The Need for Cultural Diversity in High School Textbooks of Romanian Language and Literature

Abstract

In many textbooks for middle school, used in Romania, contemporary literature (both Romanian and universal) is quite present. The same aspect cannot be found in textbooks for high school, focused on the established literary values and on the writers called "canonical". But the archaic language and the students' in-depth ignorance of some historical realities from the past can affect the understanding of the classic literary text. On the other hand, the official school curriculum, approved by Order of the Minister of Education in 2017, establishes that one of the general skills formed through Romanian language and literature classes in middle school is the expression of the own linguistic and cultural identity in national and international context. From this general competence, the specific competences that favor multiculturalism are derived, for each of the four middle school classes. Within the "Elements of interculturality" content area, the teacher of Romanian language and literature is encouraged to discuss with his/her students about the cultural and linguistic diversity. On the contrary, we do not find - for high school - elements of interculturality. Pupils study exclusively texts from Romanian literature (exceptions are found only in the 9th grade). The thematic suitability of the texts studied and the reference to the interests and preferences of the current generation of high school teenagers are essential, and the elements of interculturality could be the "ingredient", as in the middle school, that would make the lessons more attractive.