Classroom Discourse and Teacher

Development
 Introduction

Discourse
•Can be defined as ‘language in use’ (Cook,
1989:6).

Classroom Discourse
•As a distinctive type of discourse in
classroom Nunan (Yu, 2009:2)
 Pedagogical Discourse
The structural components of a pedagogical
discourse; Mechan (cited in Yu, 2009: 2)
O An opening phase
O An instructional phase
O Closing phase
 Types of language use in EFL
classroom discourse

mechanical meaningful

Pseudo- Real
communication communication
Dimension of Classroom Discourse
1) the interactive goal
 Core goal
 Framework goal
 Social goal
2) Adress and its related types
The relationship between Teachers and
Classroom Discourse
Teachers Classroom Discourse
Teacher’s areas of development in
classroom

1. Improving 2. Making the 3. Improving

Questioning Discourse More Interactive
Strategies Communicative decision-making

4. Dealing with
Reticence
1. Improving Questioning Strategies

Form Content Purpose

• Wh- question • Personalize • Display question
• Yes-no question questions • Referential
question
• Teachers act as
if they do not
know the
answer
 Example

closed and open questions

Is English your favorite subject?

Why English is your favorite subject?

2. Making the Discourse More
Communicative
O Comparison between the
communication that
takes place in classroom
with that of the ‘outside’
or ‘real’ world.
Features of communication Classroom
Referential Questions: require greater effort and
depth of processing on the part of the teacher

Content Feedback: focus on meaning rather than

language form

Wait-Time: the amount of time a teacher waits after

asking a question before getting a response

Student-initiated Talk: requests for clarification and

confirmation
3. Improving Interactive decision-
making
One of the key characteristic of affective
teaching is “Good decision making”

Teacher should help to make a good

interactions in classroom

These decisions are based on the learner's

and the whole class need
Six principles of interactive decision
making by Kathy Bailey (1996)

O Serve the common good

O Teach to the moment
O Further the lesson
O Accommodate learning style
O Promote students’ involvement
O Distribute the wealth
 4. Dealing with Reticence

O Reticence is a very common problem in

English as a Foreign Language in classroom
(EFL) in which reticent students from
speaking and participating in class and that
can affects the process of learning and
interaction in the classroom context.
Problem of reticence (Tsui, 1996)
O Lack of knowledge
O Unwillingness to take risks
O Fear of mistake and decision
O Fear of public failure
O Low English proficiency
Overcoming reticence in the language
classroom
O Lengthening wait time
O Improving questioning strategies
O Accepting a variety of answers
O Making use of group work and peer support
O Providing content feedback
Thank you