English teachers across the country are objecting to new changes to future English class curricula. Most of the objections stem from new recommendations by the Common Core State Standards in English, a document that seeks to better prepare middle and high school students for college and future employment. According to the Common Core Standards, English classes are to begin teaching more nonfiction literature, which inevitably will lead to less fictional literature being taught. But while many teachers are objecting to these changes, claiming that teaching less fictional literature is against the purpose of English class, teaching more nonfiction literature will be beneficial because it will require students to become more proficient in understanding a wider usage of the English language.
The Common Core Standards stress that around 70 percent of the literature encountered by high school seniors should be nonfiction. This does not mean, however, that English classes may only devote 30 percent of their class time to works of fiction. As outlined in the Common Core Standards, the 70 percent refers to reading done by seniors across every class they take. That is, classes like science, history and math are also included. When considering all classes taken by high school seniors, 70 percent does not seem like such a controversial number. Nevertheless, it would not hurt to start ramping up the number of nonfiction texts that are read and analyzed in English classes, as the approach taken to literature English class is different than in history or science classes.
High school English classes typically read fictional works of literature, and students are trained to analyze characters, look for symbolism, appreciate use of literary devices and interpret the author’s intents. Performing in-depth analyses of novels, short stories or poetry is good for making students not think so literally and helps develop their creative writing and interpretation skills. That being said, English class should convey that there is more to the English language than what is used in writing fiction. Just as students are taught to find symbolism in a novel, they should be taught how to deconstruct an argument or find a hypothesis in works of nonfiction. Since most high schools probably do not have politics or philosophy classes like those found in college, English class is a good way for students to practice critiquing views and arguments espoused in nonfiction. Students already cite evidence and examples when attempting to prove something about a work of fiction. Why should they not also translate those skills into an essay, for example, on whether or not they agree with a prompt regarding an author’s views? In the end, English class should enable students to read and comprehend nonfiction works in the same way that they are taught to understand fiction.
One of the purposes of an English class — hopefully — is to foster an appreciation of literature. Increasing the amount of nonfiction literature read in English classes does not conflict with that idea. Rather, it could augment students’ appreciation for various types of literature by delving into the literary styles used in famous nonfiction works. Fiction and nonfiction perhaps require different styles of writing, but that is not to say that one kind of literature is necessarily superior. Learning to become a good writer is more than just having a good knowledge of grammar and sentence flow, and just as much can be learned about presenting ideas from nonfiction books as from fiction. In fact, in an attempt to get their students to really appreciate well-written literature, it is surprising that many teachers have not already seen the need for more nonfiction works.
As the Common Core Standards say, the ability to amply support a conclusion with verifiable evidence is key in many career paths. And while reading and writing papers based on works of fiction can no doubt contribute to honing one’s argumentative skills, such literature does not usually require the same analysis that, for instance, John Locke’s “Two Treatises of Government” or Ralph Waldo Emerson’s “Self Reliance” necessitate. English classes should be dedicated to allowing students to tackle complicated nonfiction works by providing them with the tools necessary to interpret and synthesize the information given by a wide range of sources, from long nonfiction books to newspaper opinion pieces.
Thus, the Common Core Standards are along the right lines. This is not to say, though, that there is no place for fiction in English classes. English class should still be a place to read exemplary works of fiction, and both a knowledge of and ability to understand fictional literature is important in its own right. Nevertheless, more nonfiction works should be included so that students learn how to decipher arguments and analyze condensed information, as that is the kind of literature that will likely be appearing the most in their futures.
Alex Yahanda is a senior associate editor for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at a.yahanda@cavalierdaily.com.
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