Fostering Expressive Use of English in Literature Classrooms under Experiential Learning Paradigm

Abstract

The study explored the prominent use of literature to enhance learners’ creativity and encourage them to produce literary works of their own. The objective of the study was to enable tertiary learners to produce literary works through the expressive use of English. Literature is a convenient exposure to cultural and historical contexts as it helps to develop comprehensive knowledge to reflect and enable them to familiarise themselves with the art of drafting and narrating poetry, anecdotes, and short stories. This research article examines the effectiveness of second language (L2) experiential learning lessons that integrate literary works in English language classrooms (ELC). The experiential learning frameworks consistently demonstrate significant positive effects on reading comprehension, speaking skills, writing proficiency, vocabulary acquisition, and pragmatic competence.

Beyond linguistic gains, experiential learning fosters critical thinking and intercultural awareness. The evidence indicates that carefully designed L2 experiential learning tasks with authentic literary texts create meaningful, contextualized learning experiences that outperform traditional teacher-centred methods. This comprehensive review of the literature provides educators and researchers with a reliable understanding of effective andragogical and collagogical strategies, implementation considerations, and future directions for integrating literature and experiential learning in L2 English classrooms.