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Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience

This article explores some of the complexities involved in the act of localizing English literature as a school subject. Informed by Goodson and Marsh’s stages of subject development, I explore the ways in which post-16 English literature was localized in Malaysia from an introduced and mythologized...

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Main Author: Lim, Jia Wei
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis 2018
Subjects:
L Education (General)
PE English
Online Access:http://eprints.um.edu.my/21448/
https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2018.1460254
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spelling my.um.eprints.214482019-05-31T04:04:04Z http://eprints.um.edu.my/21448/ Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience Lim, Jia Wei L Education (General) PE English This article explores some of the complexities involved in the act of localizing English literature as a school subject. Informed by Goodson and Marsh’s stages of subject development, I explore the ways in which post-16 English literature was localized in Malaysia from an introduced and mythologized subject entitled “English” to its reconceptualization as “Literature in English” in the year 1998. The main question this article asks is: can a mythologized subject be sustained when it is introduced into another context (i.e., Malaysia)? This question is explored through attempts made to localize it by the subject’s governing body in Malaysia, namely the Malaysian Examinations Council. Relevant documents as well as an interview with a subject committee member involved in the subject’s reconceptualization form the data of this article. Analysis suggests that not only were acts of localization incoherent in the subject’s implementation, the rationale for localization was also not shared by some constituencies within and beyond the education system. This article concludes by highlighting the importance of ensuring that support from relevant constituencies is based upon a shared understanding of a subject’s role, aims and conceptualization in order to sustain subject development in an education system. Taylor & Francis 2018 Article PeerReviewed Lim, Jia Wei (2018) Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 38 (2). pp. 151-163. ISSN 0218-8791 https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2018.1460254 doi:10.1080/02188791.2018.1460254
institution Universiti Malaya
building UM Library
collection Institutional Repository
continent Asia
country Malaysia
content_provider Universiti Malaya
content_source UM Research Repository
url_provider http://eprints.um.edu.my/
topic L Education (General)
PE English
spellingShingle L Education (General)
PE English
Lim, Jia Wei
Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
description This article explores some of the complexities involved in the act of localizing English literature as a school subject. Informed by Goodson and Marsh’s stages of subject development, I explore the ways in which post-16 English literature was localized in Malaysia from an introduced and mythologized subject entitled “English” to its reconceptualization as “Literature in English” in the year 1998. The main question this article asks is: can a mythologized subject be sustained when it is introduced into another context (i.e., Malaysia)? This question is explored through attempts made to localize it by the subject’s governing body in Malaysia, namely the Malaysian Examinations Council. Relevant documents as well as an interview with a subject committee member involved in the subject’s reconceptualization form the data of this article. Analysis suggests that not only were acts of localization incoherent in the subject’s implementation, the rationale for localization was also not shared by some constituencies within and beyond the education system. This article concludes by highlighting the importance of ensuring that support from relevant constituencies is based upon a shared understanding of a subject’s role, aims and conceptualization in order to sustain subject development in an education system.
format Article
author Lim, Jia Wei
author_facet Lim, Jia Wei
author_sort Lim, Jia Wei
title Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
title_short Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
title_full Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
title_fullStr Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
title_full_unstemmed Localizing English literature as a school subject: a Malaysian experience
title_sort localizing english literature as a school subject: a malaysian experience
publisher Taylor & Francis
publishDate 2018
url http://eprints.um.edu.my/21448/
https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2018.1460254
_version_ 1643691566935572480
score 13.211869

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