International scientific journal
“Interpretation and researches”
Volume 2 issue 24 (46) | ISSN: 2181-4163 | Impact Factor: 8.2
33
WAYS TO INCREASE STUDENTS
’
INTEREST IN READING IN RUSSIAN
LITERATURE CLASSES
Khalimova Nafosat Davronbek kizi
Teacher of the department of Russian literature and teaching methods of the
Uzbekistan State World Languages University
Abstract:
This article is devoted to the problem of reducing interest in reading
among students and ways to solve it. The types of work proposed by the literature
teacher to increase students’ interest in reading are given.
Keywords:
reader’s receptivity, clip thinking, fiction, motivation to read,
individual approach, book trailer.
Nowadays, teachers, parents, and those who care about the development of the
younger generation have been increasingly concerned about the decline in the number
of young readers and the lack of interest in reading among the majority of young
people. The problem of the lack of conscious reading has become more common
among students, and some literary works that they read, unfortunately, are poorly
remembered or do not remain in the student’s memory at all. Researcher
L.Konovalova notes that “opinions are so polar that, on the one hand, there is a firm
conviction in society of a deep crisis of reading culture, and on the other hand, new
models of reading are being approved in modern conditions of the information
society.” [1, p. 76].
Recently, the concepts of “fragmentation” and “clip-on” thinking have often
been used, and they accurately convey to us what is happening under the power of the
Internet not only with children, but also with adults. One of the main reasons for the
decline in interest is precisely the preference of students for smartphones and
computers, namely surfing the Internet, watching videos and spending hours playing
computer and mobile games. One of the main reasons for the decline in interest is
precisely the preference of students for smartphones and computers, namely surfing
the Internet, watching videos and spending hours playing computer and mobile
games. It is easy for them to perceive pictures, “video clips”, and character
sequences. Colorful images, short sounds and speeches mixed with trending music
change almost every second. All this leads to a decrease in attention and
concentration, which can be difficult for the average student to show perseverance
and finish reading, for example, a chapter from a novel, he begins to be distracted by
the smartphone and in just a couple of seconds our “reader” finds himself completely
under the power of this device and begins to consume an incredible flow of
information. As a result, the brain begins to deny reading literature, limiting itself to
short sentences, slang words and “comments”, stops doing difficult energy-intensive
work and becomes lazy. The brains of young people sometimes process so much
information from the Internet environment (and in most cases it is simple
consumption without any awareness) that we involuntarily ask ourselves the
questions “Why is this happening?”, “How to make a student read?”, “Will he be able
International scientific journal
“Interpretation and researches”
Volume 2 issue 24 (46) | ISSN: 2181-4163 | Impact Factor: 8.2
34
to love books?”. After all, the role of a teacher in developing students’ interest and
fostering their love for literature is one of the main ones.
On the one hand, it seems that this is due to digital addiction and that, first of all,
it is necessary to get rid of it. But this process is complex and lengthy, and depends
more on the environment that surrounds the student: parents, friends, groupmates. It
is not always possible to achieve any result by forcing reading. There is only one way
out – to awaken the inner interest of students in reading. Help them find their book,
their writer, their genre. It is unlikely that you will be able to immediately teach how
to love reading, since this process should be started from an early age, but you can
always identify the interests of young people and develop motivation to read.
In literature classes, the following types of work can be done as a solution to this
problem.
1. Identifying the talents of each (low-reading) student and giving assignments
appropriate to their abilities. For example, a student has a hidden talent for acting and
recitation. The teacher, involving him in the staging of an excerpt from the work,
helps to open up. In turn, the student should refer to the text of the literary work in
order to prepare for the performance. For students who like to draw, you can arrange
an exhibition, for example, on the theme “The hero / heroine of the novel in my
mind.” Comic book type works are welcome. The condition may be a possible
approximation of the drawing to the description of the character’s appearance. By
applying such an individual approach, the teacher can see how the student will
necessarily read at least part of the work to create this character and will definitely
include his imaginative thinking.
2. Involving students in such type of work as “co-authorship”. We need to give
them the opportunity to feel like a writer. For example, in Russian literature classes,
students may be asked to write a short prologue to the story “Dark Alleys” in the
process of studying I.Bunin’s creative work. To do this, they will definitely need to
read the story. This work is aimed not only at increasing interest in reading, but also
at developing students’ imagination, thinking and writing skills.
3. Conducting literary games. Gamification is known to help simplify the
solution of even the most difficult tasks. First-year students are invited to come up
with and compose assignments for the fairy tales they have read (“Little Fox and the
Wolf”, “Marya Morevna”, “The Magic Horse”) for the students themselves to
conduct the game. In order to come up with assignments, students will have to
directly refer to the texts of fairy tales and work with them. The teacher divides the
group into three teams and sets the rules. Three trained students lead the game,
monitoring the completion of tasks. For correct answers, the hosts present pictures
with fairy tale characters. And at the end of the game, the participants will have to
name all the characters one by one. The team with the most “heroes” wins. The hosts
are encouraged along with the winning team.
4. Sharing books. Just as parents should set an example for their children by
reading, teachers should not forget that students are always watching them. Reading
during breaks, bringing and recommending books is the best thing a teacher can do.
You can also launch a so-called book crossing among students. A student who sees
how his groupmates pass books that interest them to each other will definitely react.
International scientific journal
“Interpretation and researches”
Volume 2 issue 24 (46) | ISSN: 2181-4163 | Impact Factor: 8.2
35
He may not start reading right away, but there is a high probability that he will be
interested in at least the title of a book and he will reach for it.
5. Creating book trailers. This format of work is suitable not only for book
lovers, but also for those who are interested in booktubing (maintaining a video blog
dedicated to books). Students prepare a kind of “advertisement” for their favorite
book and speak in class for 2-3 minutes. In their presentation, they should highlight
the most interesting points from the book, but at the same time not spoil, not fully
disclose the content. The goal is to interest the groupmates so that they read the
proposed book.
6. Starting a book blog. Students who are interested in blogging and creating
online content should be invited to participate in book marathons. Those who wish
can be helped in creating a channel in which the student-author will share the books
he has read in the format of text, pictures, and audio/video recordings. In the process
of work, the student will simply need to read literature. Filling a blog with short
content from the Internet will not work, because subscribers, first of all, will most
likely be friends and groupmates. At first, the student will at least feel responsible to
them, and then, if he likes this activity, his recommendations and book reviews will
follow one after the other.
According to academician D.Likhachev, “literature gives us a colossal, vast and
profound experience of life. It makes a person intelligent, develops in him not only a
sense of beauty, but also an understanding – an understanding of life and all its
complexities, serves as a guide to other epochs and to other peoples, opens people’s
hearts to you. In a word, it makes you wise” [2, p. 75]. Indeed, reading fiction gives
us the opportunity to live the whole lives, imagine various events, and most
importantly, learn to understand the difficulties that arise and find life guidelines.
Today every teacher of Russian literature faces the question of instilling in students a
love of reading. Only by solving it can we talk about the upbringing of a
comprehensively developed personality. It’s not for nothing that M. Gorky wrote:
“Love a book – the source of knowledge, only knowledge is saving, only it can make
us spiritually strong, honest, reasonable people...” [3]. Increasing students’ interest in
reading is not as easy a job as it seems at first glance. One of the further important
tasks remains the search for an individual approach to each student.
References:
1. Konovalova L.I. Reader’s development in a modern school// Modern methods
of teaching literature: development strategies. XXIV Golubkov readings: Proceedings
of the International scientific and practical conference, March 24-25, 2016. Moscow:
Ekon-Inform Publishing House, 2017. 152 p.
2. Likhachev D.S. Letters about good. M.: “Science”, 2006. – 321 p.
3.
http://az.lib.ru/g/gorxkij_m/text_1918_kak_ya_uchilsya.shtml
(date
of
request: 12/19/2024).
