Instructed SLA:

The Role of Speaking/Oral Discourse in

L2 Classrooms
What is discourse?
"Discourse in context may consist of only one or two words as in
stop or no smoking. Alternatively, a piece of discourse can be
hundreds of thousands of words in length, as some novels are. A
typical piece of discourse is somewhere between these two
extremes” (Hinkel & Fotos, 2002). Thus, the quantity of language
produced and/or analyzed will vary.

"Discourse is the way in which language is used socially to convey

broad historical meanings. It is language identified by the social
conditions of its use, by who is using it and under what conditions.
Language can never be 'neutral' because it bridges our personal and
social worlds” (Henry & Tator, 2002). In other words, discourse
doesn’t exist in a vacuum/empty space. Rather, it has/will have
characteristics of the context in which it is/will be produced.

Therefore, discourse can manifest itself in oral or written form.

Different forms of oral discourse produced
in a L2 classroom

— Teacher – Student(s) [e.g., whole-class discussions]

— Student(s) – Student(s) [e.g., small group discussions]

o Face-to-face (f2f)

o Virtual/via technology (e.g., computer-mediated

discourse)
Why should we study or analyze oral discourse
that is produced in a L2 classroom context?
— We can gain a better understanding of who is participating
and/or controlling (dominating?) the
conversation/discussion.

— Upon analyzing oral discourse in a classroom context, we

can clearly see the effects of the questions that teachers
ask while interacting with their students/each other in
addition to allowing for a better understanding of the ways in
which teachers answer students’content- and language-
related questions.

— Analyzing classroom discourse in a language classroom

also allows us to see how teachers are responding (or not)
to students’linguistic/grammatical errors.
Why should we study or analyze oral discourse
that is produced in a L2 classroom context?
l It helps us to better understand the ways in which teachers
are socializing their students into an L2 community of practice.

l It allows us to reflect on how and why teachers and students

are using the L2 (vs. the L1).

l By analyzing oral discourse produced in a classroom context,

we can also improve L2 pedagogy.

l Ultimately, classroom discourse research seeks to make a

connection between classroom talk and L2 learning (i.e.,
acquisition).
Walsh (2006)—Investigating Classroom
Discourse

— Walsh indicates in his book that a language class is similar

to any other social context in the ‘real world’.

*In your opinion, how is an L2 classroom like other social

contexts in life/in the world?

*Can you think about how an L2 classroom is not like other

social contexts in the ‘real world’?
Walsh (2006): Ideas about classroom
discourse

— “…‘good teaching’ is concerned with more than good

planning…Good decisions are those that are appropriate
to the moment, not ones which ‘follow the plan’” (Walsh,
2006, p. 19).

— “Interaction does not simply happen…in an acquisition

rich classroom, [it] is instigated and sustained by the
teacher. While learners clearly have a significant role to
play, it is the teacher who has prime responsibility”
(Walsh, 2006, p. 19).
Walsh (2006): Ideas about classroom
discourse

—“Musumeci’s findings also confirmed little or no negotiation;

indeed, quite the reverse (1996: 314):

teachers [. . .] speak more, more often, control the topic of

conversation, rarely ask questions for which they do not have
answers.

“The overall conclusion in Musumeci’s (1996) study…[was] that

there was little to no evidence of sustained negotiation” (Walsh,
2006, p. 24).
Discussion of Hall (2004) and Thoms (2012)

In pairs, discuss the article that you read in depth

along with the questions for that article.
Discussion Questions
Thinking about your own experience(s) as a student in a second language
or literature classroom…

1) what are the reasons why you do participate in class discussion?

2) what are the reasons why you don’t participate in class discussion?

Is there anything that a teacher can do to encourage students to

participate in class discussion in a second language or literature
classroom?

Are there any techniques or activities that get you personally more
interested in participating in class discussion in a second language or
literature class?
Hall (2004)
— Participants and context of the study:

— Main RQ(s): (see p.71)

— Data collection/methods:

— Results:

Two distinct discursive patterns termed listing and

labeling of objects and concepts (see Excerpt 2 on pp.
76-77 taken from transcripts in October) and lexical
chaining (see Excerpt 3 on pp. 78-80 taken from
transcripts in May).
Teacher–student interaction (Hall & Walsh,
2002)
Common themes in the area of classroom-based oral
discourse research:

• Language socialization issues (i.e., socialization of students

into communities of practice)

• The effect of discourse patterns (e.g., Initiation-Response-

Evaluation/IRE vs. Initiation-Response-Feedback/IRF)

• The use and effect of different kinds of questions on oral

discourse
Discursive patterns that inhibit students’
opportunities for extended talk/oral discourse

Initiation-Response-Evaluation (IRE)

I (initiation): The turn in which the professor initiates

interaction (normally in the form of a question)

R (response): The turn in which the student needs to respond

to the professor’s question(s)

E (evaluation): The turn in which the professor responds to the

student with an evaluative comment that closes the short/brief
interaction.
 Discursive patterns that inhibit students’ oral discourse

An example of IRE (Thoms, 2011)

1 I T: Entonces, ¿qué pasa con el [So, what happens with the

2 dueño de la mina? ¿Quién es el owner of the mine? Who is the
3 dueño de la mina? ¿Quién es? owner of the mine? Who is it?
4 Bueno, ¿sí? Well, yes?]
5 R S: Don Pedro. [Don Pedro.]
6 E T: Don Pedro—¡exactamente! [Don Pedro—exactly!]
Discursive patterns that facilitate/promote students’
opportunities for extended talk/oral discourse

Initiation-Response-Feedback/Follow-up (IRF)

I (initiation): The turn in which the professor initiates

interaction (normally in the form of a question)

R (response): The turn in which the student needs to respond

to the professor’s question(s)

F (feedback/follow-up): The turn in which the professor responds

to the student with a comment that extends the interaction
with the student
Discursive patterns that facilitate/promote
students’ talk/oral discourse

An example of IRF (Thoms, 2011)

1 I T: Capítulo 14. Hay un momento [Chapter 14. There is an
2 importante allí. Aquí pasan important moment there. A lot of
3 muchas cosas, ¿verdad? Para things happen here, right? For you
4 vosotros, ¿cuál sería una cosa all, what would be one important
5 importante? thing?]
6 R S: Creo que cuando Ángel va y [I think when Angel goes and tries
7 trata de ver a su familia. to see his family.]
8 F T: Y ¿por qué es importante? [And why is it important?]
9 R S: Porque él quiere visitar a su [Because he wants to visit his
10 padre. Es un momento father. It is an important
11 importante. moment.]
12 E T: Sí. [Yes.]
A few observations about the effects of different
kinds of questions on classroom discourse
Yes/No & Factual/Closed/Display Questions (i.e., where there is
only one correct/possible answer): usually produce answers/student
turns that are syntactically less complex (Yang, 2010)

*In general, these kinds of questions have a negative effect on

classroom discourse and limit students’ contributions to discussion.

‘Open/Referential’ Questions (i.e., where there is more than one

correct/possible answer): typically produce answers/student turns
that are more syntactically complex.

*In general, these kinds of questions have a positive effect on

classroom discourse and allow students more space on the
proverbial discursive floor.
Other important/interesting tidbits from Thoms
(2012)
— “From a discourse perspective, classroom talk is considered
consequential to language learning and development” (p. S8).

— “…interactions in the FL classroom serve to socialize students

into understanding what counts as the official curriculum as well
as inculcate in students ways of acting with (or reacting to) the
subject matter being studied (Hall & Walsh, 2002)” (p. S11).

— Waring (2008) found that too much “explicit positive assessment”

(p. 577) by the teacher in an adult ESL classroom led to more
IRE sequences; thus limiting students’ opportunities for extended
discourse.

— Future avenues of research in the classroom discourse area (see

pp. S21-S23 in article).
Discussion Questions
Thinking about your own experience(s) as a student in a second language
or literature classroom…

1) what are the reasons why you do participate in class discussion?

2) what are the reasons why you don’t participate in class discussion?

Is there anything that a teacher can do to encourage students to

participate in class discussion in a second language or literature
classroom?

Are there any techniques or activities that get you personally more
interested in participating in class discussion in a second language or
literature class?
Possible techniques for teachers to encourage oral classroom
discourse/participation
— Organize students in small groups before involving them in a whole-class
discussion.

— Give students comprehension questions beforehand to guide their

reading of a text/reading which will hopefully get them to contribute
more once in class.

— Ask students more open-ended questions (i.e., where there are no ‘right’
answers which will naturally lead to more IRF interactions)

— Video record yourself teaching and analyze/reflect on how one engages

students (or not) in whole-class discussion in the classroom (e.g.,
see/show Walsh’s Self Evaluation of Teacher Talk/SETT rubric).

— Use technology to facilitate comprehension of texts outside of class to

then better engage in discussion once in class (e.g., via annotation tools):
http://www.classroomsalon.com/