2024/25 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

ENGL5225M Children's Literature: Language, Discourse and Education

30 creditsClass Size: 30

Module manager: Prof Julia Snell
Email: j.snell@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

This module explores children’s literature from interdisciplinary perspectives in literature, language and education. Focusing on English language texts and scholarship, the module addresses historical, formal and social themes, exploring the importance of children’s literature for literacy development and its evolution over time, its impact on readers’ understandings of social identities and roles, and the importance of dialogic approaches to teaching and learning literature in schools. Students gain skills and experience in theoretical frameworks and methodological approaches relevant to children’s language and literature research.

Objectives

The module will:
Discuss and promote understanding of the history of children’s literature in English
Introduce different methods and ways of analysing the language and social context of literary texts targeted at children and surrounding discourse
Discuss the value of critical thinking around the form and content of children’s literature and its place in educational settings
Review evidence that certain kinds of talk about texts can enhance children's learning and cognitive development, empower marginalised voices in the classroom, and improve children’s relationships with their teachers and each other
These aims will be achieved through a combination of lectures and seminars, with students undertaking weekly preparatory work (reading, analysis of primary texts and data) for these timetabled teaching activities. The lectures will introduce key concepts, landmark texts, and methodological approaches, with the seminars supporting the students’ discussion, exploration and application of these to develop their own understanding and skills.

Learning outcomes
On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
1. Describe and classify properties of children’s literature written in English;
2. Compare and critique texts aimed at children, focusing on their semiotic properties and their position in their wider historical and social contexts;
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of different forms of discussion in supporting learning about literature and its place in the world

Skills Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the module students will be able to:
4. Demonstrate skills in information searching;
5. Analyse and interpret data and theory;
6. Produce independent arguments demonstrating engagement with interdisciplinary discussions and responsiveness to academic and non-academic contexts.

Syllabus

Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Lecture	4	1.00	4.00
Seminar	8	2.00	16.00
Private study hours			280.00
Total Contact hours			20.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			300.00

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Students will receive formative feedback on draft work throughout the module. Feedback will be a combination of in-class discussion, spoken or written feedback to submitted draft work, as well as peer-review exercises. The portfolio drafts will comprise four points of formative assessment, spread out evenly across the semester.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Portfolio	Portfolio Students submit three short pieces of analysis and critique linked to the module themes: total 4000 words	100.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Students will prepare up to four draft pieces of analysis and discussion throughout the module, receiving formative feedback. They will then select their preferred three pieces of works to submit for the final summative assessment

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 29/01/2024

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