Reading comics in the language classroom

Abstract

There is no denying that comics and their characters have become a major part of our culture. Still, comics remain highly questioned as educational material. This review aimed at understanding whether there are arguments and reasons in research that would support comics as educational material. This review has focused on areas relevant to English education in Sweden and it is divided into four parts: multiliteracy, motivation, content learning, and language learning. The texts are mainly from different parts of the English-speaking world. The reviewed texts indicate that comics can be used to develop a number of literacies, motivate students to read, engage and educate around a vast variety of topics, and assist in students’ language learning.