The use of Literature in real English use learning

Abstract

The teaching of English assumes today as objective the development of the communicative, interactive and intercultural competence. Then, the real English use is an essential component of this objective. This article shows how the use of literature contributes to the development of the learning process of the real English use in students of foreign languages at the University of Pinar del Río. As theoretical methods were used: the dialectic, the historical, the logic, the systemicand the modelling; as empirical methods were used: the class observation, the document analysis and the interview. A strategy composed by a system of actions was proposed. This focuses on the use of comprehensible literary texts and interactive tasks for students to work in and out of the classroom. The tasks draw students' attention to the way writers use linguistic forms to express communicative functions and intentions. The strategy was implemented during two years with the first and second year English students. Satisfactory results were obtained in terms of the learning of English, and likewise students were introduced in the field of literature as a means to widen their cultural background and strengthen moral values. The strategy provided a positive impact in the students learning culture, particularly in building a psychology for success, in learning outside the classroom, and in their attitude toward English as an instrument of real communication.