A deep analysis of discourse communities
Throughout the years, there exist many scholars who continue discussing and reflecting on the notion of discourse communities. According to Johns and Swales (1990), a discourse community is
composed of a minimum number of expert members and a frequently larger number of apprentice members who operate on the basis of implicit and explicit public goals...their members develop and use systems of speech and writing that are sometimes quite specific to a particular´s community´s needs and goals (as cited in Pintos and Crimi, 2010, p. 12).
Swales (1990) also establishes that a discourse community should be considered as such if it meets some basic criteria. In other words, it should have certain characteristics or requirements. For instance, it should have common goals, participatory mechanisms, information exchange, community- specific genres, highly specialized terminology and high level of expertise.
Bizell (1992) also supports the idea that discourse communities should have common goals and specific interests. She emphasizes that developing a common discourse community involves shared knowledge, common relationships, similar attitudes and values, a common flow of discourse with a particular structure and style as well as sharing understandings on how to communicate their knowledge.
Another important requirement to be met by discourse communities is that they should have participatory mechanisms in order to provide information and feedback.
All human activities are culturally mediated and entail the use and transformation of artifacts. From this perspective, culture itself mediates human actions in the sense that it is a system of shared meanings or social inheritances embodied in the artifacts of a given social structure.” (Hoffman- Kipp- Artiles & Lopez-Torres, 2007, p. 5).
The level of expertise is an important characteristic that must also be included in this analysis. Kelly- Kleese (2004) emphasized that “the communicative competence implies that individuals and groups with greater skill in using (and manipulating) the language system will exercise power in naming and thus controlling how others will view social reality.”
It is worth mentioning that information exchange is a crucial aspect of discourse communities. Wenzlaff (2004) argues this idea of exchange in teachers learning on the basis of a cohort since he believes that when educators work as a discourse community they not only grow personally and professionally but they also see and appreciate the perspectives of other teachers/ peers, making the teaching experience more enjoyable.
To sum up, it is merely important to recognize that the scope of discourse communities is broad and most of the times this might lead to discussions and reflections among different scholars. What is more, the flow and behaviour of any discourse community can be better understood and analyzed.
References
Bizzel, P. (1992). Academic discourse and critical consciousness. Pittsburgh, PA: University of Pittsburgh Press.
Hoffman-Kipp, P., Artiles, A. J., & Lopez Torres, L. (2003). Beyond reflection: teacher learning as praxis. Theory into Practice. Retrieved October 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NQM/is_3_42/ai_108442653
Kelly-Kleese, C. (2001). Editor’s Choice: An open memo to community college faculty and administrators. Community College Review. Retrieved October 2007, from
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_29/ai_77481463
Pintos, V., Crimi, Y. (2010) Unit 1 Building up a community of teachers and prospective researchers, Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
Wenzlaff, T. L., & Wieseman, K. C. (2004). Teachers need teachers to grow.
Kelly-Kleese, C. (2004). UCLA community college review: community college scholarship and discourse. Community College Review. Retrieved October 2007, from
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HCZ/is_1_32/ai_n6361541
Wenzlaff, T. L., & Wieseman, K. C. (2004). Teachers need teachers to grow. Teacher Education Quarterly. Retrieved October 2007, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3960/is_200404/ai_n9349405
jueves, 25 de noviembre de 2010
jueves, 18 de noviembre de 2010
Song...
Hi!... I invite you to listen to one of my favourite singers, Paul Mc Cartney with "No more lonely nights"
Hope you like it!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmGqwTYPDDA
Hope you like it!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmGqwTYPDDA
lunes, 15 de noviembre de 2010
My first journal entry
A lesson for life
I will never forget the time I had to deliver my first lesson during my practicum at the Teaching English as a Foreign Language College (TEFL). It was an evening on May the second in 2009. I had to teach a group of eight adult students who attended lessons during the evening in order to finish primary school. I had been observing those students for more than two weeks. But, that evening, there was another student who had been absent during my observations. Some minutes before entering the classroom, the school´s headmaster asked me to go to her office and told me about that student´s situation. Mercedes had terrible problems with pronunciation since she was a child. She was undergoing medical treatment and this did not allowed her to take part in lessons, especially in the English ones.
That evening I had to start with a new topic (numbers from one to ten). For that reason, I had prepared colourful flashcards of those numbers which had the same number of balls at the bottom for those students who could not recognize written numbers. After introducing the topic, I made the students repeat all the numbers chorally as many times as possible using different techniques. And later, I made them repeat the same numbers, but individually. All the students (including Mercedes) could recognize and say the numbers with little difficulties.
However, when the oral practice session came, the problem seemed to have started. I could clearly see how nervous and tensioned Mercedes was. She might be very frightened and was continuously moving and touching her hands on her desk and my intention, of course, was not making her feel like that way. Although in the lesson plan I had designed there was an individual activity, I decided to change it for a pair one. So, I told them to work in groups. Immediately after saying that, Mercedes decided to go with one of her schoolmates and since then she seemed to feel better.
The activity proposed was a bingo to play in pairs. I delivered the groups two cards each to play the game. We played it some minutes before the lesson finished. During the activity, I saw the students really excited and engaged in the task. What is more, I could observe how Mercedes enjoyed and felt freer to participate in it too. When the lesson had almost finished, I greeted all my students and left the classroom.
Outside the classroom, there was the school´s headmaster with my trainee teacher waiting for me. I thought they were very upset because I had not followed my lesson plan. They just wanted to thank me for making Mercedes (as well as the other students) feel “part” of that lesson. For me, that lesson was a lesson for life.
I will never forget the time I had to deliver my first lesson during my practicum at the Teaching English as a Foreign Language College (TEFL). It was an evening on May the second in 2009. I had to teach a group of eight adult students who attended lessons during the evening in order to finish primary school. I had been observing those students for more than two weeks. But, that evening, there was another student who had been absent during my observations. Some minutes before entering the classroom, the school´s headmaster asked me to go to her office and told me about that student´s situation. Mercedes had terrible problems with pronunciation since she was a child. She was undergoing medical treatment and this did not allowed her to take part in lessons, especially in the English ones.
That evening I had to start with a new topic (numbers from one to ten). For that reason, I had prepared colourful flashcards of those numbers which had the same number of balls at the bottom for those students who could not recognize written numbers. After introducing the topic, I made the students repeat all the numbers chorally as many times as possible using different techniques. And later, I made them repeat the same numbers, but individually. All the students (including Mercedes) could recognize and say the numbers with little difficulties.
However, when the oral practice session came, the problem seemed to have started. I could clearly see how nervous and tensioned Mercedes was. She might be very frightened and was continuously moving and touching her hands on her desk and my intention, of course, was not making her feel like that way. Although in the lesson plan I had designed there was an individual activity, I decided to change it for a pair one. So, I told them to work in groups. Immediately after saying that, Mercedes decided to go with one of her schoolmates and since then she seemed to feel better.
The activity proposed was a bingo to play in pairs. I delivered the groups two cards each to play the game. We played it some minutes before the lesson finished. During the activity, I saw the students really excited and engaged in the task. What is more, I could observe how Mercedes enjoyed and felt freer to participate in it too. When the lesson had almost finished, I greeted all my students and left the classroom.
Outside the classroom, there was the school´s headmaster with my trainee teacher waiting for me. I thought they were very upset because I had not followed my lesson plan. They just wanted to thank me for making Mercedes (as well as the other students) feel “part” of that lesson. For me, that lesson was a lesson for life.
The critical incident tecnique in our teaching practices
The importance of the critical incident technique for teaching practices
As educational settings become more complex, educational researchers are wise to consider employing a variety of research methodologies and techniques to address and inform about educational conflicts. For this reason, it would be worth mentioning one of them: the Critical Incident Technique (CIT). According to Flanagan (1954), the CTI consists of a set of procedures for collecting direct observations of human behaviour in such a way as to facilitate their potential usefulness in solving practical problems and developing broad psychological principles.
In general terms, critical incidents are any unplanned event that might also occur in educational settings. And, if we formally reflect on these critical incidents making use of the already mentioned technique, it may be possible for all educators to uncover new understandings of the teaching and learning processes.
That is the reason why Rahili and Saroyan (1997), as well as many other researchers, support the idea that CIT shows people meaningful experiences (...). What is more, “it allows collecting qualitative and quantitative data about classroom teaching and teaching thinking” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 9).
From my experience as a teacher, critical incidents, which take place in any educational institution, should be analyzed through the critical incident technique so as to help educators understand the factors which shape their daily practice. Moreover, when using it will be easier for teachers to identify and analyze rare events or circumstances that happen not only inside but also outside the school environment.
To sum up, the CIT should be included in most lessons with the purpose of helping students to understand and control their educational experiences. As Gonzalez, Elórtegui et al. (2003) stated, a Critical Incident is described as a pre-service and in-service teacher education strategy. The idea behind this technique is to integrate theory and practice.
References
Fernández, González, J., Elórtegui Escartín, N, & Medina Pérez, M. (2003). Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de ciencias de la naturaleza. Revista Universitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17-001. Zaragoza. España: Universidad de Zaragoza. September 2010. Retrieved from
http:// http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtPdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Flanagan, J. (1954). The critical incident technique. Psychological Bulletin, 51- 4.
Retrieved September 2010, from
http://www.apa.org/psycinfo/special/cit-article
Pintos, V., Crimi, Y. (2010) Unit 2 Personal narratives in teaching, Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
As educational settings become more complex, educational researchers are wise to consider employing a variety of research methodologies and techniques to address and inform about educational conflicts. For this reason, it would be worth mentioning one of them: the Critical Incident Technique (CIT). According to Flanagan (1954), the CTI consists of a set of procedures for collecting direct observations of human behaviour in such a way as to facilitate their potential usefulness in solving practical problems and developing broad psychological principles.
In general terms, critical incidents are any unplanned event that might also occur in educational settings. And, if we formally reflect on these critical incidents making use of the already mentioned technique, it may be possible for all educators to uncover new understandings of the teaching and learning processes.
That is the reason why Rahili and Saroyan (1997), as well as many other researchers, support the idea that CIT shows people meaningful experiences (...). What is more, “it allows collecting qualitative and quantitative data about classroom teaching and teaching thinking” (as cited in Pintos & Crimi, 2010, p. 9).
From my experience as a teacher, critical incidents, which take place in any educational institution, should be analyzed through the critical incident technique so as to help educators understand the factors which shape their daily practice. Moreover, when using it will be easier for teachers to identify and analyze rare events or circumstances that happen not only inside but also outside the school environment.
To sum up, the CIT should be included in most lessons with the purpose of helping students to understand and control their educational experiences. As Gonzalez, Elórtegui et al. (2003) stated, a Critical Incident is described as a pre-service and in-service teacher education strategy. The idea behind this technique is to integrate theory and practice.
References
Fernández, González, J., Elórtegui Escartín, N, & Medina Pérez, M. (2003). Los incidentes críticos en la formación y perfeccionamiento del profesorado de secundaria de ciencias de la naturaleza. Revista Universitaria de Formación de Profesorado, 17-001. Zaragoza. España: Universidad de Zaragoza. September 2010. Retrieved from
http:// http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/src/inicio/ArtPdfRed.jsp?iCve=27417107
Flanagan, J. (1954). The critical incident technique. Psychological Bulletin, 51- 4.
Retrieved September 2010, from
http://www.apa.org/psycinfo/special/cit-article
Pintos, V., Crimi, Y. (2010) Unit 2 Personal narratives in teaching, Retrieved September 2010, from
http://caece.campusuniversidad.com.ar/mod/resource/view.php?id=7214
Welcome to my blog!
Hi everybody!...I think never is too late to publish one´s ideas!
I´m glad to share this blog with all my peers of EAP from the Licenciatura de la enseñanza del Idioma Inglés at CAECE University.
I´m glad to share this blog with all my peers of EAP from the Licenciatura de la enseñanza del Idioma Inglés at CAECE University.
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