ATTITUDES OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN

EDUCATION MAJOR IN ENGLISH STUDENTS

TOWARD TEACHING FICTION

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

2023
Volume: 7
Pages: 675-681
Document ID: 2023PEMJ590
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7750433
Manuscript Accepted: 2023-15-3
Psych Educ, 2023, 7: 675-681, Document ID:2023 PEMJ590, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7750433, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

Attitudes of Doctor of Philosophy in Education Major in English

Students TowardTeaching Fiction
Mark Joshua D. Roxas*, Chester John D. Pasco, Kassandra Chelzea Banalan, Eborah Limbo
Myline R. Manlapat, Alain F. Razalan
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.
Abstract
This paper aimed to assess the attitude of the respondents in teaching fiction in terms of the strategies, selection
of text; and springboard for teaching grammar. Moreover, the study intended to identify if there is a significant
difference between the attitude of the respondents in teaching fiction when grouped according to demographic
profile. To fulfill the said goals, this Descriptive-Quantitative study utilized purposive sampling to select ten (10)
Doctor of Philosophy major in English students who are teaching literature. The data were gathered through an
adapted survey questionnaire, and were analyzed through descriptive (mean, frequency, and percentage), and
inferential (ANOVA and T-Test) analyses. The results revealed that the respondents generally manifest a “Very
Positive” attitude in all aspects of teaching fiction such as strategies, selection of text, and springboard for
teaching grammar. Furthermore, when grouped according to demographics, the analysis revealed no significant
difference between attitude, age, and years of teaching. Interestingly, a significant difference exists between
attitude and sex (p=0.38). Ultimately, it was recommended to investigate the attitude of the students toward the
use of fictional texts in the classroom as this study mainly focused on the teachers’ attitude. Teachers should also
look for ways on how to connect fictional stories to the lives of the students and to look closely on the diverse
needs of learners in the selection of appropriate teaching strategies and fictional texts. Social and moral contexts
should also be given emphasis.

Keywords: attitudes, fiction, literature, strategies

Introduction imaginatively (Abida, 2016).

Literature teaches students a variety of skills including According to Fakoya and Ogunpitan (2001), the
speaking, writing, and reading. In the instruction of process by which a reader of a work of literature
literature, students are not limited to interpretation and develops a meaningful grasp of the work's theme and a
analysis but it also fosters a sense of sensitivity, self- unique understanding of its structure can be referred to
awareness, and a deeper understanding of the world as literary appreciation. Students have the chance to
and other people. According to Mallikarjun (2003), consider and assess their own value as persons through
literature that is studied for its intrinsic value and literature in its purest form. One of the attributions to
enjoyment is a potent teaching tool that instills values, achieving all of the mentioned competencies is the
a language-use style, and several other learning teachers’ attitude in teaching literature, fiction in
chances into the minds of learners. Literature serves as particular.
both a context and an illustration of language use.
Revisiting teachers’ attitude in teaching fiction could
One of the key results of teaching literature is the raise awareness on improving students' literacy skills.
development of literary competence. This refers to the Such data will also outline actions that teachers can
process by which students internalize literary take to enhance their instruction, particularly in the
grammar, enabling them to translate language patterns area of fiction in their literature classes.
into literary structures and meanings. Reading
comprehension texts in general calls for distinct Different academics have defined attitudes in different
abilities in literature. The ability to appreciate ways. According to Gardner (1980), a man's attitude is
literature is one of the traits under literary competence. the culmination of his instincts, feelings, prejudices, or
brains, as well as his preconceived notions, fears,
Engaging with subjects and topics that are innately threats, and convictions regarding any given topic.
appealing is what makes reading literature enjoyable. Tuckman (1992) as cited in Singh et al. (2020) defines
They are able to connect what they are reading with attitude as “a cognitive function of a human being
their own lives since it deals with concepts, objects, expressed through the affective domains. It is
sensations, and events that either are a part of the considered as an individual’s continuing interpretation,
reader's experience or that they may enter into general feeling or liking and disliking on any event,
person or any behavior.” According to Baker (1992) as

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Research Article

cited in Holmes and Wilson (2017), attitude is a used in its most restrictive definition to refer to any
theoretical construct that is used to describe the course "literary tale" (Farner, 2014 as cited in Van Krieken,
and durability of human behavior. 2017).

Because attitude cannot be seen directly, it must be The activity of writing fiction should be emphasized
deduced from overt conduct, both verbal and since it helps people grow creatively and personally.
nonverbal, which is why this study was done to The world is changing quickly, and creativity is often
determine the attitude of literature teachers in teaching necessary to keep up. "In our rapidly changing world,
fiction. only a few abilities other than creativity can be listed
for the growth of people," says one author (Ataman,
Research Questions 1993). "During the 1950s, the notion that writing
creative fiction would improve psychological relief
To have guidance and direction in the investigation, (catharsis, in a sort) was common, and practices
the following research questions were formulated: mirrored this. It was predicated on the idea that writing
creative fiction may serve as a vehicle for
1. What is the demographic profile of the respondents externalizing the stress, unbalance, and spiritual
in terms of the following: despair brought on by World War II on human
1.1. age; psychology (Temizkan, 2010).
1.2. sex; and
1.3. years of teaching? The subjects covered by fiction might change.
2. What is the attitude of the respondents in teaching However, they are all connected to human behavior or
fiction in terms of the following: experience used to interpret life, amuse, instruct, or
2.1. strategies; inspire people or to capture the spirit of the time. It
2.2. selection of text; and might be purely an imagination or based on facts. It
2.3. springboard for teaching grammar? can be used to examine personal emotions and
3. Is there a significant difference between the attitude thoughts, a successful but outdated paradigm, or
of the respondents in teaching fiction when grouped opposing principles or ideologies. It could be set in an
according to: environment that's taken from typical daily life or in a
3.1. age; strange and creative moment.
3.2. sex; and
3.3. years of teaching? Strategies in teaching fiction

When the teacher uses effective teaching strategies in

Literature Review the classroom, teaching literature can become
engaging and interesting. Teachers frequently either
lecture or employ question-and-answer or recitation
Fiction techniques. Because the query is almost never how and
why, but rather who-what-when-where, recitation is
The term "fiction" refers to a literary work that uses frequently inappropriate. According to Sert (2019), the
prose written words to create something (the subject role of the teacher is to develop and strengthen
matter) that symbolizes human existence. It is derived students' intelligence. In the traditional method of
from the Latin word "fictus," which means "to form," teaching literature, the teacher mainly concentrates on
or " fictiō," which means "the process of forming, language skills like reading, remembering, and reciting
fashioning, or shaping." literary works.

In fiction, the author assumes that readers will make an In reality, Soltan (2010) as cited in Magulod (2018)
effort to follow and understand a theme that is discovered that the lecture technique is used by the
developed indirectly or abstractly, whereas nonfiction majority of literary educators. As a result, rather than
writing is more concerned with providing information reading the original literary text, many students rely
directly (Woolf, 2010). solely on the critical remarks provided by their
teachers. Learning about literature thus becomes
Any setting or story that is based on imagination rather tedious.
than completely on history or reality is categorized as
fiction. The literary genre of fiction most frequently Effective instructors, according to Stoop (2011) as
refers to narrative works like plays, short tales, poems, cited in Jepketer (2017), recognize student differences,
novels, and novellas. Sometimes the term "fiction" is foster collaborative learning connections,

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Research Article

communicate openly with parents, provide students In a poem, ideas and feelings are expressed in little
feedback, and employ techniques that empower sentences without sacrificing rhyme or meter. Poets
students to be in charge of their own learning. use linguistic convention by using language that
Jepketer, Kombo, and Kyalo's (2015) findings are deviates from it to attain these goals (in terms of
further evidence that instructional practices have an lexical, semantic, phonological, morphological, and
impact on and reinforce student achievement. A well- syntactical domain). Drama is a literary genre that is
designed educational system is determined by intend ed to be acted out, spok en, or seen
variables such as effective teaching and learning, (Angelianawati, 2019). The students will first engage
which are markers of excellent teachers and with the language structures and content of the work
instructional performance. through reading and analysis before using theater in
the EFL classroom.
The teacher will accomplish seamless instruction by
using an accurate method. The methods employed The use of novels in EFL classes has four advantages,
must be adjusted to the goals when they are set in according to Siaj and Farrah (2018). First, books can
enhance and motivate learning resources (Chen &
order for students to acquire certain abilities. So that
Tsai, 2012). Second, books are said to broaden
they can be used as effective tools to accomplish their
students' cultural knowledge. Third, using novels helps
objectives, teachers must therefore employ approaches
students improve their language skills, just as using
that complement teaching and learning activities.
other literary genres. Additionally, students' four
language skills—reading, writing, speaking, and
Selection of texts to be used
listening—improve when reading novels. Fourth,
reading novels helps students grasp and interpret the
Selecting the work to teach is one of the most
target language. According to Pinar and Jover's (2012)
important elements to take into account. According to
as cited in Arafah (2018), books with several levels of
Mckay (1982) as cited in Bloemert et al. (2019),
meaning make it easier for students to explain and
choosing the right literature is "the key to success in
infer meaning.
employing literature in the ESL." Language
proficiency, personal involvement, length (it fits the
time allotted), cultural competence, intellectual merit Methodology
(the issues and ideas explored in the work should be
pertinent, interesting, and challenging to students),
literary merit (the work is really worthy of academic The paper used a quantitative method, specifically the
study), and contemporary literature are the most descriptive research design. Quantitative research is
about explaining phenomena by collecting quantitative
crucial factors to consider when choosing literary
data which are analyzed using mathematically-based
works to use (it uses modern English). Fortunately,
method (Sukamolson, 2007). Moreover, this
fiction contains both novels and short tales, so the
descriptive research attempts to collect quantifiable
length and complexity requirements can be satisfied.
information for statistical analysis of the population
sample. This research method allows the researchers to
Use of fiction in teaching grammar
collect and describe the demographic segment’s
nature. As utilized in the study, the demographic
The concern about language development suggests an
profile of the respondents and the attitude of the
instrumental view on teaching and reading fiction,
respondents in teaching fiction are given descriptions
which is aligned with Johansson’s (2014) as cited in
and established concepts on how teachers perceive
Yang (2019) notion that there is a correlation between their teaching of fiction; their strategies, material
the sole focus on reading comprehension and selection, and how teaching fiction is an instrument in
proficiency on one hand, and instrumentality on the teaching grammar.
other. This is supported by teachers’ use of fiction as
material for teaching literacy. Population and Sampling

Pardede (2019) said that fiction is thought to be the The respondents of the study are ten (10) students who
literary type that works best in EFL classrooms out of are currently enrolled in the Doctor of Philosophy in
the three. Fiction is defined as to invented stories, or Education major in English program who teach or
stories created grounded on imagination, which have taught literature courses. The respondents are five
includes novels, short stories, novels, romances, (5) males and five (5) female students, ages less than
fables, and other narrative works in prose. 30 to more than 50 years old, who have been teaching

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Psych Educ, 2023, 7: 675-681, Document ID:2023 PEMJ590, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7750433, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

for less than five years to more than 20 years in both The attitude of the respondents in teaching fiction in
public and private schools and universities. The paper terms of strategies; selection of text; a springboard
utilized purposive sampling technique. Purposive for teaching grammar
sampling is used since the researchers want to access a
particular subset of people, as all participants of a
Table 2. Attitude of the Respondents in Teaching
survey are selected because they fit a particular profile,
the respondents are all Doctor of Philosophy in
Fiction in Terms of Strategies
Education major in English students who teach
literature/fiction.

Research Instrument

The investigation modified and adopted the research

instrument of Lihanda & Agufana (2017), Al-Matrafi
(2022), and the researchers sought approval for
questionnaire validation before the instrument was
distributed to the respondents. The recruitment was
conducted through messenger and participants were
given a link to a survey questionnaire in Google forms.
The questionnaire is divided into two parts. The first
part is the demographic profile of the respondents. The
second part is to gauge the attitude of the respondents
in teaching fiction.

Results and Discussion As revealed in Table 2, the respondents manifest a

Very Positive attitude toward various strategies in
teaching fiction. The respondents truly adhere to the
The demographic profile of the respondents in terms
idea that varied teaching strategies shall be used in
of age, sex, and years of teaching teaching fiction in order to cater to the diverse needs of
the learners (x̄=3.90). Additionally, the respondents
Table 1. Demographic Profile of the Respondents
also aver that fiction stories can be integrated in other
disciplines for a more effective delivery of instruction
(x̄=3.90).

Table 3. Attitude of the Respondents in Teaching

Fiction in Terms of Selection of Text

As seen in Table 1, the majority of the respondents

belong to the “Less than 30 years old” and “30-50
years old” age bracket, both constituting 40% of the
sample size. In terms of sex, 50% is Female, and 50%
is Male. Relative to the years of teaching, the majority
of the respondents, or 70% belong to the 5-10 years of
teaching bracket.

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Research Article

Table 5. ANOVA Result on the Difference between the

Attitude of the Respondents in Teaching Fiction When
Grouped According to Age
As shown in Table 3, the respondents manifest a Very
Positive attitude toward the selection of text in
teaching fiction. The respondents tend to choose texts
or stories that are interesting to the learners (x̄=4.00).
This is probably anchored on the idea that if the
students are interested in what they are reading, then
they tend to learn better. This is parallel with the
findings of Siaj and Farrah (2018) that books can
enhance and motivate learning resources (Chen & Based on the result of the ANOVA test statistic, since
Tsai, 2012). Moreover, the respondents are also very the P-value is greater than the level of significance
positive that fiction texts are easily accessible (0.05), the researchers failed to reject the null
(x̄=3.80). Cultural context and discussion of societal hypothesis. Meaning, there is no significant difference
and moral issues are also some of the considerations of in the attitudes of the respondents when grouped
the respondents in choosing a fiction text (x̄=3.80). according to age.
Similarly, as noted by Chen & Tsai (2012) books are
said to broaden students' cultural knowledge. Table 6. T-Test Result on the Difference between the
Attitude of the Respondents in Teaching Fiction When
Table 4. Attitude of the Respondents in Using Fiction Grouped According to Sex
as Springboard for Teaching Grammar

It can be gleaned from Table 4 that the respondents As seen in Table 6, since the P-value (0.05) is equal to
possess a “Very Positive” attitude in all aspects of the level of significance (0.05), the researchers
using fiction to teach grammar. The respondents rejected the null hypothesis, which means that there is
claimed that they enjoy using short fiction stories in a significant difference on the attitudes of the
teaching grammar (x̄=3.60). The use of fiction respondents when grouped according to sex.
stories to correct common English grammar mistakes
is also very evident from the attitudes of the Table 7. ANOVA Result on the Difference between the
respondents (x̄=3.50). Attitude of the Respondents in Teaching Fiction When
Grouped According to Years of Teaching
The significant difference between the attitude of the
respondents in teaching fiction when grouped
according to the respondents' demographic profile

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Research Article

English Educators Society), 1(1), v1i1-148.

As revealed in Table 7, since the P-value (0.17) is Agufana, P.B. & Lihanda, M. (2017). Attitude factors affecting
greater than the level of significance (0.05), the teachers’ use of short stories in the teaching of Kiswahili grammar in
secondary schools in Nandi North Sub-County, Kenya. European
researchers failed to reject the null hypothesis. It can
Scientific Journal. 13(29), 172-181.
be concluded that there is no significant difference in h t t p : / / d x . d o i . o rg / 1 0 . 1 9 0 4 4 / e s j . 2 0 1 7 . v 1 3 n 2 9 p 17 2
the attitudes of the respondents when grouped
according to years of teaching. Angelianawati, L. (2019). Using Drama in EFL Classroom. Journal
of E n g l i s h Teaching, 5(2), 125-134. DOI:
h t t p : / / d x . d o i . o rg / 1 0 . 3 3 5 4 1 / j e t . v 5 i 2 . 1 0 6 6

Conclusion Arafah, B. (2018). Incorporating the use of literature as an

innovative technique for teaching English. KnE Social Sciences, 24-
36.
This study aimed to determine the Doctor of
Baker, C. (1992). Attitudes and language (Vol. 83). Multilingual
Philosophy in Education major in English students’
Matters.
attitude towards teaching fiction with the consideration
of the respondents’ profile, attitude towards strategies, Bloemert, J., Paran, A., Jansen, E., & van de Grift, W. (2019).
selection of text, and springboard for teaching Students’ perspective on the benefits of EFL literature education.
The Language Learning Journal, 47(3), 371-384.
grammar. It employed the descriptive research design,
involving the purposive random sampling method of Chen, S., & Tsai, Y. (2012). Research on English teaching and
the Doctor of Philosophy in Education major in learning: Taiwan (2004–2009). Language Teaching, 45(2), 180-201.
English program students. The study shows that, in
(n.d.) Descriptive Research: Definition, Characteristics, Methods,
general, the doctorate students manifest a very positive Examples and Advantages, Retrieved from
attitude toward teaching fiction. The respondents https://www.questionpro.com/blog/descriptive-research/
adhere to the concept that varied teaching strategies
Fakoya, A. A., & Ogunpitan, S. A. (2001). The English
should be utilized in teaching fiction in order to
Compendium 3 & 4. Lagos: Department of English, Lagos State
address the different needs of the learners. Also, the University.
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teaching grammar with fiction as a starter. Routledge.

Jepketer, A. N. N. A. H. (2017). Influence of teaching strategies on

For future research, first, it would be possible to
students’ performance in academic achievement and co-curricular
investigate the attitude of the students toward the use activities in public secondary schools in Nandi county, Kenya.
of fictional texts in the classroom from their vantage Unpublished MED Thesis). Kenyatta University.
point as this study mainly focused on the teachers’
Magulod, G.C. (2018). Innovative learning tasks in enhancing the
attitude. Second, since teachers have a very positive
literary appreciation skills of students. Sage Open. I-II. 2-9.
attitude toward teaching fiction, they should look for https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2158244018820382
ways on how to connect fictional stories to the lives of
the students and integrate these texts in other Mallikarjun, B. (2003). Use of folk literature from a pedagogical
disciplines for further instruction as well as perspective. Language in India, 3.
appreciation. Third, literature teachers should continue Pardede, P. (2019). Using fiction to promote students’ critical
to look closely on the diverse needs of learners in the thinking. Journal of English Teachers. 5(3), 166-175.
selection of appropriate teaching strategies and http://dx.doi.org/10.33541/jet.v5i3.1309
fictional texts that arouse students’ interests. Finally,
Poke, W. Sullivan, K., & Leavenworth, M. (2019). Teaching fiction
although teachers enjoy teaching grammar with fiction in the age of measurability: Teachers’ perspectives on the hows and
as a springboard, they should also be selective with the what s in S w e d i s h L1 c l a s s r o o m. R e t ri e v e d from
texts that contain social and moral contexts. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334284184_Teaching_ficti
on_in_the_age_of_measurability_Teachers'_perspectives_on_the_ho
ws_and_whats_in_Swedish_L1_classrooms
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