Genre Based Pedagogy. The Use of Literature in EFL Education at Upper Primary and Secondary Level in Iceland

The focus of this study was to explore the use of literature as assigned reading material in the teaching of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Iceland, at upper primary and secondary level. In order to estimate the proportion of literary text use within each EFL course, the study examines the quantity of all assigned readings in English education at these school levels. The study explores which text types, other than literature, are employed in EFL teaching and whether students are introduced to specialised texts (English for special purposes), at the transitional stages from secondary school to tertiary education. The study also reviews how literary texts are used in the EFL classrooms by examining the written and oral tasks employed. The results indicate that there is a slight increase in the assigned number of pages in the first three EFL courses at secondary level, other than that, there seems to be hardly any change and the syllabi look homogeneous. Class and group discussions are the preferred oral tasks, but the input of specialised English is minor. The use of literary reading texts at both educational levels is extensive, and although the pedagogy is genre based it seems more project-designed than process oriented, as the main emphasis seems to be on essay writing. Table of