Investigating the Development of Critical Thinking through Novels in English Language Learning: Teachers’-Learners’ Perceptions

Thinking plays very significant role in one's success in life, how relative the concept of success
might be. Critical thinking has drastic impact to ameliorate one’s attitudes regarding personal,
professional and even social life, and it has been a crucial part of language learning. Merely
using the language and knowing the meaning is not enough. Learners need to use critical and
creative thinking through the target language. They need to differentiate between rational and
irrational argumentations, be creative in producing ideas and critically support them with logical
explanations. Teachers are expected to give the opportunities them to ask questions, to doubt and
to reject ideas. Their beliefs and attitudes about ideas, concepts and their functions in language
classrooms have momentous implications upon learners' critical thoughts. However, in English
language learning, literary texts are proved as adjuvant instruments. The current study indicates,
to improve learners’ critical thinking, literary pieces might prove facilitating to be used in
language classrooms. It aims to investigate whether critical thinking skills develop through using
English novels in language learning, among the tertiary level learners in Chittagong and what are
the views of English language teachers towards this issue. This study is based on findings, both
quantitative and qualitative, which demonstrate that, though benefits of using novels in
facilitating learners’ language learning and development of critical thinking is convincing, but
for language classrooms novels are not convenient enough to be used as a tool. To uplift
learners’ critical thinking ability, novels can be read outside the classrooms as part of extensive
reading along with pieces from other literary genres, and for language classrooms of tertiary
education, teachers should select materials aptly to enhance learners’ critical thinking skills