Classroom Interactional Competence of Young Learners with Story-Based Lessons in an EFL Context

Eylem Atay*, Semra Saraço?lu**
* Özkent Akbilek Secondary School, Ankara, Turkey.
** Department of Foreign Languages Education, Gazi University, Ankara, Turkey.
Periodicity:October - December'2022
DOI : https://doi.org/10.26634/jelt.12.4.18823

Abstract

Making use of the methodological framework of conversation analysis, the present study aims to investigate story-based classroom discourse with young learners of English in an EFL context. The data were collected from a private IB school following the Primary Years Programme (PYP) curriculum. The participants were 24 young learners who were under the age of 6 and two teachers. To present the interactional organisation of the classroom interaction, 16 hours of story-based lessons in two kindergarten classrooms were audio-recorded and transcribed in detail. The data was analysed from a discourse-analytic perspective. Although the study had hypothesised that learner initiatives would be more frequent in the post-story stages, the findings showed that the pre-story stages created more engaging learning environments. Based on the findings, the implications were provided for EFL classrooms as well as suggestions for further research.

Keywords

Classroom Discourse, Story-based Lessons, Picture Books, Young Learners, Conversation Analysis, Classroom Interactional Competence.

How to Cite this Article?

Atay, E., and Saraçoğlu, S. (2022). Classroom Interactional Competence of Young Learners with Story-Based Lessons in an EFL Context. i-manager’s Journal on English Language Teaching, 12(4), 18-35. https://doi.org/10.26634/jelt.12.4.18823

References

[1]. Adomat, D. S. (2012). Drama's potential for deepening young children's understandings of stories. Early Childhood Education Journal, 40(6), 343-350. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-012-0519-8
[2]. Al-wossabi, S. A. N. (2016). A conversational analysis model for promoting practices of interactional competence in the EFL context. International Journal of English Linguistics, 6(6), 32-44.
[3]. Bozbıyık, M. (2017). The Implementation of VEO in an English Language Education Context: A Focus on Teacher Questioning Practices. (Unpublished master thesis, Hacettepe University, Ankara).
[4]. Breen, M. P. (1998). Navigating the discourse: on what is learned in the language classroom. Anthology Series- Seameo Regional Language Centre, (pp. 115-144).
[5]. Butler, Y. G. (2015). English language education among young learners in East Asia: A review of current research (2004–2014). Language Teaching, 48(3), 303-342. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444815000105
[6]. Cekaite, A. (2008). Developing Conversational Skills in a Second Language: Language Learning Affordances in a Multiparty Classroom Setting. Benjamins Publishing, (pp. 105-129). https://doi.org/10.1075/lllt.23.08cek
[7]. Cekaite, A. (2013). Child pragmatic development. In C. A. Chapelle (Ed.), The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics (pp. 602–609). Blackwell Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal0127
[8]. Celce-Murcia, M., & Olshtain, E. (2005). Discourse- Based approaches: a new framework for second language teaching and learning. Handbook of Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning.
[9]. Chen, Y. M. (2006). Using children's literature for reading and writing stories. Asian EFL Journal, 8(4), 210-232.
[10]. Clayman, S. E. (2013). Agency in response: The role of prefatory address terms. Journal of Pragmatics, 57, 290-302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2012.12.001
[11]. Copland, F., & Yonetsugi, E. (2016). Teaching English to young learners: Supporting the case for the bilingual native English speaker teacher. Classroom Discourse, 7(3), 221-238. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2016.1192050
[12]. Cowan, N. (2014). Working memory underpins cognitive development, learning, and education. Educational Psychology Review, 26(2), 197-223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-013-9246-y
[13]. Cremin, T., Mottram, M., Bearne, E., & Goodwin, P. (2008). Exploring teachers' knowledge of children's literature. Cambridge Journal of Education, 38(4), 449-464. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057640802482363
[14]. Daşkın, N. C. (2015). Shaping learner contributions in an EFL classroom: Implications for L2 classroom interactional competence. Classroom Discourse, 6(1), 33-56. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2014.911699
[15]. Donato, R. (2000). Sociocultural contributions to understanding the foreign and second language classroom. Sociocultural Theory and Second Language Learning, 2750.
[16]. Donato, R., & Brooks, F. B. (2004). Literary discussions and advanced speaking functions: Researching the (dis) connection. Foreign Language Annals, 37(2), 183-199. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2004.tb02192.x
[17]. Duran, D., & Sert, O. (2019). Preference organization in English as a medium of instruction classrooms in a Turkish higher education setting. Linguistics and Education, 49, 72-85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2018.12.006
[18]. Elley, W. B. (2000). The potential of book floods for raising literacy levels. International Review of Education, 46(3), 233-255. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004086618679
[19]. Evnitskaya, N., & Berger, E. (2017). Learners' multimodal displays of willingness to participate in classroom interaction in the L2 and CLIL contexts. Classroom Discourse, 8(1), 71-94. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2016.1272062
[20]. Firth, A., & Wagner, J. (1997). On discourse, communication, and (some) fundamental concepts in SLA research. The Modern Language Journal, 81(3), 285-300. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.1997.tb05480.x
[21]. Gardner, H., & Forrester, M. (Eds.). (2009). Analysing Interactions in Childhood: Insights from Conversation Analysis. John Wiley & Sons.
[22]. Gardner-Chloros, P. (2009). Code-Switching. Cambridge university press, New York.
[23]. Garton, S. (2012). Speaking out of turn? Taking the initiative in teacher-fronted classroom interaction. Classroom Discourse, 3(1), 29-45. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2012.666022
[24]. Ghosn, I. K. (2002). Four good reasons to use literature in primary school ELT. ELT Journal, 56(2), 172-179. https://doi.org/10.1093/elt/56.2.172
[25]. Glassner, A. (2017). Interactive Storytelling: Techniques for 21st Century Fiction. CRC Press.
[26]. Harklau, L. (2005). Ethnography and ethnographic research on second language teaching and learning. Handbook of Research in Second Language Teaching and Learning, (pp. 179-194).
[27]. Hoey, E. M., & Kendrick, K. H. (2017). Conversation analysis. Research Methods in Psycholinguistics: A Practical Guide, 151-173.
[28]. Holdaway, D. (1979). The Foundations of Literacy. Ashton Scholastic, Auckland.
[29]. Huang, K. M. (2011). Motivating lessons: A classroom-oriented investigation of the effects of content-based instruction on EFL young learners' motivated behaviours and classroom verbal interaction. System, 39(2), 186-201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2011.02.002
[30]. Huth, T. (2011). Conversation analysis and language classroom discourse. Language and Linguistics Compass, 5(5), 297-309. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-818X.2011.00277.x
[31]. İnceçay, G. (2010). The role of teacher talk in young learners' language process. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2(2), 277-281. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.03.010
[32]. Jacknick, C. M. (2011). "But this is writing": Postexpansion in student-initiated sequences. Novitas-ROYAL (Research on Youth and Language), 5(1), 39-54.
[33]. Johns, T. F., Hsingchin, L., & Lixun, W. (2008). Integrating corpus-based CALL programs in teaching English through children's literature. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 21(5), 483-506. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588220802448006
[34]. Johnson, M. G. (1995). Discourse Markers in Tejano Speaking: Code Switching as a Resource in Spanish- English Conversation. (Doctoral dissertation, The University of Texas at Austin).
[35]. Kanagy, R. (1999). Interactional routines as a mechanism for L2 acquisition and socialization in an immersion context. Journal of Pragmatics, 31(11), 1467-1492. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-2166(98)00113-1
[36]. Kasper, G. (1985). Repair in foreign language teaching. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 7(2), 200-215. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263100005374
[37]. Kasper, G. (2004). Participant orientations in German conversation for learning. The Modern Language Journal, 88(4), 551-567. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0026-7902.2004.t01-18-.x
[38]. Kasper, G., & Kim, Y. (2015). Conversation for learning: 23 institutional talk beyond the classroom. The Handbook of Classroom Discourse and Interaction, 115, 390-408.
[39]. Kasper, G., & Wagner, J. (2014). Conversation analysis in applied linguistics. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 34, 171-212. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0267190514000014
[40]. Kelin, D. A. (2007). The perspective from within: Drama and children's literature. Early Childhood Education Journal, 35(3), 277-284. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-007-0206-3
[41]. Koole, T. (2010). Displays of epistemic access: Student responses to teacher explanations. Research on Language and Social Interaction, 43(2), 183-209. https://doi.org/10.1080/08351811003737846
[42]. Koshik, I. (2002). Designedly incomplete utterances: A pedagogical practice for eliciting knowledge displays in error correction sequences. Research on Language and Social Interaction, 35(3), 277-309. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327973RLSI3503_2
[43]. Kozulin, A. (2004). Vygotsky's theory in the classroom: Introduction. European Journal of Psychology of Education, 19(1), 3-7.
[44]. Lantolf, J. P. (2000). Introducing sociocultural theory. Sociocultural Theory and Second Language Learning, 1, 1-26.
[45]. Lantolf, J. P. (2011). The sociocultural approach to second language acquisition: Sociocultural theory, second language acquisition, and artificial L2 development. In Alternative Approaches to Second Language Acquisition (pp. 24-47). Routledge..
[46]. Li, C. Y., & Seedhouse, P. (2010). Classroom interaction in story-based lessons with young learners. The Asian EFL Journal Quarterly, 12(2), 288-312.
[47]. Lier, L. V. (1988). The Classroom and the Language Learner: Ethnography and Second-Language Classroom Research. Longman, London.
[48]. Lier, L. V. (1998). The relationship between consciousness, interaction and language learning. Language Awareness, 7(2-3), 128-145. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658419808667105
[49]. Mantero, M. (2006). Applied literacy in second language education: (Re) framing discourse in literature based classrooms. Foreign Language Annals, 39(1), 99-114. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2006.tb02252.x
[50]. Markee, N., & Kunitz, S. (2015). CA-for-SLA studies of classroom interaction: Quo vadis. The Handbook of Classroom Discourse and Interaction, 425-439.
[51]. Mart, C. T. (2012). Encouraging young learners to learn English through stories. English Language Teaching, 5(5), 101-106.
[52]. Meringoff, L. K. (1980). Influence of the medium on children's story apprehension. Journal of Educational Psychology, 72(2), 240-249. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.72.2.240
[53]. Mondada, L. (2009). Emergent focused interactions in public places: A systematic analysis of the multimodal achievement of a common interactional space. Journal of Pragmatics, 41(10), 1977-1997. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2008.09.019
[54]. Morell, T. (2007). What enhances EFL students' participation in lecture discourse? Student, lecturer and discourse perspectives. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 6(3), 222-237. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2007.07.002
[55]. Mori, J. (2007). Border crossings? Exploring the intersection of second language acquisition, conversation analysis, and foreign language pedagogy. The Modern Language Journal, 91, 849-862. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2007.00673.x
[56]. Mori, J., & Markee, N. (2009). Language learning, cognition, and interactional practices: An introduction. IRAL-International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 47(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral.2009.001
[57]. Nassaji, H., & Wells, G. (2000). What's the use of'triadic dialogue'?: An investigation of teacher-student interaction. Applied Linguistics, 21(3), 376-406. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/21.3.376
[58]. Robeck, C. P. (1981). An investigation of the relationship between concrete operational thought and reading achievement. Literacy Research and Instruction, 21(1), 2-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/19388078109557614
[59]. Saraçoğlu, S. (2006). Kısa hikaye öğretiminin dil öğretimine katkılarının bir örnek çalışma ile incelenmesi. Eğitim ve Bilim, 31(140), 18-25.
[60]. Saraçoğlu, S. (2016). The Use of Children's Literature in English Language Teaching Classes. LAP Lambert Academic Publishing.
[61]. Savvidou, C. (2004). An integrated approach to teaching literature in the EFL classroom. The Internet TESL Journal, 10(12), 1-6.
[62]. Schegloff, E. A., Jefferson, G., & Sacks, H. (1977). The preference for self-correction in the organization of repair in conversation. Language, 53(2), 361-382. https://doi.org/10.1353/lan.1977.0041
[63]. Seedhouse, P. (2004). Conversation analysis methodology. Language Learning, 54(1), 1-54. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2004.00268.x
[64]. Seedhouse, P. (2005). Conversation analysis and language learning. Language Teaching, 38(4), 165-187. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444805003010
[65]. Seedhouse, P., & Walsh, S. (2010). Learning a second language through class room interaction. In Conceptualising 'Learning'in Applied Linguistics (pp. 127-146). Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230289772_8
[66]. Sert, O. (2015). Social Interaction and L2 Classroom Discourse. Edinburgh University Press.
[67]. Sert, O. (2017). Creating opportunities for L2 learning in a prediction activity. System, 70, 14-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2017.08.008
[68]. Sert, O., & Jacknick, C. M. (2015). Student smiles and the negotiation of epistemics in L2 classrooms. Journal of Pragmatics, 77, 97-112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2015.01.001
[69]. Sinclair, J. M., & Coulthard, M. (1975). Towards an Analysis of Discourse: The English used by Teachers and Pupils. Oxford University Press, London.
[70]. Stivers, T. (2013). Sequence Organization. In J. Sidnell, & T. Stivers. (Eds.), The Handbook of Conversation Analysis (pp.191–209). Blackwell, Chichester, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118325001.ch10
[71]. Stubbe, M. (1998). Are you listening? Cultural influences on the use of supportive verbal feedback in conversation. Journal of Pragmatics, 29(3), 257-289. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-2166(97)00042-8
[72]. Thoms, J. J. (2012). Classroom discourse in foreign language classrooms: A review of the literature. Foreign Language Annals, 45(s1), s8-s27. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2012.01177.x
[73]. Verdugo, D. R., & Belmonte, I. A. (2007). Using digital stories to improve listening comprehension with Spanish young learners of English. Language Learning & Technology, 11(1), 87-101.
[74]. Walsh, S. (2002). Construction or obstruction: Teacher talk and learner involvement in the EFL classroom. Language Teaching Research, 6(1), 3-23. https://doi.org/10.1191/1362168802lr095oa
[75]. Walsh, S. (2011). Exploring Classroom Discourse: Language in Action. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203827826
[76]. Walsh, S. (2012). Conceptualising classroom interactional competence. Novitas-Royal (Research on Youth and Language), 6(1), 1-14.
[77]. Walsh, S., & Li, L. (2013). Conversations as space for learning. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 23(2), 247-266. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.12005
[78]. Waring, H. Z. (2011). Learner initiatives and learning opportunities in the language classroom. Classroom Discourse, 2(2), 201-218. https://doi.org/10.1080/19463014.2011.614053
[79]. Waring, H. Z. (2015). Promoting self-discovery in the language classroom. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 53(1), 61-85. https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2015-0003
[80]. Watanabe, A. (2016). Engaging in an interactional routine in EFL classroom: The development of l2 interactional competence over time. Novitas-ROYAL (Research on Youth and Language), 10(1), 48-70.
[81]. Winch, G., & Ross-Johnston, R. (Eds.). (2006). Literacy: Reading, Writing and Children's Literature. Oxford University Press.
[82]. Wright, A. (1997). Creating Stories with Children. Oxford University Press.
[83]. Wright, B. W. (2003). Comic Book Nation: The Transformation of Youth Culture in America. JHU Press.
[84]. Yang, M., Badger, R., & Yu, Z. (2006). A comparative study of peer and teacher feedback in a Chinese EFL writing class. Journal of Second Language Writing, 15(3), 179-200. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jslw.2006.09.004
[85]. Young, R. F., & Miller, E. R. (2004). Learning as changing participation: Discourse roles in ESL writing conferences. The Modern Language Journal, 88(4), 519-535. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0026-7902.2004.t01-16-.x
If you have access to this article please login to view the article or kindly login to purchase the article

Purchase Instant Access

Single Article

North Americas,UK,
Middle East,Europe
India Rest of world
USD EUR INR USD-ROW
Pdf 35 35 200 20
Online 35 35 200 15
Pdf & Online 35 35 400 25

Options for accessing this content:
  • If you would like institutional access to this content, please recommend the title to your librarian.
    Library Recommendation Form
  • If you already have i-manager's user account: Login above and proceed to purchase the article.
  • New Users: Please register, then proceed to purchase the article.