Reading notes for Tuesday, Nov. 12

Discourse 1

We are beginning a two-week unit on classroom discourse. We'll be exploring the role of language and conversation in teaching and learning, and practical stuff like how to run a large-group discussion.

The readings for the 12th are a chapter from Bialystok and Hakuta's (1994) book, In Other Words. The chapter (Culture) addresses the the place of language in the culture and the place of culture in the language. The focus of the book is on the learning of a second language. You will all face situations in which you are either teaching a second language (e.g., World Language folks) or teaching in English to students for whom English is a second language. What are the implications of this chapter for that work? You will also be teaching, in a sense, the “language” of your discipline to all of your students. What is effective scientific communication like? What about effective argumentation in history? How do you make your point when creating a feminist critique of a piece of poetry? Think about the ways in which you saw language used in your recent observations. In what ways did the discourse include, exclude, or ignore certain students?

Cazden takes these ideas further, beginning with the nature of discourse structure in classrooms, and exploring its relationship to power, control, cultures, and the kinds of thinking students do in school settings. Think of examples from your field experience to illustrate, support, or challenge Cazden’s ideas. In class we will be viewing videotapes of classroom interactions; be prepared to use the ideas from these two readings to analyze and discuss the discourse you see in the tapes, and its implications for learning and motivation.