A Proposed Instructional Strategy on Critical Literacy in Reading English Literary Texts

The K-12 Curriculum in the Philippines, particularly in the area of English Language Teaching, adheres to the pedagogical application of critical literacy. Some of the core competencies require an inclination of critical dimensions. Several studies reveal that critical literacy has been studied extensively since 1980s in L1 communities; however, less of its class application has been manifested in L2 communities. In line with this, the present study proposes an instructional strategy on critical literacy in reading English literary texts. It presents an integrated concept of different models towards creating a design fit for L2 learners. It resolves to provide teachers a baseline tool to develop their own critical pedagogy and techniques. Lesson exemplars were executed and piloted with Grade 12 students. Based on the findings drawn from the observations and series of validation, a newly framed teaching framework has been formed. The strategy is coined as ‘Critical Scaffolding Method’ and divided into four phases: (1) Tapping the Learners’ End, (2) Overseeing Students’ Thinking, (3) Thinking about Thinking, and (4) Supplying Critical Task.