Implementation of an Integrated Intercultural Literary Pedagogy Intervention in Spanish-as-a-Foreign-Language Classrooms in the Netherlands: An Effect Study at the Secondary Level

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Bibliographic Details
Title: Implementation of an Integrated Intercultural Literary Pedagogy Intervention in Spanish-as-a-Foreign-Language Classrooms in the Netherlands: An Effect Study at the Secondary Level
Language: English
Authors: Esther Schat (ORCID 0000-0002-0448-6621), Ewout van der Knaap, Rick de Graaff
Source: Language Teaching Research. 2026 30(4):1789-1813.
Availability: SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 25
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Research
Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Secondary Education
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Secondary School Students, Second Language Learning, Spanish, Content and Language Integrated Learning, Cultural Awareness, Foreign Language Books, Language Proficiency, Intervention, Literature, Interpersonal Competence, Longitudinal Studies, Secondary School Teachers, Teaching Methods
Geographic Terms: Netherlands
DOI: 10.1177/13621688231156391
ISSN: 1362-1688
1477-0954
Abstract: In today's globalized world, teaching intercultural competence in educational contexts is of great importance. The potential of foreign language literary texts has been emphasized repeatedly. The present study investigates the value of a content and language integrated learning (CLIL) approach to the teaching of literature in foreign language classrooms for the simultaneous development of intercultural competence and foreign language reading proficiency. An intervention based on integrated intercultural literary pedagogy (IILP) was developed. This longitudinal quasi-experimental study examined the effects of the IILP treatment in a sample of 274 Dutch secondary school students (from seven schools) who were learning Spanish as a foreign language using a switch replication design with two conditions. Three Spanish novels were read in both conditions in two consecutive school years. For the experimental condition, students performed dialogical tasks based on IILP pedagogical principles; for the control condition, the tasks consisted of comprehensive reading questions. Multilevel analysis of the data revealed that the students in the experimental condition significantly improved their intercultural competence when compared with the students in the control condition. For reading proficiency, main effects were found in both conditions. The results demonstrate that a CLIL approach adds considerably to intercultural development; a broad inclusion of literary texts in foreign language teaching environments is therefore recommended.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: EJ1502917
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:In today's globalized world, teaching intercultural competence in educational contexts is of great importance. The potential of foreign language literary texts has been emphasized repeatedly. The present study investigates the value of a content and language integrated learning (CLIL) approach to the teaching of literature in foreign language classrooms for the simultaneous development of intercultural competence and foreign language reading proficiency. An intervention based on integrated intercultural literary pedagogy (IILP) was developed. This longitudinal quasi-experimental study examined the effects of the IILP treatment in a sample of 274 Dutch secondary school students (from seven schools) who were learning Spanish as a foreign language using a switch replication design with two conditions. Three Spanish novels were read in both conditions in two consecutive school years. For the experimental condition, students performed dialogical tasks based on IILP pedagogical principles; for the control condition, the tasks consisted of comprehensive reading questions. Multilevel analysis of the data revealed that the students in the experimental condition significantly improved their intercultural competence when compared with the students in the control condition. For reading proficiency, main effects were found in both conditions. The results demonstrate that a CLIL approach adds considerably to intercultural development; a broad inclusion of literary texts in foreign language teaching environments is therefore recommended.
ISSN:1362-1688
1477-0954
DOI:10.1177/13621688231156391