Using Comics with Esl/Efl Students
Using Comics with ESL/EFL Students
Justine Derrick derrick_justine (at) yahoo.com
Salisbury, Maryland, USA
Introduction
Comic strips, comic books, and graphic novels can be used in ESL and EFL classrooms to encourage students to read. They can also form the basis of several classroom activities that will engage students and generate discussion.
Second Language Acquisition, Reading, and Comics
In all theories of second language acquisition, input plays a role (though the role varies in importance in each of the different theories). One important form of input is reading. Reading can aid in vocabulary development, and “[…] Nagy, Herman, and Anderson (1985) argue that picking up word meanings by reading is 10 times faster than intensive vocabulary instruction” (Krashen, 1993, p. 15). Reading can also aid other skills, as “several studies confirm that those who read more in their second language also write better in that language (Salyer 1987; Janopoulos 1986; Kaplan and Palhinda 1981)” (Krashen, 1993, p. 7). Therefore, reading can and should play an important role in the second or foreign language classroom.
The most important factor in the development of reading skills is the amount of time a student actually spends reading (Cummins, 2003, p. 20). One of the ways that ESL/EFL teachers can increase the amount of time their students read is by using comics and graphic novels, which can be especially useful in second language classrooms. Not only can they provide language learners with contextualized comprehensible input, they can also engage the learner and lead him or her to explore more graphic novels or books, magazines, newspapers, and other reading materials. Graphic novels and comics deal with spoken language differently than books do. Usually, comic book writers attempt to capture spoken language as it really occurs, complete with gaps, hesitations, and slang. In fact, “[...] comic strips [can be used] as a means to help
Justine Derrick derrick_justine (at) yahoo.com
Salisbury, Maryland, USA
Introduction
Comic strips, comic books, and graphic novels can be used in ESL and EFL classrooms to encourage students to read. They can also form the basis of several classroom activities that will engage students and generate discussion.
Second Language Acquisition, Reading, and Comics
In all theories of second language acquisition, input plays a role (though the role varies in importance in each of the different theories). One important form of input is reading. Reading can aid in vocabulary development, and “[…] Nagy, Herman, and Anderson (1985) argue that picking up word meanings by reading is 10 times faster than intensive vocabulary instruction” (Krashen, 1993, p. 15). Reading can also aid other skills, as “several studies confirm that those who read more in their second language also write better in that language (Salyer 1987; Janopoulos 1986; Kaplan and Palhinda 1981)” (Krashen, 1993, p. 7). Therefore, reading can and should play an important role in the second or foreign language classroom.
The most important factor in the development of reading skills is the amount of time a student actually spends reading (Cummins, 2003, p. 20). One of the ways that ESL/EFL teachers can increase the amount of time their students read is by using comics and graphic novels, which can be especially useful in second language classrooms. Not only can they provide language learners with contextualized comprehensible input, they can also engage the learner and lead him or her to explore more graphic novels or books, magazines, newspapers, and other reading materials. Graphic novels and comics deal with spoken language differently than books do. Usually, comic book writers attempt to capture spoken language as it really occurs, complete with gaps, hesitations, and slang. In fact, “[...] comic strips [can be used] as a means to help
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