SIG Research on Literature Education

Coordinators

• Jeroen Dera (The Netherlands)
• Heidi Høglund (Finland)
• Marco Magirius (Germany)

Activities

The Special Interest Group ROLE organizes various activities, for example:

• symposia on ARLE conferences
• seminars in between ARLE conferences, and
• special issues of L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature.

Upcoming SIG ROLE Seminar in Nijmegen, The Netherlands in June 2025

The SIG ROLE seminar, “Legitimising Literature in an Evolving Media Landscape,” will be held at Radboud University in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, from June 25–27, 2025. For more details about the seminar, please visit the seminar website for more information.

Previous SIG ROLE Seminars

In September 2023 the SIG ROLE seminar Literary development reconsidered: Perceiving literary education in an ethical frame was held at Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. Invited keynote speakers were Associate Professor Sofia Ahlberg, Uppsala University Sweden and Dr. Julia Dietrich, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. Around 50 researchers participated in the seminar. You may find further details about the event in the attached document. The seminar was arranged by the SIG coordinators Irene Pieper, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany and Heidi Höglund, Åbo Akademi University, Finland, in cooperation with Helen Lehndorf, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany.

In May 2021, SIG ROLE - Research on Literature Education held a webinar on the theme "Memory Culture in Literature Education" which was hosted by Abo Academy/Finland. The aim was to explore the theme of memory culture from the perspectives of literature and literature education. Keynotes from literary studies and the arts, an artist talk and discussions about the presentations submitted provided insights into approaches to memory culture from different angles. Children’s literature and literature for young readers, films and graphic novels received particular attention. Participants appreciated the opportunity for intensive exchange on a praticularly challenging theme in an international perspective. The program is available here.

In June 2018 members of SIG ROLE met for a seminar at the University of Hildesheim. Theme of the seminar was “Interaction in the Literature Classroom”. The aim of the seminar was to provide insights into different approaches to research on interaction in the literature classroom as a means of learning and discuss ongoing research in an international context. In two workshops groups of experts and the conference community discussed empirical data from both plenary and peer group discussions about reading experiences and approaches to literature. For more information see the call and the program of the seminar.

In June 2016 a two-day PhD-seminar was held at the University of Amsterdam. The seminar offered PhD candidates in the field of literature education the opportunity to exchange ideas, knowledge and experiences, and to discuss their ongoing research with experts. About ten PhD-candidates and seven experts participated.

Special Issues L1

Until now, SIG ROLE prepared three special issues of L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature:

• Verbal Interaction and Literary understanding, volume 9, 2009;
• Interpretation and Literary Competences, volume 12, 2012;
• The Role of Writing in Literature Education, volume 17, 2017.

Future issues are under consideration. Search for volumes and paper on the the journal's website.