The discourse of classroom interaction in Kenyan primary schools

Pontefract, Caroline; Hardman, Frank

doi:10.1080/03050060500073264

Cited by 91 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…English-only, exam-focused language ideologies in Kenya have led to rote learning that lacks or precludes learner meaning-construction and leads to extensive silencing and the exclusion of students from participation (Ackers and Hardman 2001;Kiramba 2017a;Ogechi 2009;Pontefract and Hardman 2005). These factors exacerbate epistemic exclusion and dropout rates alike (Alidou 2003; Bamgboṣ e 2000; Qorro 2009) among students whose MT is different from the LOI.…”

Section: Silencing/exclusion: Monolingual Habitus In Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

Language ideologies and epistemic exclusion

Kiramba

2018

Language and Education

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Research in educational linguistics is now challenging the efficacy of monolingual approaches that often dominate educational practices in multilingual settings. In most African nations where multilingualism is the norm, there remains a persistent reluctance by educational stakeholders (principals, teachers, parents, and students) to embrace multilingualism in education or to reposition local languages as resources in classrooms. This article draws on qualitative data from a multilingual, rural, fourth-grade classroom in Kenya to interrogate the articulated ideologies and their effects on communicative practices as voiced by the participants and by observing actual classroom practices. Bourdieu's notions of habitus, legitimate language, and symbolic power serve as analytic lenses for enhancing our understanding of the power of language ideologies. From the data, "monoglossia" emerged as the key operating ideology, with time-on-task pedagogical practice helping to consolidate these monoglossic practices. The most visible effect of this ideology was silencing student engagement in the classroom. I argue that an awareness of these articulated ideologies and their observable effects on students' learning and language-use behaviors is important for challenging the subordination of home languages and the epistemic exclusion of the children who speak marginalized languages. Ideological awareness may open spaces for alternative and inclusive educational approaches.

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Section: Silencing/exclusion: Monolingual Habitus In Practicementioning

confidence: 99%

Language ideologies and epistemic exclusion

Kiramba

2018

Language and Education

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“…No classroom context mode, whose purpose is to enable learners to express themselves, is found in either of these two classes. While this finding is not surprising, as it has been shown in previous studies (e.g., Pontefract & Hardman, 2005), repetition activities as such do not involve the students in higher mental processes, e.g., thinking and reasoning, and would consequently affect the degree of student achievement in English learning (Soled, 1990). …”

Section: Mode Of Discourse-teacher-reading and Student-repeatingmentioning

confidence: 46%

“…The study also finds that choral responses, which place lower cognitive and linguistic demands on the students (cf. Pontefract & Hardman 2005), were prevalent in the classrooms. It is argued that learning outcomes of activities which engage students only in repetition and imitation might be less favorable than those of activities which require higher mental processes (Soled, 1990), and this type of discourse of classroom interaction does not encourage the students to experiment with the target language (Pontefract & Hardman, 2005).…”

Section: Responding Move-repeating/imitatingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is argued that learning outcomes of activities which engage students only in repetition and imitation might be less favorable than those of activities which require higher mental processes (Soled, 1990), and this type of discourse of classroom interaction does not encourage the students to experiment with the target language (Pontefract & Hardman, 2005). Additionally, in line with Pontefract and Hardman (2005), the study shows that the word length of student responses was mostly one-word, which indicates that the students "had little opportunity to respond at length to teacher initiations" (p. 97).…”

Section: Responding Move-repeating/imitatingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, Marton and Tsui (2004) reported studies on classroom discourse in relation to learning of different school subjects in the context of Hong Kong. Pontefract and Hardman (2005) investigated the role of classroom discourse in students' learning of English in elementary schools in Kenya. They found that the discourse pattern of asking students to complete a sentence through a direct repetition of the teacher's verbalization was prevalent in English classes.…”

Section: Research On Classroom Discoursementioning

confidence: 99%

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A Study of Discourse in Relation to Language Learning in English Classes Co-Taught by Native English-Speaking Teachers and Local Teachers in Taiwan

Luo¹

2013

ELT

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This study attempts to explore the nature and the potential of various discourse structures and linguistic functions that may facilitate students' learning in English classes co-taught by a native English-speaking teacher (NEST) and a local English teacher in Taiwanese elementary schools. Considering the nature of the study, the author employed a case-study approach to investigate the classroom discourse. In the study, data were analyzed based on a theoretical framework combining discourse analysis schemes, systemic functional theory of language, sociocultural theory of mind and activity theory. The study reveals that repetition drills were commonly used in the classrooms in spite of the difference in the learners' levels, and the Initiating-Responding model was the dominant feature of the classroom discourse structure. The target language, i.e., English, was used by the teachers for demanding information or action, while by the students it was used for repeating and imitating. In light of the findings, the author makes suggestions on co-taught English classes of this kind, for instance, the necessity of creating interactional context for language use, encouraging individual responses from students, and using alternative discourse strategies.

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2009

Peer Groups and Children's Development

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The discourse of classroom interaction in Kenyan primary schools

Cited by 91 publications

References 16 publications

Language ideologies and epistemic exclusion

Language ideologies and epistemic exclusion

A Study of Discourse in Relation to Language Learning in English Classes Co-Taught by Native English-Speaking Teachers and Local Teachers in Taiwan

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