A Conversation Analysis of EFL Teachers’ Gesture in Language Elicitation Stage

Using a Conversation Analytic (CA) method, this study explores English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ nonverbal gestures during the elicitation stage: when they elicit new words and language structures from students. In total, three hours of interactions between six EFL teachers and students...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Wanphet, Phalangchok
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/48232
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/11441/48232
https://doi.org/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.04
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Gesture
Elicitation
Conversation Analysis
Classroom Interaction
Gesto
Elicitación
Análisis de la Conversación
Interacción en el Aula
Descripción
Sumario:Using a Conversation Analytic (CA) method, this study explores English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ nonverbal gestures during the elicitation stage: when they elicit new words and language structures from students. In total, three hours of interactions between six EFL teachers and students during the elicitation stage in six classes are recorded and then analyzed. The teachers’ gestures are categorized according to their functions, while the classroom speech exchange, in which the EFL teachers’ gestures are identified, is examined. An analysis reveals that 1) EFL teachers’ gestures serve many pedagogical and interactional functions: managing student behavior, regulating interaction, involving students, explaining language features, evaluating students’ responses, and showing EFL teachers’ expectations for students’ language production; 2) functions of EFL teachers’ gestures sequentially correspond to the students’ responses placed on the immediate preceding turns; and 3) students not only listen to what the EFL teacher says but also interpret and later react, both verbally and nonverbally, to the teachers’ gestures.