CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

Creating a Young Adult Literature Class at BRS

Final Paper
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ECI 521
Teaching Young Adult Literature
NC State University
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Yuanyuan Fang
December, 2014

Author Note
Yuanyuan Fang, College of Education, NC State University
This paper was credited to the effective and engaging teaching pedagogy and study strategies the
author learned from ECI 521. Great thanks go to Dr Carol Pope and classmates in ECI 521.
Contact: yfang5@ncsu.edu

Introduction

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

As Francis Bacon said in his essay -- Of Studies (1625), Reading maketh a full man.
Reading transforms readers. When readers interact with and respond to literature, meaning
develops. This confirms the view of literature as a vehicle for affirming personal meaning, for
exploring values, and for gaining new insights about the world (Jean E. Brown & Elaine C.
Stephens, 1995, p. 5). Literature exposes readers to unknown places beyond their limited world,
facilitates their exchange of ideas with those wiser, and provides them with opportunities to
become more developed by making connections to universal concepts. Adolescence, a crucial
developmental stage, requires guidance and a powerful affirmation of personal identity. Thus
literature is an integral part of life, helping young adults see beyond the surface and successfully
metamorphose into adulthood.
Educating young adults cannot be restricted to simple text-based learning for academic
knowledge. It must promote self-knowledge, knowledge of others, and a holistic knowledge of
the world (Brown & Stephens, 1995). Young adult literature is a specialized field that has great
potential to cater to the needs of young people. By reading young adult literature, young people
can enrich their cognitive and aesthetic experiences, both of which have a lasting impact on their
developmental growth (Brown & Stephens, 1995). Considering its significant evolution within
the past two generations, young adult literature has won immense popularity amongst young
adults and teachers; especially the coming-of-age novel genre. It is therefore imperative to have
a young adult literature course intended for students at the Beijing Royal School in China.
Beijing Royal School (BRS) is a K-12, private international school. Two-thirds of their
middle and high school students are adolescents, most of whom are planning to go abroad for
their college degree. Based on my own observations and teaching experiences at BRS, I have
found that students ranging from 14 to 17 years old are able to reason at the formal operational

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

level and bring together variables through synthesis. ( Bushman & Haas, 2006, p. 6). The
purpose of creating a young adult literature class at BRS is not only to engage students in reading
and learning, thus expanding their intellectual growth, but also to further develop their
emotional and social maturity (Havighurst, 1972).
The Interrelationship Between Young Adult(YA) and Young Adult
Literature(YAL)
According to the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) of the American
Library Association (ALA), a young adult is defined as someone between the ages of twelve and
eighteen. During this vital developmental period, young adults begin to express themselves
physically, culturally, and psychologically. Based upon research in developmental psychology
(Piagetian), this is when they start thinking about fanciful problems not based in reality. They
begin thinking in a more flexible manner, using logical processes and problem solving to
formulate greater possibilities, and are inclined to make hypothetical judgments (Purves, Rogers
& Soter, 1990, p. 28). A wealth of literature for the adolescent audience has evolved since the
19th century-- the first age of great childrens book (Wintle & Fisher, 1974, p. 14). It is now
becoming increasingly acceptable in many middle and high school English courses to
supplement, enrich, and extend basic material in content-area courses (Jean E. Brown & Elaine
C. Stephens, 1995, p. 4).
According to the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE, 1986), young adult
literature is a valuable part of a human beings literary heritage. It is unique, because it is like a
fascinating mirror that helps young adults see their feelings, as well as a magical map that can
help them find emotional resolutions. Young people need not feel alone and afraid any more. Just
as Sandy Asher said (1992), Books, novels, stories, are one way we can reach out to one another

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

without losing face, one way of saying: We are not alone, not in our fears, not in our hopes, not
in our nightmares, and not in our dreams. Young adult literature that has a long-lasting effect on
its readers always relates to their life and personal experiences from a safe distance.
Why Students Read and Learn Young Adult Literature
In her study on the effect of teaching and learning young adult literature, Hynds (1989)
provides evidence that students interact with greater success when reading works with which
they are capable of connecting. Readers who brought a greater range of interpersonal constructs
to their reading (p. 31) became more internally motivated and less dependent upon teachers,
parents, and peers. Thus young adult literature helps students achieve emotional, behavioral,
creative, and functional success.
Young Adult Literature as Strategies for Living
Young adult literature properly and wonderfully reflects the series of changes that young
adults undergo. It also offers up strategies for living (Mayer, 1990). For young readers, this
function of YAL is very powerful because they are the very group that actively seeks answers in
life and eagerly seeks out strategies for living (Brown and Stephens, 1995). While reading, they
experience, explore, and respond as readers. Thats why they are inclined to select the books that
can reflect or strengthen their values and paradigms. Moreover, young adults usually integrate
ideas, information, and values into their own characters and into their lives, which makes the
books they are reading a fundamental part of their lives. By reading YAL, young adults explore
their identification with protagonists and antagonists and discover a long list of solutions to the
problems confronting them in real life.
Young Adult Literature as a Complement to the Classics

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

To prepare students for college, studying classical literature has become a requirement by
the college admissions system. The classics comprise the majority of the high school English
literary canon that is used to teach content, word accumulation, sentence patterns, writing style,
thematic summary, etc. Unfortunately, the classics are often too difficult for students to
understand, or too distant from their personal experiences. Thus students regularly question the
necessity of studying these old, detached materials. Qualitative research shows that classical
literature alone cannot meet the needs of young adults. However, this problem can be solved by
using young adult literature in alignment with classical literature to expose students to literature
that is both relevant and meaningful.
The main difference between young adult literature and those classics frequently assigned
is obvious: the former is written specifically for young adults. The reading levels of most YAL
books are within students range of ease. YAL is not solely a subject that produces information
and knowledge, but a meaningful and instructive means of cultural literacy that promotes
personal growth and helps young readers gain the confidence and passion necessary to discover
the essence of life and become lifelong readers (Bushman & Haas, 2006). Young adults can
respond, relate, and engage with young adult literature. When fully developed, YAL provides
young adults with the opportunity to participate in an active and reciprocal process that many
classics cannot; that is, An enlargement of the students understanding of human life while
reading leads to increased aesthetic sensitivity, and increased aesthetic sensitivity makes possible
more fruitful human insights from YAL (Rosenblatt, 1991, p. 273).
Young Adult Literature to Meet the Educational Aims of Schools
The ultimate aim of a 21st century education is to prepare students to be well-developed
and meaningful global citizens. Literature intended for young adults is a vital addition to this;

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

it has the potential to integrate and to unify learning in all content areas by celebrating the
uniqueness of different cultures and their people while affirming the universal traits that define
our humanity (Jean E. Brown & Elaine C. Stephens, 1995, p. 5). Young adult literature is not
just a reading activity for comprehension or passing tests, but an aesthetic and innovative
experience. In YAL class, young adults are provided with opportunities to articulate responses,
postulate ideas, and create new maps of life. This active process assists in their maturity and
makes them more likely to become positive and compassionate individuals.
Additionally, young adult literature adds vigor to a traditionalist curriculum that, frankly,
bores young adults. According to Probst (1987), Adolescent literature must have a significant
place in the curriculum... Because it touches their lives, addresses issues that matter, and raises
questions that are likely to interest them. We must judge it on the likelihood that the students
transactions with it will be of high quality--committed, interested, reasoned, emotional,
personal. (p. 28). YAL is a bridge that allows young adults to view themselves as literature,
which leads them to continue a lifetime pattern of reading (Hynds, 1990, P. 251).
The Necessity of Creating Young Adult Literature Class at BRS
According to Louise Rosenblatt (1991), aesthetic reading is a process in which emotions,
attitudes, or stances on the part of young readers are addressed. We read for information, but we
are also conscious of emotions about it and feel pleasure by reading (p. 445). Students should
read for enjoyment, for enlarging their understanding, and for appreciating the art. However,
historically, reading class, as an academic discipline, has centered on facts, structure, content,
and grammar; mainly for the sake of preparing students for entrance examinations.
Based on my own experiences at BRS, there are many problems with our strategies for
teaching literature, and addressing these issues is my rationale for creating a YAL class at BRS.

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

To prove this necessity, I collected data from BRS teachers and students in two separate
questionnaires regarding young adult literature. The survey of BRS students included 28 middle
and high school students of different learning levels: 8 students in Grade 9 (13-14 year-olds) and
20 students in grade 10 and 11 (15-17 year-olds). The survey of BRS teachers included 3 middle
school English teachers, 5 high school English teachers, and 2 Chinese language teachers. The
student survey asked questions about what they read, how, and why. The teachers survey asked
questions about YAL reading purposes and methods--the attitudes, values, and strategies that will
influence students reading and learning processes.
Current Problems with Reading at BRS
Student Survey

It is distressing to find that, according to my survey, 71.4% of students are primarily

reading for tests or exams; 67.8% report that reading literature in class is just to recognize the
meaning of words and identify main ideas; 53.5% dont read literature in or out of class; and
42.9% dont even know what young adult literature is. The survey also indicates that students

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

like reading, but 53.5% of them have no idea of where to find resources that can both relate to
them and provide them with the skills necessary for entrance exams.
Teacher Survey

Based on my survey for teachers, 50% report that they are currently teaching literature for
tests or exams, and 50% dont think that they have the necessary resources for young adult
readers. Furthermore, 80% of teachers report that it is challenging to teach YAL within the BRS
school curricula.
Based on these surveys, I have found that literary instruction at BRS pedagogically
focuses on the method of deconstructuralism. Literature is taught as a body of knowledge
dispensed by the teacher and digested by the students, who read with a focus upon issues of
format, spelling, grammar and other surface features rather than content. This outdated
organizational scheme directs students to simply read for facts or themes (Probsts, 1988a).
Unfortunately, the essence of the aesthetic response to literature is being ignored, leaving the
audience with no chance to interact. Consequently, students are losing their desire to read in or
out of class, and if they read, it is a purely academic exercise.

CREATING A YOUNG ADULT LITERATURE CLASS AT BRS

Other Findings

Although students report a distressing situation in their literature class, 89.2% of them still
believe that reading literature should be an interactive and engaging process in which students
can actively participate, and 92.8% of students also report that they enjoy reading books that
relate to their world and their personal experiences. Moreover, 78.5% of them think teachers,
librarians, and parents play very important roles in offering up professional advice for their
literary journey. They also mentioned that they prefer interesting reading activities or projects
that can engage them in independent reading and enrich their learning and adolescent life.
Based on the teacher survey, I also found that 70% of teachers believe that teaching YAL is
not just for the purpose of understanding vocabulary and identifying main ideas; 100% of
teachers think young adult literature class is very important and helpful for teachers and schools
to understand young adults more; and 100% of them support starting a young adult literature
class at BRS as soon as possible in order to address student issues and better mature during their
developmental stages. To my delight, BRS teachers also mentioned the significance and

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dynamics of reading and learning YAL, as well as its contribution to creating a YAL class at
BRS.
Based on my survey, I also believe that most students will fall in love with reading again
if they are motivated to choose their own reading, or given good literary options in tandem with
proper guidance and professional advice. Students also yearn for a safe, open, and comfortable
class environment for using and reading young adult literature. Lastly, both teachers and students
advocate for shifting the focus of school curricula from preparing students for tests to preparing
them holistically for life and whatever direction that takes them.
Key Reading Strategies to YAL Class
To build a successful young adult literature class, reader response-centered strategies play
a very fundamental role.
Theories to Rationale the Fundamental Role of Reader Response
Rosenblatt, widely recognized as the founder of reader-response theory, believes that
reading is a transaction in which the reader and text converse together in a particular situation
to make meaning (Rosenblatt, 1983). The readers own individual purposes, mood, and
background experiences with life and reading become primary influences on the meaning thats
evoked. The meaning readers take away from a text offers readers possibilities, taking them
beyond space, time and self; it also empowers readers to transcend with insights and perceptions
into life. Thus it is essential for classroom teachers to create a successful literature class based on
reader response. As Robert Probst (1988) points out, students must be free to deal with their
reactions to the text, which also means that teachers should ask students what they see, feel,
think and remember as they read, encouraging them to attend to their own experience of the text

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(p. 31). As a transformational process of learning, reader response is the basis to every strategy
applied in YAL.
A number of theories ground this study in emphasizing the importance of reader response
in literature classroom--Situated Cognition theory, Blooms Taxonomy, and Social Cognition
theory. According to Jean Lave (1990), Situated Cognition puts emphasis on the importance of
practical experience in learning. It is the theory that people's knowledge and experiences are
embedded in the activity, context, and culture in which it was acquired. With the implementation
of a reader response-centered literary classroom, culturally relevant allusions are acquired and
developmental issues confronting young adults -- such as adapting to physical changes, gaining
independence from parents and adults, preparing for a career, acquiring a personal ideology and
achieving social responsibility (Bushman & Haas, 2006) -- are addressed in specific contexts in
literature, because they are encountered in the moment that they are needed. It emphasizes
positive growth and application of knowledge and experiences in a historical and cultural
context.
Blooms Revised Taxonomy is a revised version of a powerful tool to represent student
progression in learning. Each level is a continuum of knowledge that transitions from being
concrete to tangible. The higher-level thinking skills embedded in Blooms Revised Taxonomy
targets the 21st century skills needed today by gaining self-knowledge, knowledge of others, and
knowledge of the world, and using them in critical, creative, flexible, and innovative ways. In
this sense, the reader response-centered literary classroom is created to gauge the cognitive,
affective and psychomotor development of students (Bloom, Engelhart, Furst, Hill, &
Krathwohl, 1956).

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Focusing on Affective domain in Blooms Taxonomy, students will respond emotionally

to the similar issues confronting them or their peers, and attach values to an event, phenomenon
or a set of scenes in a book. After reading, through organizing different ideas and values, and
accommodating them within his/her schema -- a mental structure of preconceived ideas that
people use to organize current knowledge and provide a framework for future understanding
(Nadkarni & Narayanan 2007) -- they develop an ability to grow strong and compassionate.

Social cognition is the encoding, storage, retrieval, and processing of information about
conspecifics (members of the same species). Based on this theory, people show remarkable
flexibility in adjusting as situations change; they can take active control of their thoughts and
their plans; they can review several alternatives for interpreting the same event; and they change
their knowledge through feedback from new experiences, reworking existing beliefs, values, and
goals (Showers & Cantor, 1985). For young adults, their social cognition abilities are developed
in the reader response process learning. For example, when they are asked to present book
trailers, they encode characters, events and values from the book, retrieve and process what they

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have stored, collaborate with their partners, and produce their own products based on their
different responses and interpretations. Students develop their social cognition abilities as
readers, thinkers, researchers, speakers, directors, producers, etc., and these skills are also the
key to a 21st century education that prepares students to be competent world citizens.
Teaching a Response-Centered Literature Curriculum
In order to guarantee success, it is necessary to design a response-centered literature
curriculum for young adults at BRS. For any middle school or high school, the key purpose of a
literature curriculum is, through developing a love of reading, to motivate and cultivate lifelong
readers. According to Rosenblatt (1991), Few teachers of English today would deny that the
individuals ability to read and enjoy literature is the primary aim of literary study (p. 64). The
response-centered classroom is viewed as a transformation to a traditional curriculum that
students find boring. However, if students are connected to reading, they will engage with ease
and view reading as a drive for lifelong learning. In this case, for building a successful young
adult literature class, it is fundamental to design a reader response-centered literature curriculum.
Ridding ourselves of a curriculum based on studying literature solely for words, structures or
factual information, is the first step in arousing young adults motivation in reading and
contributing to their growth. According to my surveys, BRS teachers and students unanimously
agree that the school curriculum should be reformed for cultivating students as engaging
learners. Structural changes in creating a literature curriculum require teachers who know how to
teach literature, students who are interested readers, and librarians/curriculum designers who
have a broad knowledge of YAL. In this way, students interest and voices for the pleasure of
reading and learning can be developed.
Classroom Strategies to Teach Young Adult Literature on Reader Response

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According to Bushman and Haas (2006), Like any successful program, a reader-response
approach to teaching literature requires careful use of classroom strategies to achieve desired
results (p. 63). Considering the nature of teenage readers at BRS, genres of young adult
literature, and its use in bilingual classroom curriculum, teachers flexible, instructive, and
innovative classroom strategies are of great value in creating a successful YAL classroom.
Integrating reader response selections/choices with technology.
According to my survey, 75% of students and 80% of teachers believe technology is one of the
best ways for them to have access to a good and varied selection of young adult books. Taking
advantage of online tools to benefit YAL literacy is a common trend for 21st century learners and
teachers. Students can integrate their responses to and interpretations of readings with those
online tools to share and recommend books to their peers. The followings are good examples that
I learned from ECI 521--Teaching Young Adult Literature.
The E-site review: students are encouraged to write up a review to present an e-site intended
for YAL reading, learning, or teaching resources. Students introduce the potential use of the sites
they find instructive and helpful as well as the shortcomings and cyber-safety issues. As a learner
in ECI 521, through the metacognitive process, I found that the class shared a wealth of
resources for YAL. Some classmates also shared a long list of amazing e-sites they frequently log
into and benefit from. This allows students to become expert librarians who can offer up
professional advice to their peers. For BRS, where students and teachers all appeal for more
reading resources to address young adult issues, using e-sites is really great method of helping
teachers and students to make choices about their literary options.
The Video-Book talk: In this process, students articulate their responses by comparing and
contrasting the writing in a novel and the writing of a script (with critiques). Through this,

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students develop an understanding of the different uses of writing, and therefore understand with
greater depth the different but essential uses of reading. Instead of a stand-alone book talk, the
VBTs also help develop students interest in literature by probing the book they select and
reviewing film techniques like an authentic book/film reviewer. Additionally, the connections of
the film to the book will effectively contribute to their interactions of reading, speaking, listening
and writing. To compare and contrast also requires creativity, critical thinking, and problem
solving, which are the essential objectives of a 21st century education.
The Book trailer: In order to produce a tantalizing way of selling books, students are
stimulated to try different methods of representing books. This is a refreshing and rewarding task
that directly integrates technology and literacy. Students must have a good knowledge of at least
one digital tool to open up a book and invite viewers to read. During this process, students read
closely, think critically, respond freely, and interpret insightfully. Their cognitive and aesthetic
experiences (visualizing, questioning, reacting, analyzing, synthesizing, etc.) are evoked,
extended, and enriched in producing a tantalizing book trailer. It seems that they view themselves
as literature so that they can create an affecting and engaging book trailer. In addition, in the
process of viewing and commenting on other peers trailers, students will feel tempted to add
many new books to their shelves that they have never considered.
Independent reading list: This is one of my favorite tasks in the ECI 521 course, because
for someone who didnt read a lot, the completion of this reading list, along with studying other
strategies in this course, like young adult literature partner discussing and writing (YALP), is a
transforming process with a big harvest. Books of more than 12 categories cover a wide range
of topics in terms of cultural literacy, which facilitate students to know more about their own
culture and the culture of others. In addition, books from different genres expose students to a

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different, but exciting, reading itinerary in which they can enrich their knowledge and values,
and empower them to achieve success. During this process, students can also share and exchange
books with each other.
Teachers role: Teachers should make efforts to become expert readers who read and think a
lot, and offer up professional advice to students. While choosing texts, teachers play roles as
guides, librarians, and leaders, instead of controllers. Through the metacognitive process,
teachers can read together with students to better understand students mind; through listening to
students response and encouraging them to articulate-- talking, writing, and producing -teachers engage students as readers and help them address their issues and grow at the
developmental stages.
Parents and librarians role: According to my surveys, 78.5% of students report parents and
librarians play a significant role in giving them guidance on their choices of literature; 60% of
teachers strongly agree that librarians should be knowledgeable about YAL resources and
competent enough to offer advice to young adults who have access to a wide range of texts.
According to the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a librarians mission is to
expand and strengthen library services for teens. Libraries and librarians need to have great
capacity to engage, serve and empower teens to read and learn.
Creating a classroom climate for reader response
In order to create an instructive and active environment for students, teachers must
maintain trust and consistency throughout their instruction and behavior. The first step is to build
a safe and comfortable classroom learning community for open discussions. Next, the behavior
of teachers must stimulate an environment of cooperation. If students feel a sense of security for
talking, discussing and writing, they will be internally motivated to pursue more openly engaging

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and active young adult literature learning, and a successful classroom learning climate will be
achieved in little time.
Classroom arrangement: In Chinese classrooms, all students sit in rows facing teachers,
which shows a sense of conformity and collectivism. However, in order to prepare students for a
trusting relationship for sharing ideas and discussing freely and safely, classrooms should be
organized to create a feeling of warmth, openness, and positivity, which will have a positive
effect on class discussions and group dialogues. So first of all, a successful literature class needs
to have circular seating arranged for students to see and hear one another in a fresh and alive
atmosphere (Bushman & Haas, 2006, p. 64). Through this arrangement, a more friendly and
harmonious relationship can be promoted between teachers and students, and students will feel at
home when they speak up and share their experiences.
Social forums online: This includes Young Adult Literature Partners (YALP), Peer Reviews,
and Weekly Prompts online. In order to involve every student in the YAL classroom learning
community, online forums are useful for those who are shy, lack confidence, or are temporarily
uncomfortable with articulating their ideas in a physical class. Students are able to open a
friendly online space to talk, share, respond to, and exchange thoughts about what they are
reading and learning through accessible and practicable online tools. For BRS students,
considering their particular Internet situation, they can turn to Sina blog, Tencent Blog, Qzone,
and Wechat link, etc. In the long term, YALP, Peers Review and Weekly Prompts, integrated with
online tools, are excellent examples that allow students to engage in reading, talking, and writing
as participants during literature class.
Teachers role: Teachers can also incorporate class topics into forum discussions through
creative activities, such as: take-out dinner plan (students invite one of characters from the

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novels they read to dinner and talk), group discussion about cross-cultural genres, etc.
Teachers can involve themselves by radiating warmth and mutual trust in these forums as well.
Whats more, for young adults, with regards to cyber-safety and digital etiquette, teachers are
suggested to supervise and guide the process of using e-sites.
Promoting a response-centered inquiry environment
To develop the positive dynamics of young adult literature reading and learning at school,
building an inquiry learning community based on reader response is essential. According to
Blooms taxonomy, students learning objectives are divided into three domains: cognitive,
affective, and psychomotor; whose objectives focus on change or development in behavior and
skills (Bloom, 1956). One aim of Blooms taxonomy is to motivate educators to promote a more
holistic form of education, which applies to students literature learning. During the process of
inquiry, students can raise compelling questions about what happened to themselves/peers and
why/how to handle that. Then they can select books or non-printed texts by themselves, or
through the recommendations of teachers, librarians, peers, or parents. After reading, students
exchange ideas within groups or pairs and then showcase or publish their findings through online
forums/blogs/zones or school fairs. This inquiry-based literature learning can be in the form of
projects, sessions, seminars, conferences or book reading fairs all-around the school. In this
environment, students are motivated to learn as readers, speakers, writers, organizers, leaders,
and producers. Teachers, librarians and parents should play roles as guides, learners, professional
advisors, leaders, and sponsors, whose encouragement and support are indispensable. Especially
for teachers and librarians, their advice, resources, and consistent trust and support are necessary
for the community to survive and thrive.

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Once a warm and friendly environment is created, a teachers attitude is the primary tool to
persuade students that reading and learning are intertwined, as the lifelong reading process
requires perseverance. They need to strike a balance between inviting students to think and
respond freely and maintaining authority (Bushman & Haas, 2006)
According to the results my surveys, teachers and students in BRS all believe that a
successful response-centered literature curriculum requires highly-qualified teachers who know
YA and YAL well and who know how to interact with YAL, rather than simply instruct. This
distinction is crucial to ensuring the success of a response-based classroom. To teach is soften
than to instruct (Eisner, 1985, p. 181).
Teaching young adult literature integrated with core texts within school
curriculum
According to Rosenblatt (1985), literary evocation is the process in which readers selects
out ideas, feelings, and images essential to engaging students in learning (p. 40). That means
teachers need to be well aware of this evocative response in which readers integrate their ideas,
feelings, knowledge, and values from their past life experiences into a new experience. If
teachers are capable of using literature to motivate students critical thinking and appreciation
across the curriculum, students will be more internally motivated to read, contribute to the
knowledge pool by providing their personal reactions, and develop as independent readers with
their own vision.
However, for BRS English teachers, it is challenging to achieve that in a short time. The
pressures caused by improving students language proficiency for tests keeps them closely
aligned to school curriculums that are mostly orientated for high scores in language tests. The
traditional approach to teaching a classics based literary curriculum was the best thing they could

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do to prepare their college-bound students for their entrance examinations. YA books are far from
being universally accepted in BRS classrooms. Undoubtedly, the classics have their own merits
to some extent, but middle and high school students should also have their own choices, and
significant opportunities to explore the flourishing body of young adult literature. Finding proper
ways to integrate young adult literature into the curriculum effectively requires careful planning,
but would be met with celebration. YAL would provide amazing opportunities and pleasures for
students to learn and teachers to teach.
Content is a compelling ground to teach a successful YAL class. YA literature affords
readers diverse characters, affecting and compelling stories, and high quality writing. When
incorporated into literature curricula, YA titles can offer a wide range of worldview about
identity, trials, issues, conflict, society, etc. Besides using the classroom strategies
aforementioned, YA literature can be easily incorporated into classrooms by being paired with
classics as well as canons typically used in classrooms (George, 2001).
Create multiple genre thematic units. Teachers must include multiple genres and find
literature that relates to the theme of the core texts assigned by the curricula. There are many
meaningful ways -- such as literature circles/spaces (like YALPs, Peers Review, Weekly prompts
the author learned from ECI 521 in the paper), book clubs, and multimedia projects (like VBTs,
Book Trailers the author benefited from ECI 521) -- to motivate students to read and write about
literature with a purpose more significant than learning about vocabulary, sentence patterns, and
main ideas. Teachers must collaborate to find core themes that are consistent. Then they must
find books that can address those issues, spark the struggling or reluctant readers, and engage
and extend their knowledge on the thematic requirement of units in the curriculum. Students can
then read, respond to, discuss, and work on a project to explore the target issues, and even

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connect current events that reflect the issues that they are studying (George, 2001). With this
method, a variety of texts are bridged by a certain common theme, which allows students to use
literature to pull out big ideas and make connections among the various genres.
Interdisciplinary curricular planning units. Teachers can integrate YAL across the
curriculum by creating interdisciplinary units in which they can collaborate with teachers of
other disciplines, such as: science, history, social studies, art, etc. This is a very practical means
for students to engage in reading and learning. It is of great help to question and tear down
some of the artificial divisions that exist in school curriculums today, and this encourages
teachers to cooperate together to use young adult literature to explore big ideas with their
students and explore the themes and issues confronting teachers and students in the 21st century
(George, 2001). For example, connecting a high school AP English literature curriculum with
American history, teachers can guide students to read a core novel--Grapes of Wrath by John
Steinbeck, accompanied by some historical adolescent novel during the same time period -- like
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis and Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool. AP
American history teachers can join in as they read these novels. The AP literature class
discussion can center upon literary elements and cultural elements of the novel, while the AP
American history teacher can focus on the historical aspects of the work. Like thematic planning
within AP literature class, this interdisciplinary curricular planning has been highly effective in
helping students make connections between the disciplines that they study each day.
Teaching young adult literature within a tight school curriculum is quite challenging, but
as long as teachers, students, and others who are interested in young adult literature persevere in
and avail themselves of every opportunity, a safe and comfortable climate for using young adult
literature can and will be created.

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Challenges and Future Efforts

According to the surveys, BRS students report that they learn literature for tests or exams
based on reading comprehension in reading class. And teachers have to focus on the analysis of
assigned literature works mostly written for adults for academic purposes. In terms of the
historical contexts for teaching literature in China, people tend to think that teaching students to
memorize facts based on analyzing literary elements or deconstructivism is one of the common
features of literary education at secondary level or higher. Based on my observations, learning
and teaching experiences, this misbelief has been consistent with Chinese or English literature
curriculum of some schools for quite a time in China. Students have no motivation to read or are
not engaged in reading due to the lack of dynamics of lifelong reading, poor resources that meet
their needs, no proper teaching and learning strategies, and the severe censorship in literature
selections within curriculums intended for tests, etc.
To create a successful young adult literature class at BRS, based on the surveys, teachers
and students unanimously appeal for the support from school to involve response-centered young
adult literature in curriculum as early as possible, to enrich the reading resources intended for
young adults, to train teachers with skills and competence in teaching young adult literature, to
improve librarians capacity in offering young adults professional advice and aiding them to have
access to a wealth of choices, and to radiate warmth and trust for building a lifelong reading
school community. Only in this way will our young adults be engaged as participants with
reading preferences in literature learning, experiencing diverse cultures, exploring identity,
interests and values, finding meanings in life, and grow up as culturally and globally competent
citizens to meet up future challenges.

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Appendix A
The result of the survey intended for students

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Appendix B
The results of the survey intended for teachers

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