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The pedagogic value of picturebooks for teaching English in primary schools is undisputed. However, they also hold immense potential for secondary English language education. Their intricate design, thematic complexity, and rich options for competence development, e.g., in areas such as critical thinking or fostering visual literacy, transcend primary classrooms. This volume engages in a research-based discourse of how the transfer of this supposedly childlike literary medium to the secondary level can succeed. It legitimizes picturebooks as a complex text form that lends itself to competence- and content-oriented learning in English lessons with intermediate and advanced learners. The conceptual and empirical perspectives collected in this volume offer prospective and practicing teachers concrete insights on how picturebooks can enrich the classroom in many ways. A wide range of practical examples illustrates their potential for teaching English in secondary schools - from promoting different literacies and literary learning to focusing on topics such as the environment, social justice, or cultural diversity. With a foreword by Bettina Kümmerling-Meibauer
List of contents
Foreword: Why picturebooks matter in secondary education (Bettina Kümmerling-Meibauer)Introduction: Positioning picturebooks in secondary English language teaching (Grit Alter & Thorsten Merse)Part I: Conceptual Perspectives: Re-negotiating the Status of Picturebooks in Secondary ELT1 Eco-picturebooks for older learners: Features, selection criteria, and practical suggestions (Theresa Summer)2 The centrality of conceptual metaphors to a reading of characters' thoughts and feelings in Shaun Tan's picturebooks (Markus Oppolzer)3 "It was all very mysterious indeed" - Addressing the counterpoint effect in Oliver Jeffers' The Great Paper Caper in the upper secondary classroom (Anne Herlyn)4 "The book really got me" - Individualized reading of picturebooks in a secondary EFL classroom (Annika Kolb & Heiko Kist)Part II: Themes, Competences, Literacies5 (Re-)Envisioning picturebooks for social justice education in advanced classrooms: A critical literacy perspective from Canada (Elena Louloudi)6 I Dissent - Discussing Ruth Bader Ginsburg's egalitarian version of the American Dream at higher secondary level (Katja Heim)7 Picturebooks matter: Developing citizenship education in the EFL classroom with teenage learners (Helena Lopes)8 "Who's that man?" - Stirring teenagers' curiosity through Peter Sis's The Wall (Sissil Lea Heggernes)9 Crack in the classroom: A picturebook about the social problem of drug abuse and retrospective reflections from the classroom (Sandie Mourao)As so often, this started with a cup of coffee... A personal reflection on this publishing process (Grit Alter & Thorsten Merse)
About the author
Grit Alter is Professor of Teaching English as a Foreign Language at the University College of Teacher Education Tyrol in Innsbruck, Austria.
Thorsten Merse is Professor of EFL Education at the University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
