Résumé:
Literature is widely recognized as a rich source of authentic material that can be used by language
teachers at all learning levels and for several intents. Despite its potential, this resource is still
relegated to oblivion in some educational settings, mainly in English as Foreign Language
(henceforth, EFL) secondary school classrooms. Many researchers attribute the marginalization
of the literary component in language classrooms to the scarcity of studies on its effectiveness.
Accordingly, the present study seeks to investigate the incorporation of the literary component
of the English language in the Algerian Secondary School education. More precisely, it aims to
assess both the quantity and the quality of the literary texts within the secondary school English
textbooks and to determine the theoretical orientations of the tasks accompanying these texts.
Moreover, it seeks to gauge stakeholders’ perspectives towards integrating literature in the
secondary school education. The study adopts the interpretive research paradigm, using three
distinct research instruments, namely: textbooks analysis, questionnaires and interviews. For the
analysis of results, a mixed methods approach was employed.
The findings indicate that the literary component is underutilized in the secondary school
education. This is evident from the limited number of the literary texts present in the three
English textbooks, which feature outdated topics, restricted objectives, and stagnant language
that do not align with the learners’ language aptitudes. Moreover, the majority of secondary
school educators and inspectors hold positive perspectives towards the integration of the EFL
literary component, signaling a consensus that supports moving forward with incorporating more
literature. The study; therefore, suggests incorporating suitable literature into the curriculum,
balanced with cognitive and affective learning goals, as a strategic bridge to more complex
literary works at the university level.
