Comics in the English classroom: a guide to teaching comics across English studies

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ABSTRACT

This project contributes to recent work on comics in composition studies and education, which notes that comics are more than a simple or accessible gateway to text-based literacy. I argue for the potential of comics to develop college students’ multimodal literacy, preparing them to respond cogently and adeptly to twenty-first century composition demands. Specifically, I seek to fill a dearth of scholarship regarding students’ production, not consumption, of comics. This project, which serves as a guide to college teachers, foreign language teachers, teacher-trainers, textbook designers and materials developers, addresses that gap in two ways: (1) by providing a theoretical underpinning for why comics are effective tools for composition instruction; and (2) by offering practical suggestions for lesson plans across multiple areas of English Studies: English composition, TESOL and creative writing. For each area, I provided a rationale for teaching with comics, suggested readings, and a sequence of assignments culminating in the student production of an original comic.