The Quality Literature Education (QUALE) project is small-scale intervention study that implements an inquiry-based learning approach in lower-secondary Language Arts classrooms in the Nordic countries.
As part of the study design, nine Language Arts teachers in Sweden, Norway and Denmark were provided learning materials in their own languages to use during their instruction. The materials outline strategies for students to use for engaging with a text.
Teachers share their perspective
At the QUINT conference this past June, researchers from QUALE were joined by two of the teachers that participated in the project, who talked about using the materials in their classrooms.
One of the teachers, Liv Marit Hauge, gave several examples from her experience using what she referred to as ‘the QUALE method.’
In one example, Hauge described reading the first lines of a poem to her students: ‘Who is running in the dark? Three children are running in the dark.’
She then asked her pupils to write down what they pictured in their minds.
“The pupils imagined many different things; the children running in the forest, through fog, hazy, like in a dream. Some pictured the children running through a dark alley with graffiti. So already the pupils had made the text their own, everyone had their own mental images that they wanted to share with the class.
“Even the pupils with ADHD and dyslexia were raising their hands because finally they had something to say.”
When asked if she believed this inquiry-based method helped inspire an interest in literature among her students Hauge answered;
“My experience is that the method has been inspiring for the pupils and created a positive common experience in the classroom.
“I think the two key factors are a) just a lowering the baseline, and b) the question that I really like to use; ‘what mental images did you get?’ Every pupil is able to answer this question, and there's enough time for everyone to invest in the text.”
Entrenched norms present challenges
Professor Nikolaj Elf said of the method, “this is not the only way to teach literature, but we are trying to change the balance from a more transmission oriented approach to a more inquiry oriented approach.”
The QUALE project is also investigating how the wider national educational systems that teachers work within effect their experience of using inquiry-based teaching methods.
While teachers reported positive results from using the method, they pointed out that it did not align with how examinations are designed.
Exams for L1 studies of literature in the Nordic countries take a more analytical approach, for example asking students to identify themes and literary techniques in a text.
Though teachers hold a generally positive attitude towards inquiry-based teaching, they have also expressed anxiety about the disconnect between what the method emphasizes and how students are assessed in their exams.
Despite challenges, enthusiasm is high
Teachers involved in the project are eager to continue working with the 'QUALE method,' and share it with their colleagues. They have even agreed to participate in future workshops on how to apply inquiry-based teaching to new material that they believe would work in their classrooms.
The QUALE project also presented at the European Educational Research Association (ECER) conference as part of a QUINT symposium on August 23, where 'the audience was very curious about the project, and eager to hear more,' said Elf.