This ISCPET study set out to determine the effect that various approaches to teaching literature to prospective high school English teachers might have on their literary knowledge and later teaching competencies. The curricular patterns used to teach literature at three colleges--survey approach (University of Illinois), author and historical period approach (Bradley University), and genre approach (North Central College)--were compared with the teaching competencies of a group of first-year graduates, from each of the schools, who were teaching secondary school literature. No definitive statistical evidence was produced to indicate that any one of the three approaches was superior in conveying literary knowledge. Some significant statistical support was found, however, for the contention that, for developing teaching competencies as judged by secondary school department chairmen and critic teachers, a genre approach to teaching literature proved more effective in preparing students to teach literature than did the historical period or survey approaches. (Author/JB)