Academic

Discourse
We will…

 Learn what Academic Discourse is

 Learn the benefits of Academic Discourse for students
 Learn what Academic Discourse “sounds” like
 Learn what Academic Discourse “looks” like
 Learn what it feels like to participate in Academic Discourse
What is Academic Discourse?

 Discourse is putting words and sentences together to clearly

communicate complex ideas.
 Academic discourse encompasses the idea of dialogue, the
language used, and a format that facilitates a high level of
communication in the classroom (Lynch, 2013).
 Mathematical discourse is the purposeful exchange of ideas
through classroom discussion, as well as through other forms of
verbal, visual, and written communication.
Why Discourse?

 “Beyond just finding and

memorizing the facts, an
educated and
productive person in
today’s world must be
able to evaluate the facts
and then use them for
meaningful problem
solving.”
-Zwiers and Crawford, 2011
Stop & Jot

 In your Journal’s I want you to write what you think the quote
(below) means in your own words. Be sure to use your annotation
strategies to identify key words and phrases, break it down, and
interpret it.

“Beyond just finding and memorizing the facts, an educated and

productive person in today’s world must be able to evaluate the facts
and then use them for meaningful problem solving.”
-Zwiers and Crawford, 2011
 PAIR & SHARE
TURN TO AN ELBOW PARTNER AND TAKE ONE MINUTE TO HAVE A
CONVERSATION AROUND THE QUOTE. SHARE YOUR INTERPRETATION OF
THE QUOTE WITH YOUR PARTNER.
 What do you think are some
benefits of Academic Discourse
based off the definitions?

 Discourse is putting words and sentences together to clearly communicate complex

ideas.
 Academic discourse encompasses the idea of dialogue, the language used, and a
format that facilitates a high level of communication in the classroom (Lynch, 2013).
 Mathematical discourse is the purposeful exchange of ideas through classroom
discussion, as well as through other forms of verbal, visual, and written
communication.

TURN-AND-TALK WITH A PAPER. BE PREPARED TO SHARE.

Benefits of Academic Discourse
 Communicate effectively
 Ask insightful and critical questions
 Collaborate well with others
 Solve problems
 See multiple perspectives on an
issue and empathize
 Analyze, synthesize, prioritize, and
organize ideas
 Apply prior knowledge to new
concepts
 …and many more!
What does it “sound” like…

 Students sharing ideas & explanations

 Students asking questions
 Students using academic vocabulary efficiently
 “Respectful” conversations
 Productive noise
What does it “look” like…

 Students tracking the speaker; actively listening to others

 Students taking notes while the speaker is speaking
 Students modeling their work using multiple representations or
manipulatives
 Peer-to-peer conversations, groups of students conversing, or
Teacher-to-student conversations
 Students writing down answers and thorough explanations
 Cooperative groups
What does it “feel” like…

 Collaborative
 You feel meaningful; your contributions are needed
 Respected
 It feels like you are learning and growing from your peers
 You feel apart of a team
 You feel supported
Let’s observe…
 You are going to watch “unsuccessful” Academic Discourse first
 Watch for…
 What are they doing?
 What are they saying?
 What is the “mood” or “feelings” of the conversation?

 Then…
 You are going to watch “successful” Academic Discourse
 Watch for….
 What are they doing?
 What are they saying?
 What is the “mood” or “feelings” of the conversation?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ZPq0YezRzy8&t=212s
What did we observe?
Unsuccessful?
 What are they doing?
 What are they saying?
 What is the “mood” or “feelings”
of the conversation?
Let’s Discuss…
Successful?
 What are they doing?
 What are they saying?
 What is the “mood” or “feelings”
of the conversation?
Activity…

 We will begin to demonstrate our understanding of academic discourse

or academic conversations by creating “Norms for Discussions”.
 I will pick 5 people using my equity sticks as team captains. Team captains
are able to pick 4-5 peers to be in their groups.
 Once you’re in your groups, you will have 10 minutes to create a list of no
more than 5 norms for discussion/conversation. These norms should reflect
your understanding of what academic discourse should sound, look, and
feel like.
 Once time is up you will rejoin the entire group and you will share the norms
you came up with. As a class, we will vote to choose the top 5 norms that
we will use for our class discussions/conversations. These norms will be posted
in the class and you & your peers will be held accountable for following
them during all classroom conversations/discussions.
GET TO WORK!
YOU’VE GOT 10 MINUTES!!!!!!!!!
References

Lynch, D. (2013, may 6). Academic Discourse and PBL. Retrieved from
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/sammamish-6-academic-
discourse-PBL-danielle-lynch.