated as separate, focused either on teaching reading in the elementary grades or on teaching interpretation to advanced college literature students. Until very recently the relevance of either reading theory or literary theory to middle school or high school pedagogy has remained unexamined. My research, as a reflective practitioner, addresses this important gap. I focus on the teaching of literary theory in the high school English classroom as a strategy to develop students engaged reading of literary texts, their interpretive strategies, and metacognitive awareness of the reading and interpretive process. I argue that it is logical and appropriate to emphasize the intersection of literary and reading theory in the secondary English classroom to form a comprehensive and powerful literacy pedagogy. I investigated student receptivity to and application of several theoretical approaches to literature to see if knowing about theory would help students become more effective readers and interpreters of text. My methods centered on the development of a progressive and systematic study of reader-response, archetypal, structural, biographical theories, as well as an extensive student inquiry project centering on post-modernist and ideological literary theory. In doing so, I also Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. conducted extensive research into theories and theorists involved in the scholarly debate over teaching both reading and literature, tracing the developments of such theories since the 1970 s, and their implications for the English Language Arts curriculum. This dissertation draws on classroom experience and practice in a suburban high school with academically diverse World Literature students; some of whom were preparing to go to college some of whom had not taken an intensive literature course. The results indicate that students can readily engage in theoretical discussion, and in doing so make significant progress towards becoming more proficient and engaged readers and interpreters of textual material. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 3077383 Copyright 2002 by Schade, Lisa JoAnn All rights reserved. ___ ® UMI UMI Microform 3077383 Copyright 2003 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Copyright by Lisa J. Schade 2002 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I am indebted to many people who made it possible for me to pursue doctoral studies and complete this dissertation. First, I would first like to extend my sincere thanks to Dr. Allen Webb, who encouraged me to pursue doctoral studies in the first place, and continued that encouragement throughout my work. I am also deeply indebted and grateful to Dr. Constance Weaver, for her unfailing support and for the vast amount of time she devoted to helping me clarify my thoughts. In addition, I’d like to thank Dr. Christopher Nagle and Dr. Susan Edgerton for taking the time to serve on my dissertation committee and contribute their individual insights to my work. Thanks also Dr. Amie Johnston, English Department Chair, and Dr. Gwen Tarbox, Graduate Advisor, for always keeping their doors open and supporting me as I progressed through the program. I would also like to thank Dr. Grace Tiffany and Dr. Miriam Bat-Ami for their friendship, inspiration and encouragement. I am fortunate to have had such role models. I also acknowledge and thank Jean Tittle and Karen McConnell for being outstanding teachers, good friends, and inspirations to me. Special thanks also go to my good friends Judy Lawson and Laura Blair for their love and sympathetic ears. I am indebted to all of the students who have passed through my classrooms throughout the years. I learned at least as much from them as they learned from me, and I will always treasure the memories of their work, conversation, and contribution to my development as a teacher. I could not have completed this dissertation without the help and inspiration of my family. To my sons Eli and Jacob I extend my love and thanks for the sacrifices ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Acknowledgments—continued they made while I devoted so much time to teaching, learning and writing. I would not be the teacher I am today without them! Thanks to my brother, Dr. John Schade, for setting the bar. And, most of all, I owe an immeasureable debt to my mother, Jean Schade; without her unfailing encouragement and editorial assistance, this dissertation would not have made it to its current form. I love you, Mom! Lisa J. Schade 111 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS........................................................................................ ii LIST OF FIGURES................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................ 1 Reading and Interpretation.................................................................... 2 Objectivism in Reading and Literary Interpretation ........................... 5 A Skills Approach to Reading ...................................................... 5 An Objectivist Approach to Literary Interpretation .................... 6 Objectivism in Perspective ........................................................... 7 Constructivism in Reading and Literary Theory ................................. 7 Psycholinguistic and Transactional Views of Reading .............. 8 Reader-Response Approach to Literary Interpretation ............... 9 Pedagogical Theory: Scaffolding and Modeling ........................ 10 Literary Theory as Reading Strategy ................................................... 13 Review of Research: Literary Theory and Language A rts ................ 16 My Research .........................................................................................