CLASSROOM DISCOURSE

Writing of an Apache native American student displayed in a school art exhibition

Classroom as a context
What is a classroom (a physical location, a concept)? What kinds of products do we expect from a classroom? If the product is learning, then what is learning and how does it happen? What are the roles of individuals (students, teachers, etc.) in the classroom in relation to these products?

What is classroom discourse?

The language that teachers and students use to communicate with each other in the classroom. Talking, or conversation, is the medium through which most teaching takes place, so the study of classroom discourse is the study of the process of face-to-face classroom teaching.

Classroom ideologies
Classroom learning involves more than just learning a set of linguistic forms (learning English, math, etc.); it also involves learning beliefs and values.

What are the learning beliefs of teachers, students, textbook writers, curriculum designers, and educational policy makers, and how do these ideologies translate into classroom discourse?

3 patterns of classroom discourse

1. Silent: the teacher talks and students listen. 2. Controlled: Teacher asks questions and students respond. Also called: InitiationResponse-Evaluation/follow-up (very prevalent form of teaching in all classrooms) 3. Active: teacher facilitates students learning.

Class participation
Students learn not only the class materials but also how to participate in class activities. Speaking Rights: teachers speak at any time, to anybody, interrupt others at will, and speak with any tone they like to talk Turn-taking in classroom: a broad range of factors influence who gets a turn to talk in classroom and who does less. Factors such as personal characteristics, race, gender, class, native language, and where the student is seated. Those who dont get or dont seek to talk a take turn may feel alienated from the class

The role of discourse as mediator of learning?

Zone of proximal development" (Vygotsky, 1978): The distance between what children can do by themselves and the next learning that they can be helped to achieve with competent assistance (teacher or peers) - Similar to krashens i+1 in language learning

Scaffolding
The process through which teachers and students interact with each other by building on each other's immediately previous statement or utterance. The scaffolding teaching strategy provides individualized support based on the learners ZPD

Scaffolding in action

How can you help scaffolding knowledge?

Form groups of 4 and discuss the followings: What are the advantages and disadvantage of scaffolding? What are the ways in which you can scaffold knowledge in your English classroom? How does scaffolding knowledge differs from a high school English classroom than that of a primary grade English classroom? In what other ways the classroom discourse varies from a high school class than that of a primary grade class?

Group presentation
Record (audio or video) an instance of classroom interaction (your English site or any other classroom). Remember to get permission from people in the room. Choose an interesting segment of your data. Transcribe the event. Discuss the discourse of the event. For instance: 1. What is the method of teaching (silent, controlled, active) and support your claim from the data? 2. Who gets to talk in the class? Why, how? 3. How do objects (textbook, board, PCs, notebook, etc.) shape the direction of discourse? 4. Do you see any instance of scaffolding, ZPD? Make a presentation and email it along with your data by Thursday night.

Exit cards, please