Speaker
Description
This study examined how 18 Taiwanese senior high EFL teachers’ classroom talk shaped student participation under discourse-oriented reforms. Using Systemic Functional Linguistics, teacher talk was analyzed through monoglossic, contractive, and expansive voices. Expansive voice occurred most frequently and positively predicted student participation, whereas monoglossic and contractive moves showed negative associations. Qualitative analyses further revealed that genuinely open-ended questions, rather than pseudo-expansive prompts, fostered richer reasoning and more meaningful classroom dialogue by creating dialogic learning spaces.
Abstract section 5: References
Martin, J., & White, P. R. (2005). The Language of Evaluation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230511910
Abstract section 1: Relevance
Recent curriculum reforms in Taiwan emphasize discourse-oriented language learning (DOLL), calling for instruction that supports meaning-making beyond sentence-level accuracy. At the same time, bilingual education policies such as CLIL and EMI have further increased expectations for classroom interaction and student engagement through English. In this context, teacher talk plays a central mediating role, as it shapes opportunities for participation and meaning-making in everyday instruction. This study is relevant to JALT audiences interested in classroom discourse, EFL pedagogy, and bilingual education, as it examines how discourse-oriented curricular intentions are enacted through teacher talk in senior high school English classrooms.
Abstract section 4: Outcomes/results
Results show that expansive teacher talk was widely used across classrooms and constituted the largest proportion of discursive moves. However, no consistent relationship was found between the frequency of expansive talk and student participation. Expansive resources were predominantly realized through confirmatory and clarifying questions oriented toward verification and instructional pacing. This pattern, termed constrained expansiveness, explains why classrooms may appear interactive while offering limited opportunities for epistemic exploration. By distinguishing between linguistic form and interactional function, the study highlights how discourse-oriented curricular goals are mediated—and often constrained—in EFL classroom practice.
Abstract section 3: Content/method
The study adopts a mixed-method design, analyzing classroom discourse from eighteen Taiwanese senior high school EFL teachers alongside questionnaire data from 514 students. Classroom videos were transcribed and coded using the SFL Engagement framework to identify monoglossic, contractive, and expansive discursive voices and their subtypes. Student participation was measured through turn-taking analysis, and students’ perceptions of classroom interaction were examined using a questionnaire. Quantitative patterns were further illustrated through qualitative classroom excerpts.
Abstract section 2: Contribution/research questions
This study examines how dialogic space is constructed through teachers’ discursive choices rather than interactional forms alone. Drawing on the Engagement framework (Martin & White, 2005), it analyzes the distribution of monoglossic, expansive, and contractive teacher talk and their relation to student participation and perceptions. The study introduces the concept of constrained expansiveness to explain why classrooms may appear interactive while limiting epistemic engagement.
| Title | Teacher Talk and the Making of Dialogic Space |
|---|---|
| Teaching Context | Junior/senior high-school |