Ninth graders’ social experiences to promote critical literacy in EFL with project-based learning

Abstract

The present qualitative action research study aims at describing and analyzing the promotion of critical literacy (CL) in an EFL class through high school students’ social experiences. Project-based learning was selected to create the instructional design, which presents the implementation of three-cycled project with ninth graders. This project combines students’ interests and needs identified from a needs analysis conducted based on Pineda’s (2000) three step model and on curricular objectives of EFL from a public school in Bogotá, Colombia. The results show it is possible to include students’ experiences in foreign language classes and by reflecting on them in class, in English, it is possible to promote critical literacy, especially when students are agents and active participants into shaping of their own learning. The project concludes with the idea that teachers are presented with the opportunity of changing the traditional methods of learning a language and also that it is necessary to use the immediate knowledge of young students because it is what they are more interested about and where their knowledge of the world comes from.