Women Writers against Gender Violence. A Didactic Proposal for the ELE Classroom

Escritoras contra la violencia de género. Propuesta didáctica para el aula ELE

Abstract

The classroom is a space for education where, beyond teaching content, professors seek to instill in students values and attitudes that will turn them into driving forces for social change. One of the most urgent issues on the social agenda is gender violence, which continues to exist in much of the Hispanic world. Generating change lies in two essential processes that students need to be introduced to: sensitization to and prevention of gender violence. The first brings to light the phenomenon of gender-based violence so that its causes and effects are known and understood. The second seeks to address the causes, rather than the effects. This article offers a didactic proposal for the advanced level ELE classroom as part of the teaching of Hispanic world. culture. The proposal aims to raise awareness and prevent gender violence through critical-communicative activities based on stories by four Spanish-speaking women writers: Andrea Jeftanovic, Teresa Dey, Emilia Pardo Bazán and Mariana Enríquez. The proposal is based on hermeneutic and active learning methodologies. Active learning makes learning meaningful for students because they can play an active role in the knowledge construction process. Through hermeneutics, the aim is to lead the student to reflect on gender violence to apprehend the ideas raised by the short stories and ultimately contribute positively to the prevention of violence against women.