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Talking At Length:

Strategies and Genres of Extended Discourse

Kate Gill, Ed.D.TESOL 2010

The  ProblemThe  Problem

Such as concrete referents, joint focus of attention, compelling subjects, and an authentic need to communicate.

Conditions that support meaningful interactions among peers are often absent. 

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Your turn now.

Azar’s Basic Grammar, 2007.

Classroom Communication

• IRE or IRF• IRE or IRF participant structure and textbooks

.

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Authentic Communication

Wid l di d ff ti i L2 i iti• Widely discussed as effective in L2 acquisition

• Participants negotiate turns and topics

• Unpredictability of response

• Co‐construct meaning

Participants

SESSIONS

•Juan from Chile:  1, 2, 3, 4,  5•Lola from Brazil:  1, 2, 3,       5 •Gary from Haiti:  1, 2,           5 •Mary from Ethiopia:  1,3•Qin from Taiwan: 1•Qin from Taiwan: 1•Kim from Korea:   1•Liz from the U.S: 1, 4, 5•Kate from the U.S: 1, 2, 3, 4,  5

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Two Paintings by Cézanne

Small Houses Near Pontoise Still Life with Commode

1883-1884 1887‐1888

Features of Authentic Communication

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Why look at extended discourse?

•compared to topic exchange and repair, understudied

•a diagnostic indicator of L2 proficiency

•evidence of individual adult speaker’s L2 acquisition

• functions and structures that support genres of talk

Strategies

•Using fillers like um and uh•Using fillers like um and uh

•Repeating a word in a turn

U i t k d h•Using a stock word or phrase

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Fillers

Kate: So tell me, what did you notice in this painting? What did you—

Gary: I uh see some apples. Uh some sugar thing.Kate: Did you agree?Juan: Uh apples.Kate: Apples?Qin: Is not apples!Kate: Wait, sorry.Qin: Peaches.

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Repetition

• Juan:   Um last last time um we have speak about the this picture um of Cézanne. Um is the um a rural hill in in in French French coast and is the the house is a little house of peasant. And is not um the mansion of lord—is a peasant house. People work land. Is um the time for for for people is is is begin began spring. And the um nature is growing up. Is the color is um intensive green. Is um good color. ah vita vital vitalism vital? Um and the hour is is um evening.

•

Stock phrases: For meJuan: For me, is apples.###

Lola: For me, no. It’s only a decoration.Only a decoration for me.

Tutor: It’s a decoration?Lola: Yes, no for sugar.###

Gary: The last time we said, me personally I said, we have some apples. The other

people said we have some pear. ###

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Maybe

Juan: Maybe peaches or apples. For me is apples for the configuration more long.

Lola: For the form.

Tutor: This is the other room?Juan: Yes maybe maybe is the window open.Tutor: OK.Juan: More light in this room.Tutor: OK.Juan: For me this is the painting.Tutor: This, for you, this section?Tutor: This part—here—is another room?Juan: Yes maybe.

Genres

• Narrative: Telling a story

• Explanatory: Explaining what or why

• Reflective: Talking about your feelings & thoughts 

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NarrativeGary: When I was in my country, my mother have one. When she served somebody coffee à Haiti, she used this thing.

Gary: When you arrive in my country in a peasant home, you know, p-e-a-s-a-n-t ? Uh, you can find a table like this, uh, full the same thing. Because this peasant no have a big home, he has small home. He has a small table. He make all things with the table.

Gary: When you arrive in my country in a peasant home, you know, p-e-a-s-a-n-t ? Uh, you can find a table like this, uh, full the same thing. Because this peasant no have a big home, he has small home. He has a small table. He make all things with the table.

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ExplanationJuan: Mary said this is is no is very very very days ago is uh this

um no fresh but but um the other sense is ah this picture is um sense um um peasant environment peasant farmer's house. Is countryside environment for relaxed. um the picture picture?

Liz: The painter?Juan: The painter. Uh create the different movement situations

with technique. Uh uh different forms uh different colors and uh different um shape this picture um for is no this form.

ExplanatoryJuan: The farmer is small farmer, big

f f ffarmer. The farm is rich, the farmer is rich. And the peasant level is subsistence.

Gary: Subsistence level, yeah.

Juan: The peasant normally is subsistenceJuan: The peasant normally is subsistence.

Kate: That’s a good point, yeah.

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ExplanatoryGary: But it’s better to say

peasant no farmers.

Kate: I think you’re right.

Gary: When I talk about my country, a poor country, I can say peasant. When I talk about the United States, French, I can say farmers.

Kate: Yeah, I guess that’s a word we don’t use much.

Gary: Okay.

ReflectiveMary: Me, I confused because everybody say different things. But the artist have different something inside you know. He think for something. When I see the first time I didn’t think about it. This is fruit and one sugar plate. This some plate, some other. But now when I see, it really it looks another thing. I said fruit, he said not this one fruit. I said fresh, not fresh, he said not fresh. So I will think about this one.

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Reflective

Lola: I changed my –I changed my mind. When I saw it the first time, I didn’t like this. Yeah, I didn’t like this picture. Because I didn’t like the still life. But I understand I have not too much for this picture, for this kind of picture. Then I can see more, one more dimension.For me is art. I see the movements and then I can imagine. Across the hall and another room and another peoples, and peoples go aut and pick up the apples and take to the tables and share with somebody. And then is more sympathic to me, too. The first time I couldn’t see. It very freeze. Now it’s turned to a warm. And I see life in there. Oh I see movement I see dimension and imagine people too in the room andmovement. I see dimension, and imagine people too in the room, and another room.

Tutor: What interested you today?Juan: Um for me uh the interesting for today is about the, uh, technique. The uh the painter uh created the um.Tutor: Technique?J O i i ti f t th it ti H h t diff tJuan: Or imagination for recreate the situation. How how to different form is what is the imagination for recreate these things, these things? Maybe to put the other elements all in painting different color uh mixed uh everything.

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Summary

• Strategies such as fillers, repeating words, phrases—support learners’ participation in authentic communication.learners  participation in authentic communication.

• Learners dysfluencies support fluency—key elements in constructing discourse.

• L2 speakers can achieve discourse: tell stories, explain things, construct knowledge about topics of mutual interest, and reflect on their feelings/thoughts in the process.

•Students at all levels of L2 proficiency can successfully participate in

Implications

can successfully participate in discourse—they need opportunities.

•Teachers can set up conditions to support peer‐to‐peer response andsupport peer to peer response and participation in discourse, facilitating L2 acquisition.

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UmUm

Thank You.