THE THIRD AND FOURTH-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS FACTORS AFFECTING THEIR LEARNING OF AMERICAN AND BRITISH LITERATURE AT TRA VINH UNIVERSITY, VIETNAM

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the third and fourth-year English majors’ attitudes towards factors influencing their learning of American and British literature courses. The participants included 50 English majors at Tra Vinh University. The only instrument employed in this study was the questionnaire which focused on literature’s genres, eras, themes, writing styles, class activities, and personal development and career aspirations. The results showed that the participants favored reading short stories, dramas, and films. Concerning eras, they tended to read stories written in the ancientclassical as well as contemporary eras. Concerning themes, they preferred stories about love, relationships, nature, and mystery. Regarding class activities, they hoped to participate in topic
discussion, exercises, quizzes, role play, watching films, and playing games. The participants also recognized the benefits of reading literary texts as they could help to develop students’ language and critical thinking skills, master diverse cultures, exhibit good characteristics, and show empathy towards others. Based on the findings, the authors suggest some recommendations that can assist
teachers of American and British literature in improving their ways of teaching literature courses to students more effectively.