Talk, talk, talk: teaching and learning in whole class discourse

Myhill, Debra

doi:10.1080/02671520500445425

Cited by 175 publications

(169 citation statements)

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“…Reference [4] likewise found that discourse strategies used by teachers limit student participation and restrict turn-taking in conversation. The present study shows that the third turn in conversation sequence is limited to a short feedback given by the teachers, most frequently a positive comment or correction, which is supported by other studies [6], [7]. Traditional lockstep teaching used by the teachers results in the lack of individualized instruction as well as the lack communicative and cooperative activities.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

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Classroom Discourse Analysis in EFL Elementary Lessons

Domalewska¹

2015

IJLLL

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Abstract-The present study is an attempt to confront the problem of many Thai students' failure to communicate fluently and accurately in English. For this reason the study investigates the patterns of teacher-student interaction in beginner EFL (English as a Foreign Language) lessons in a Thai elementary school. The analysis of classroom discourse shows that one-way communication prevails in the lessons with the teachers leading teacher-fronted discussion and students listening and then either repeating after the teacher or responding briefly. If the students are engaged in a discussion, they are asked mainly comprehension, assent or educational (grammar and vocabulary) questions. Furthermore, an examination of the teachers' and students' verbal behaviors shows frequent code-switching practices.Index Terms-Classroom discourse analysis, code switching, elementary education, English as a foreign language. I. INTRODUCTIONFormal instruction accelerates the acquisition of the target language and makes it possible for learners to achieve higher level of proficiency. Having been exposed to rich input in English and having learned the language for many years, it should not be difficult for Thai students to communicate in English. Nevertheless, many learners cannot speak and write fluently and accurately in English. Thus, the problem of many students' failure to communicate effectively needs to be confronted.Successful language learning depends on classroom communication, i.e. interaction learners engage in with their teacher and other learners. The discourse among students and the teacher and among students themselves is central for foreign language learning as it contextualizes learning experiences while active participation in classroom discourse engages learners in the learning process. II. CLASSROOM DISCOURSEA characteristic feature of classroom discourse is the teacher's control of the interaction. A large body of research proves the unequal roles of participants in classroom communication with the teacher managing the conversation and turn-taking [1]. However, the control over the classroom discourse leads to limited learning as there is no place for meaningful, spontaneous and natural interaction. Students can only acquire the language through involvement in interactions and relationships formed when they take part in Manuscript received October 10, 2014; revised January 14, 2015. Dorota Domalewska is with Rangsit University, Pathum Thani, Thailand (e-mail: dorota@outlook.co.th).communication. Language thus activated and internalized becomes part of the students' cognitive resources [2]. Learning needs to be meaningful as it allows "new pieces of information [to be] attached to existing knowledge so that a new, meaningful whole, like the completed puzzle, is formed" [3]. Learning needs to be based on the processes of assimilation, accommodation, developing meaningful cognitive sets (i.e. forming logical connection and organization in the material), and using advanced organizers (i.e. general concepts that help t...

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 60%

“…Other studies [5]- [7] prove that classroom discourse is limited to teacher-initiated questions are to a great extent display questions that are difficult to answer due to a short time allowed for response, and the third turn is merely a simple feedback.…”

Section: Classroom Discoursementioning

confidence: 99%

Classroom Discourse Analysis in EFL Elementary Lessons

Domalewska¹

2015

IJLLL

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“…And it is certainly desirable that children have the opportunity to initiate a communication sequence related to their own experiences with the topic being discussed within the educational activities. Children need teachers who are sensitive to their initiations (Myhill, 2006) -teachers who stop racing against time and offer space for children to initiate the communication. They need teachers who listen to children and gradually become able to integrate the requirements of the curriculum and children's need to learn with by the co-construction of knowledge, to apply communication patterns supporting children's initiations as presented by Rasku-Puttonen et al (2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The next well-known variant of IRF is the structure with a variation of the last component of communication exchanges-E as evaluation instead of feedback as presented by Mehan and Cazden (as cited in Mareš, 2016). The term "communication pattern," which can be found in some foreign studies, is the current equivalent of the term "structure" (Myhill, 2006;Rasku-Puttonen, 2012;Molinari & Mameli, 2015). The result of the study by Myhill is therefore the following definition: "teacher-pupil interactions operated in highly conventional discourse patterns with the domination of teacher talk" (2006, p. 24).…”

Section: Teacher-child Communication Structure And/or Patterns In Kinmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…At the same time, however, the teacher remained the manager of the communication in order to fulfil the set goals of education. Although current approaches to education emphasize the focus on the child/pupil, which should lead to weakening the teacher's dominance in the classroom, Myhill (2006) notes that many studies over the past few decades repeatedly have shown a strong tendency of the teachers to dominate the communication in the classroom. Communication generally has a power dimension.…”

Section: Teacher-child Communication Structure And/or Patterns In Kinmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Children’s Initiations in Communication with Preschool Teachers

Navrátilová

2017

Acta Technologica Dubnicae

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Abstract:Introduction: This paper deals with an important aspect of preschool teachers' everyday professional life -interacting with children during educational activities in kindergarten environment. The research of real situations in kindergarten, still rare in Czech pedagogical discourse, indicates the limitedness of preschool teachers' communication following already fixed communication structures and patterns. There is not much evidence that teacher-child communication in kindergarten is initiated by children with any frequency. The aim of our research study is to describe preschool children's initiations in communication with preservice preschool teachers and identify teachers' strategies in mutual communication. Methods:The research is based on qualitative analysis of data obtained through participated unstructured observation (37 video recordings of micro educational situations with the duration of 3 to 15 minutes were collected) and written reflection of pre-service preschool teachers (55 participants). Each part of the observation took place in a different class of a standard kindergarten. In one case, it was a homogeneous class of children aged 5-6 years, and in the second, a heterogeneous class with children aged between 3 and 5 years. Our data material in the form of written reflections and transcribed video recordings was then processed through the qualitative content analysis. Results: Research results show children breaking the communication structure managed by the teacher, and the teacher's strategies in these situations. We identified five main circumstances of preschool children's initiations as communicating their own experiences or associations related to the topic presented by the teacher. Discussion: Our findings show a certain range of responses of future teachers to children's initiation in interaction during educational activities. Besides evidence of releasing communication in terms of teacher management, less suitable kinds of responses to children's initiation appear. The teacher is not able to give up control over the ongoing communication.Limitations: Selected research sample consists of pre-service teachers, who represent only a partial sample of potential interactions in the kindergarten environment. Thus, to some teachers, the findings apply only partially in practice; with other teachers, we could possibly expand our research even deeper. This choice to use only a partial sample reflects both practicality and the need to improve the competence of future teachers through recording their unscripted interactions with children.

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Visualizing communication structures in science classrooms: Tracing cumulativity in teacher‐led whole class discussions

et al. 2013

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Teacher-led whole class discussions are essential when it comes to guiding students' construction of knowledge, and recent studies on teaching and learning emphasize the need for more studentcentered teaching methods. In previous studies, the extent to which different types of communication take place in the classroom have been extensively reported by means of lists, tables, and charts, yet these studies have not included overviews of how talk develops and progresses over time. This study addresses this aspect by presenting how different communicative approaches constitute a specific, cumulative communication structure. Within this structure, the role and temporal considerations of a dialogic approach to teaching are examined within a teaching sequence on the topic of electrical power and energy. The case data were analyzed on multiple levels. First, teaching sequences were presented graphically to provide a broader picture of the communicational orientation of the overall lesson. Second, a detailed analysis of dialogic interactions was executed to understand the quality and role of these interactions on a broader communicational level. This multilevel analysis provides insights into the different purposes and quality of dialogic implementation in terms of the cumulative and meaningful learning of science. Implications for teaching and teacher education and educational research are also discussed. # 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 50: 912-939, 2013

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Talk, talk, talk: teaching and learning in whole class discourse

Cited by 175 publications

References 12 publications

Classroom Discourse Analysis in EFL Elementary Lessons

Classroom Discourse Analysis in EFL Elementary Lessons

Children’s Initiations in Communication with Preschool Teachers

Visualizing communication structures in science classrooms: Tracing cumulativity in teacher‐led whole class discussions

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