Keys for choosing a building itinerary of identities in the process of the reception and learning of Spanish as a Second Language

Abstract

In the light of the analysis of the reading responses of young immigrants – the targets of the study – and assuming that literary reading builds up our identities (Barthes, 1979, Bruner, 2002; Larrosa, 2003, –among others–); in this research we focus on analyzing and reflecting on the possibilities that the literary discourse offers as a means of (re) constructing immigrant students’ identities in the processes of receiving and learning Spanish as a second language. For this purpose, we draw inspiration from the sociological theories on literary education and the emotional approach to literature (Petit, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2009), Rosenblatt’s transactional theory (2002) and the reading responses theoretical trend (Sipe, 2000, 2010). Moreover, we draw on Lewis’s concept of distance (2000) and Meek’s ideas regarding literature as a scaffold to access literacy. Emilia Ferreiro’s investigation on writing as an identity marker and Freinet’s theories regarding the free text leads us to create a blog and to analyse its possibilities as a stimulating tool for reading and writing.