‘Talking foreign language study into being’:

pedagogical interaction in a Year 8 French language classroom

bySigne Ernist

Macquarie UniversityDepartment of Education

10 July 2009

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Overview of the Presentation

• About me, the presenter (Introduction)• Why I am doing it (Rationale)• What is my research about (Topic and aims)• What have others said (Previous research)• How I am doing it (Theory and Methodology)• What I am working on at present

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About me, the presenter: Introduction

• Philologist (philo + logos)• Estonia, University of Tartu• Teaching French and other languages (K-uni)• In Australia since 2004• Dip Ed in Macquarie University 2007• PhD in MQ and French/ESL in KHHS

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Why I am doing it: Rationale

• Languages teaching in Estonia– Humanist socio-cultural view (Heidegger, Vygotsky)– Second language acquisition in educational context

should be continuous and meaningful (Clyne, Lo Bianco, Liddicoat)

• Languages teaching in Australia: crisis (Clyne)• Solution offered by experts: introduction of

compulsory language study throughout (at least) the secondary schooling years = uphill battle

• Present state of affairs in NSW government schools: how to make the most of it

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What is my research about: Topic

• Students tend to drop languages study in Year 9 after completing the 100 compulsory hours (NSW)

• Subject selection: decisions depend on experiences in Year 8

• Classroom interaction: communication between teacher and students / students and students influencing the decision to continue languages study in Year 9

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Topic

How is classroom talk used by teacher and students to create the commonly understood learning

How does classroom talk influence students decision to continue or discontinue languages study in Year 9

• how? (pragmatics) instead of what?

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What I want to achieve: Aims

• Greater awareness on how classroom talk influences student selection of French as an elective subject in the transition from Year 8 to Year 9

• Insights on the effective use of classroom talk in Year 8 language classroom with an aim to engage learners to continue language study throughout high school

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What have others said: Previous research

• Language policies – Lo Bianco: National Policy on Languages (1987)– Australian Languages and Literacy Policy (1991)– NALSAS Strategy Plan (1994)– The School Languages Programme 2005-2008

• Language learning and teaching in NSW– No policy– 100 mandatory hours (Board of Studies NSW)

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What have others said: Previous research

• Research – main concerns– Clyne– Liddicoat– Lo Bianco

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What have others said: Previous research

• Factors influencing subject selection• Macro level - policy• Micro level – teacher/student dependent

Are these factors addressed in classroom talk? How are they treated? How does this influence subject selection?

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How I am doing it: theory and methodology

• Ethnomethodology– researches the ways in which people interact to

create social orderliness through mundane everyday practices (Garfinkel, 1967; Heritage, 1984; Freebody, 2003)

• Conversation Analysis– most conducive inquiry method for investigating the

interactional organisation of language classrooms in order to develop an understanding of how the pedagogical intentions are implemented (Seedhouse, 2005)

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Conversation Analysis (CA)

• CA: how the use of language in interaction allows members of society to create their commonly understood existence (Seedhouse, 2004)

• Talk in interaction is systematically organised, deeply ordered and methodic (Harvey Sacks)

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Conversation Analysis (CA)

Principles:• Interaction has order at all points• Interaction is context-shaped and context-

renewing• Order of details is paramount• Analysis is data driven

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Conversation Analysis (CA)

Analysis:• Adjacency pairs (paired utterances)• Preference organisation• Turn taking• Repair

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What I am working on at present

• Institutional talk goal (Seedhouse, 2004)– Asymmetries of participation and know-how– Genuine communication ≠ communicative approach

• CA as a useful tool for both researchers and teachers in classroom interaction– Possible mismatch between task-as-workplan and

task-in-process (Seedhouse, 2004)– Pedagogically undesirable negative evaluation

creating problems on interactional level

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"Those who know no foreign language know nothing of their mother tongue.“ Goethe

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Selected references• Clyne, M. (2005). Australia's Language Potential. Sydney: UNSW PRESS.• Curnow, T. J., & Kohler, M. (2007). Languages are important: but that's not

why I am studying one. Babel, 42(2), 20-24,38.• Heritage, J. (1984). Garfinkel and Ethnomethodology. Oxford: Polity Press.• Liddicoat, A. J., Scarino, A., Curnow, T. J., Kohler, M., Scrimgeour, A. &

Morgan, A.-M. (2007). An Investigation of the State and Nature of Languages in Australian Schools. Canberra: DEST.

• Lo Bianco, J. (2006). Arguing for Perspective in LOTE: Reflections on public debate, language and the public interest. Languages Victoria, 10(1), 16-29.

• Seedhouse, P. (2004). The interactional architecture of the language classroom: a conversation analysis perspective. Oxford: Blackwell.

• Seedhouse, P. (2005). Conversation Analysis and language learning. Language Teaching, 38, 1-23.

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