REPBLICA BOLIVARIANA DE VENEZUELA UNIVERSIDAD PEDAGGICA EXPERIMENTAL LIBERTADOR INSTITUTO PEDAGGICO RAFAEL ALBERTO ESCOBAR LARA

ENHANCING STUDENTS LEARNING THROUGH COMIC STRIPS

Author: Franco Rodrguez

Maracay, February 2011

PURPOSE

I teach English in high-school here in my country, Venezuela. Everyday I observe and feel the reluctance of students towards the acquisition of English. This is a fact since methodologies teachers in general have used throughout the years have proved that success is far from our reach. My intention is not criticizing the current trends in teaching English here in this country. On the contrary, my purpose is to critique it as much I can but regarding the motivation of students towards English as a communicative tool and not only, as a subject to pass. When I mention motivation, it is because if students feel reluctance, no matter how hard you try to break paradigms, the outcome will remain the same and there are not going to be any changes in both perspectives and methodologies used. What I am trying to put into practice, is the effect of a resource, very creative, and far different form the ones students are used to grab. Additionally, when observing the total of hours given (per week) in English as a subject, it is true time is a factor against within the teaching-learning process (Programa de estudio de Ingls y manual del docente). Apart from the amount of students, which is normally 40 students per classroom, time is a very important factor to bear in mind. Taking into account that the academical hour is just 45 minutes; in which 5 minutes (minimum) are used in routinary activities (such as; checking attendance, erasing board from previous teachers, arriving to classroom, closing the door, etc.), 40 minutes are left. It means one minute per student. This analysis of available time, must lead teachers to plan sessions considering students as the crux of the matter; the active being of learning itself, because students are the ones who (should) take advantage of the whole time. Explanations and teachers role is as brief as possible, saving time for learners. This is the reason why I support group work or pair work. In this sense, the main goal of the study is to prove various preconceptions. Firstly, I intend to obtain evidence of the powerful tool that Comic Strips represent, taking

into account that the stories that comic strips contain are really deep, complex and possess huge idioms, slangs and other expressions that are useful for students getting in the language. Secondly, I intend to use comic strips to trigger students creativity and interest towards the language itself as a manner for full understanding of the stories they may like. Thirdly, I intend to transform the learners way of perception of reality since they may use it to create and narrate their own stories. Fourthly, I intend to make students realize the importance of the values discussed in the comic strips. Fifthly, I intend to use students own stories as a way to enhance and empower students writing skills in the target language.

Research Question In the accomplishment of the following study, I summarize the main goal into a single question that may guide the whole process of researching: How can I enhance students writing skills in the target language using comic strips?

ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES Initially, the final result steered teachers attention to students reactions towards reading, analyzing and recreating personal comic strips. The result let realize the way students perceive global problems, how they may offer possible solutions to these problems, but most importantly, how they express their ideas using the simple format of comic strips. This data provided information for the teacher to determine that additional tools besides the book meant something to students both interest and learning. Constructivism, derived mainly from the works of Vygotsky, and is both a philosophical and psychological approach based on social cognitivism that assumes that persons, behaviors and environments interact in reciprocal fashion. In other words, constructivism is a doctrine stating that learning takes place in contexts, and that learners form or construct much of what they learn and understand as a function of their experiences in situation. In this way, through a constructivist model, knowledge is constructed uniquely and individually; in multiple ways, through a variety of tools, resources, and contexts; learning is both an active and reflective process; learning is developmental; social interaction introduces multiple perspectives on learning; and more importantly, learning is internally controlled and mediated by the learner considering teachers just as facilitators of the instructional process. In addition, learners must be treated as unique and different beings with different experiences and understandings of the world. Additionally, Captain (2010) argues the following: Comic books are also thoroughly entertaining. Most everyone knows through experience, that learning is almost effortless when it's fun. Take for instance a friend of yours whom you know for a fact doesn't read anything short of the sports section of the newspaper. Despite what you may call a lack of worldly knowledge, most sports fans are able to dig into a bottomless well of sports statistics, strategy and player knowledge. This is due simply to the fact they have fun learning said facts.

METHODOLOGY The information was collected through students participation in class (brainstorming) for the creation of their own superhero; students brief stories, and students final project (personal comic story). Also, an oral interview was conducted in order to get the perception of the students with the activity and their general opinion on the use of a single different activity. The study was conducted in various stages. In the first stage, the researcher made the decision of incorporating the high-schools macro project in the activity. Me, as a current teacher of the high-school U.E.P. Colegio Dr. Gustavo H. Machado needed to include into my assessing strategies, the project of the school which deals with Global Warming and Pollution in general. Despite the fact I wanted to use it, it was a must from the authorities in the school. In this way, I realize that by using this huge topic I may also develop some consciousness in relation to a topic that is real and affects us as human beings. I expressed this incorporation to students during the discussion of the evaluation plan. Students felt okay about this because it was not only in this subject but the rest, too. During this first stage, the teacher and students were supposed to brainstorm the creation of a superhero for the whole class. Some names that came out of the brainstorming were: Nature-Man Pollution-Man Mr. Contamination Global Warming Water-Man The name of the superhero with most of the votes was Water-Man with 15 votes. It is important to mention that all students from 7th grade participated in the activity because it was part of the strategies used for assessing them. There is a total of 22 students in the classroom. Most of them possess an intermediate level of

proficiency for they have seen English as a subject since they were in 1st grade of elementary school. After the brainstorming process, with Water-Man as their favorite, they were asked to describe the man alongside with his superpowers. Some features were: His hair is black and straight His suit is blue and green He has scales similar to a fish He looks like a normal guy He can manipulate the four elements (air, wind, fire, and earth) Pollution makes him be weak

Stage two consisted of a class only for explaining how to summarize stories to include them in the comic strips. I explained the differences between the dialogue balloons used to express feelings and words in their stories. Also, I explained how to summarize the story in such a way for it to fit the format of a comic strip. Students did not have, I considered, any information regarding creation of comic stories by themselves. They showed very happy because they felt they were portraying their inner fantasies of being a superhero. I observed during this stage, motivation towards the new increased for the sake of the teaching process. This stage lasted only a complete class of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Stage three consisted of the realization of all the comic stories. Since they are an even number, they were supposed to work in pairs to stimulate pair-work in them. They felt happy because they selected their own peer to work with. Since this activity was part of the assessing strategies, each story, one per pair, was going to be presented in each class. Total of pairs=11 pairs Total of stories=11stories Total of weeks for the completion of both task and research=9 weeks

First, students summarized their stories in the native language, Spanish. The teacher helped in correction of written mistakes. Then, each pair was going to write that story in English. When this was finished, students were going to create their comic strips in a macro-way using a bond paper size. They were free to select the colors in their stories and the characters they could include. However, they had to respect the size of the comic strip and also the characteristics that describe Water-man the superhero. Since presentation days were on each class and considering the order in the attendance list, students presented their stories to the public, the rest of their classmates. They had to explain how long did the creation of the comic take, what the message of the story was, and possible misinterpretations of the stories if it wasnt clear for the audience. In this stage, my correction was crucial in the reinforcement of new knowledge and deletion of errors in students. This task, comic creation, was done after the general review commonly given during the early classes in October. The general review included the simple present, general information for creating questions and sentences, and commands. The form of correcting students was paraphrasing. Every time students made a mistake either in a written or oral way during their presentation, I rephrased what they said and unconsciously, they repeated that sentence or phrase and assimilated the correction done. Immediately after each presentation, I gave feedback on the oral part; the poster created which was the comic story; and the written part used to express the story in the boxes of the comic strip. This stage was the longest; it took six (6) weeks. The final stage has to do with the analysis of the interview conducted to get students perceptions and opinion about the new tool used in classes. This stage took only one (1) week. Three students volunteered for the oral interview. The questions/script used in the oral interview was the following:

Hey, hi, could you please say your full name and grade? And where do you study? Ok, ok. During the first term, one of the activities planned for the evaluation plan was to create a comic strip about an environmental problem. What was your first impression? Do you like comics?

So, do you think it was a good idea? Fine. Then, we had a talk about how to summarize stories and insert them into the boxes. Before the activity, did you know this info? How long did you take for designing your comic strip/poster? Did you do it yourselves or you had any help? Did you enjoy working in pairs? What was your story about? Do you think everybody got the message? Did you like the activity? Well, thanks a lot.

All the three students that participated in the interview remembered everything they did. Only one of them wanted to speak in Spanish because he was really nervous at the moment of conducting the interview.

Data Collection Summary 1. The teacher gives a review on simple present, general information for creating questions and sentences, and commands. (1 week) 2. Students talk with the teacher about their favorite superheroes/superheroins. Information is shared and analyzed for the teacher to see the kind of stories that would be read in class. The teacher encourages students to also discuss global problems such as global warming or water shortage and how their favorite superheroes may solve the issue in question. Students then, through brainstorming, create a class superhero to be portrayed in their own stories. (1 week) 3. Students are asked to create brief stories to be told through the comic boxes. The teacher may give basic information about comic prior to this stage. It means, students may learn the different balloon dialogues to be used in their stories, the type of scenes, how to go from text to drawing and so on. In pairs, students present their own stories and express how they solve a particular issue they selected. Teacher may pay attention to students grammar and the vocabulary they used. Quality of drawing

and presentation are also important but not essential since the teacher is perceiving students way of writing and vocabulary usage. (6 weeks) 4. Oral interviews are conducted by the teacher using three volunteers out of the 22 students from 7th grade. (1 week)

DATA ANALYSIS The teacher observed and gathered students reactions towards comic books. The teacher then focused on the students perception of themselves as cartoonists. Evidently, the teacher focused on both positive and negative information towards this type of art. The teacher analyzed final projects and observed their interest on creating and using the language. At the very beginning of the activity, I was reluctant and afraid because I know we, as human beings, do no like change. Also, I know teenagers are very difficult to evaluate and bombard with new assessing strategies. I also know that English is seen as a subject and not as a communicative tool in this technological century. Students proved I was wrong in my preconceptions. They felt really happy in the creation and consensus of a single character for the realization of the task. They did not feel they were evaluated, they really enjoyed the activity. Efforts were rewarded in the grades they received and the feedback from me, not as an assessor but as a facilitator of knowledge. The three interviews showed a huge interest towards new tasks to practice English in a fun way and going beyond the pages of a book. I am not diminishing the usage of books for teaching English. I am promoting other resources to be used together with the textbook, though. All students liked the activity and just one of them confessed he had previous information for the creation of comic stories. All of them like comics, maybe because they are just teenagers and enjoy TV shows and the concept of heroes. All of them made the story with no bug effort but entertainment and in just a couple of days. It shows that the more students like the activity, the faster they will fulfill it taking advantage form it and not just handing in a requisite of the subject.

All of them made their own stories because they felt prepared to do so and also because my instructions were totally clear regarding format size, story size (beginning, development, ending), material of poster, characters, and so on. Teachers must be very clear when explaining something to students. They may forget the thing for they are ware of getting out from the classroom to recess or maybe they do not like the subject. Since this is another language they are acquiring, instructions must be clear and concise for ensuring both completion and success in learners. All of them enjoyed working in pairs. They are friends, way long before the implementation of this task. If teachers give students responsibility of their work, they feel they are active beings in the process and not all is coming from the teacher. Finally, all students like the activity because it was something never seen before in classrooms, especially in English. This way, students perceive there are fun ways of learning besides the application of a test. This is good for teachers are able to eliminate any reluctance from them in the learning process.

Script of all interviews & responses: S1=student 1 S2=student 2 S3=student 3

Hey, hi, could you please say your full name and grade? And where do you study? S1 Enrique Antonio Perez Orozco, I study in Dr. Gustavo H. Machado S2 Rolando Gabriel Diaz Martinez, 7th grade, I study in the school Dr. Gustavo H. Machado S3 My name is Nicolas Alejandro Gonzalez, I study in Dr. Gustavo H. Machado, 7th grade Ok, ok. During the first term, one of the activities planned for the evaluation plan was to create a comic strip about an environmental problem. What was your first impression? S1 I like very much superheroes

S2 It was a good idea to create a superhero to save the planet from pollution S3 Yes, it is a good idea because we talk about comics and superheroes and were listening to new ideas Do you like comics? S1 Yes, when I was in the USA I read a lot of comics S2 Yes but not very much S3 Yes So, do you think it was a good idea? S1 It is a good inspiration to read a comic S2 Yes, instead of serious learning, we learned in a more fun way S3 Yes, yes Fine. Then, we had a talk about how to summarize stories and insert them into the boxes. Before the activity, did you know this info? S1 No, I didnt. It came form my mind. It came from my inspiration S2 No S3 No, but I see on the television a program of the comics and I took these ideas for me and my comic How long did you take for designing your comic strip/poster? S1 hours S2 2 days, I did it small but it was big, so I changed it S3 2 days because my friend, first we selected the name, who waterman was fighting to, or the badboys Did you do it yourselves or you had any help? S1 I did it with my partner S2 Yes, my partner S3 my friend Did you enjoy working in pairs? S1 Yes, I had time to meet/talk with him S2 Yes, I prefer to work in pairs because one person doesnt have a lot to do S3 Yes my friend had good ideas for the comic

What was your story about? S1 It is about a superhero that fights a fireball that destroys the forest. Foreman starts fighting with fireball to extinguish him. S2 Waterman wanted to save the plant form Mr. Contamination who wanted to enslave all inhabitants from Earth S3 The story is about a superhero, the name is Waterman, and he is in the city with Fireman, he destroys the city, forest and other houses. They have a long fight and Waterman wins. When you presented your poster, did you have any mistakes? S1 Yes, some mistakes in sentences, words. But I sometimes used a dictionary. S2 Yes Do you think everybody got the message? S1 Im not sure, there are some classmates who do not understand English very well. S2 Not many people didnt understand, only two persons didnt understand Well, thanks a lot. S3 Yes, but people who do not study English do not understand much. But the person who studies English listens very good.

CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS

I personally have been interested in this type of art and the form it grasps the attention of anyone who becomes a real fan of it. Certainly, some may argue that this so called art may have negative influence on its readers since there are a lot of issues discussed, as well as clichs and stereotypes. Thanks goodness, I did not used original comic stories but classroom-created ones in order to avoid this preconception. I believe teachers who are still attached to their text books, might have great outcomes if they open their eyes to see other significant devices so as to stir students interest towards a specific language, in this case: English. Once again, my intention was not to exploit students creativity and make them see themselves as possible art creators. It may be, but from their own perspective not the teachers. According to the Comic Book Project (2004), through comic stories, learners are able to develop: 1. Academic Reinforcement: Children reinforce and improve their literacy skills through the arts by engaging in a fun, project-oriented, and creative process. 2. Social and Character Development: Children use the project as a pathway to personal understanding and cultural tolerance, which are illustrated by their own artistic creations and displayed in a variety of formats. 3. Community Building: Children spread positive messages to other children and adults in the community via the distribution of their work to community outlets such as schools, after-school programs, and community centres. My sole intention was to stimulate students and make them see there are extra, meaningful ways to internalize the rules that govern a language. Maybe a language they see as impossible to learn in this country because there are not visible future usages of it. There is also the idea of reviewing the fact of values in and outside the classroom. In this case, I had to use the topic of contamination. Society seems to blame schools of not having enough responsibility of teaching what they are supposed to. Additionally, global problems such as the warming of the planet must be

of everyday discussion and analysis to offer solutions or at least to make students be aware of the importance of natural resources. If students enjoy the class and the materials I would recommend it to other teachers to experiments the possible advantages it offers. In the same order of ideas, the New York Times (2008) expresses that: Teachers are finding it easier to teach writing, grammar and punctuation with material that students are fully invested in. And it turns out that comic books have other built-in advantages. The pairing of visual and written plotlines that they rely on appears to be especially helpful to struggling readers. No one is suggesting that comic books should substitute for traditional books or for standard reading and composition lessons. Teachers who would once have dismissed comics out of hand are learning to exploit a genre that clearly has a powerful hold on young minds. Maybe other topics will generate other results for sure. Also, in this very case, I did not ask them to use a particular grammar structure because this study was a prototype of task. Perhaps with some grammar restrictions learners will develop other type of stories and correction stages could be easier since you focus on specific language components.

REFERENCES

Bitz, M. (2004). The Comic Book Project: The Lives of Urban Youth. Art Education, 57 (2), 33-39. Captain, X. (2010). Better education through comic books; comic books make learning easier and more entertaining. [On line document].Available: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/51650/better_education_through_co mic_books_pg3.html?cat=25 [Last Acceded: 2011, February 15] Editorial (2008). Comic books in the classroom. The New York Times [On line document].Available: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/03/opinion/03thu4.html?_r=1 [Last Acceded: 2011, February 15] Ministerio de Educacin. (1987). Programa de estudio de Ingls y manual del docente de 7mo grado. Caracas: Author.