Using Poetry to Develop Awareness of Literary Texts

The Context of the Course

The course is designed for first year English specialization students joining Mandalay University

in Myanmar. Poetry is a part of compulsory modules for undergraduate English Specialization

students in all Arts and Science universities in Myanmar. Among Arts and Science Universities,

Yangon University (YU) and Mandalay University (MU) are considered as Centers of

Excellence. Only those who passed the matriculation examination with high marks (minimum

mark around 450 out of 600) with English distinction can join those universities. Thus, students

enter the university with high motivation. Most of them are in pre-intermediate level of English.

The class size is usually about 50.

It is a one full-semester course which lasts for 3 months with 3 hours per week. The course will

cover the topics such as The structure of poetry, Literary devices and sound devices, Types of

poetry, Rhyming schemes in the poems, Learning to criticize poems, Writing own poems. The

course will be facilitated by teacher(s) from English Department who is (are) responsible to take

the class. The course includes many activities for students to be able to get the profound

knowledge of one type of literary genre and to have confidence in creating their own poems at

the end of the course.

The learners and their needs

The learners who are entering first year of university in Myanmar are at the age of between 16-

17. It would be a little different from those of other countries which the minimum age of entering

university will be 18 or more. Although students passed the matriculation examination with high

marks, they do not have prior knowledge of learning and appreciating the literary texts. All

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English texts they learned throughout school years are dealt with reading comprehension,

grammar, vocabulary and writing essays. They learnt poems in grade 10 and grade 11. However,

teaching and learning styles were just to understand and to memorize the poems. Students who

specialize in English in Arts and Science universities in Myanmar have to study two core

literature modules and one core language module. The only difference is that MU is regarded as

a center of excellence in Upper Myanmar and students entering this university get English

distinction in their matric exam.

They need to learn the literary texts in their undergraduate years which last for four years. Thus,

they have to start learning poetry from the very beginning. Students need to know how poems

are constructed different from other kinds of literary texts. They may be bored to study poetry as

it is too far from their knowledge and it is difficult to read between the lines to get the main idea

of poem. This leads to the responsibility of a teacher to make them familiar with literary texts

and to help them to be able to criticize on them and to be able to create poems. In this course, the

focus is only on poetry where activities and techniques to enhance students to develop their

literary awareness are mainly described.

In a nutshell, the primary needs of English specialization students learning poetry can be

summarized as follows:

 Increase motivation to study poetry

 Get familiar with genres of poetry

 Gain knowledge of literary devices used in poetry

 Appreciate language and style used in the poems

 Enhance knowledge to criticize poems

 Have knowledge of literary awareness

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  Build confidence to produce own poems

Course Rationale

This course is designed for first year English Specialization students in Mandalay University,

Myanmar, and it is one of the required courses in the curriculum. The course uses poetry to

develop an awareness of some of the devices used in literary texts. The course uses a variety of

activities and resources from literature as well as from the internet to introduce learners to the

literary devices used in poems, as well as to familiarize them with the features of poetry as a

genre. The course also aims to motivate students to be able to write their own poems using the

literary devices that they have studied.

Aims

- To develop an awareness of the nature of poetic expressions used in literary texts

- To develop the ability to write poems on different topics

- To improve learners fluency and accuracy in written English

Objectives Competencies Learning Outcomes

Given some lines of poetic texts,
To get familiarity with Engage different figures of
students can identify the use of
literary devices used in speech and sound devices used
figurative expressions and sound
poetry in poetry
devices

Students can write some lines

using figurative expressions and

sound devices that they have

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 learned

To realize structures of Knowledge of different types of When given different types of

different types of poetry poetry poems, students can differentiate

the types of poetry based on the

Understanding of the specific
forms of poem
structures of each type of poetry

To understand the Understanding of the rhyme When given different types of

language style used by schemes and poetic usage poems, students can identify the

different poets rhyme schemes and express

ideas and views on the usage of

poets.

To develop critical Understanding principles of how After getting some guided steps

thinking skills by to criticize poems in analyzing poems, students can

analyzing poems criticize poems by expressing

Learning criticisms of different
their own opinions on the usage
writers on the poems
of the poet, the use of figurative

expressions, the type of poem,

the theme of the poem and they

can personalize the poems in

different ways as well

To develop confidence Engaging the controlled practice When given a structure of a

to create own poems for writing poems poem, students can write own

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 Developing creativity in writing poem based on the structure.

poems
When given a topic, students can

create a poem based on their

knowledge of poetic expressions

To learn how to use Developing vocabulary, When given a guided form of

language for poetry synonyms and antonyms, use of poem, students can use the

effects inversion language (vocabulary, use of

inversion, and so on) that they

have learned to complete the

poem.

The Features of the Course and the Principles Behind It

The course is offered by the Department of English and it is challenging for both teachers and

students. Teachers have difficulties to find time to prepare the activities and to download video-

clips to motivate students in learning poetry. Students have lost interest in learning poetry

because they think that it is far from their knowledge. Thus, this course is designed to develop

their interest in learning poetry and to apply their literary skills in writing their own poems.

In developing literary awareness of learners, teachers must be knowledgeable of the literary

language used in poetry and they must be supportive in helping students to produce their original

poems. Poetry is a difficult genre to read in a second language because of the nature of poetry

itself. For example:

Principles Application
Use of audio-visual tools to facilitate the Use of video clips from youtube

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 understanding of poetic devices
Use of controlled form to gain interest in Use of guided rules to analyze poems

giving criticism Use of group work activities

Activities to promote writing own poems Use of guided forms of poems

Use of sample poems for the topic

Provision of some rhyme words

macro micro
Types of poems Poetic devices

Poetic language
Writing skills Using poetic devices (rhyme and sound

devices etc)

Vocabulary (synonyms etc)

Course organization and syllabus framework

The academic year of Arts and Science universities in Myanmar is divided into two

semesters in which each semester lasts for three months. There is a two-month break between

two semesters. This course will be delivered in the first term of first year.

Course Outline 1. Introducing Poetry

1.1. Definitions of Poetry

1.2. Some quotes about poetry

1.3. Differences between poetry and prose

2. Figures of Speech & Sound Devices

2.1. Definitions and Examples of figures of speech

2.2. Effects of using figures of speech

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 2.3. Examples of Sound devices

2.4. Effects of using sound devices

3. Stanza Forms

3.1. Various forms of stanzas

3.2. Examples of stanza forms

4. Rhymes Schemes

4.1. Identifying rhymes and rhymes schemes

4.2. Effects of using rhymes in the poem

5. Types of poetry

5.1. Explanations of different types of poetry

5.2. Examples of each types of poetry

6. Poems

7. Analyzing poems

7.1. Rules for analyzing poems

7.2. Format of analyzing poems

7.3. Expressions to use in analyzing poems

8. Writing poems

8.1. Providing controlled practice for writing poems

8.2. Creating own poems

Anticipated Difficulties

Potential Problem Planned Solution

Finding poems that match to students’ level survey will be done in advance to first year

and students’ interest. Although poems are at students to know what kind of poems they

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 their level, they may lose interest in reading want to learn in their course and what their

poems that are not related to them. expectations of the course are
Poetry is new to them and they may be bored The use of video-clips are to be applied in

and confused to learn many poetic devices introducing the features of poetry

and rhyme schemes before reading certain Pair-work and group-work activities will be

poems used to make sure they understand well before

analyzing poems
Some introverted students may be reluctant to Some sample guidelines to analyze poem and

give ideas in analyzing poems some samples of analysis by different writers

from analysis are given before asking them to

do group discussion.

Use of flipped classroom

Students find it difficult to write poems as Controlled practice will be used

they have never done that before Given some useful words for the topic and

some rhyme words, studnets can be able to

write simple poems

This is an introductory course and the aim is

achieved even they can write one stanza for a

poem with their own words.

Proposed Course Evaluation

Satisfactory performance of students will be assessed through

1. The completion of assignment (analysis of a poem) (30%)

2. The oral presentation of assignment (10 min) (10%)

3. The poem writing skills (the use of poetic devices they have learned) (30%)

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4. The final exam (30%)

Poetry

Justification for poetry

Poetry poetic usge metaphor simile

Use rich language the factor or reading poem to writing poem