Threaded Discussions: Providing Discourse-Level Grammar Practice

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Threaded Discussions Providing Discourse-Level
Grammar Practice

• Donald Weasenforth
• Collin County Community College
• dweasenforth_at_ccccd.edu
• Sigrun Biesenbach-Lucas
• American University
• sblucas_at_american.edu
• Christine Meloni
• Northern Virginia Community College
• meloni_at_gwu.edu
• TESOL 2005
• 30 March 2005

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Key Issues of Effective Use of Instructional
Technology

• Refined approaches to technology uses
• Tailored use of specific features of specific
  technologies
• Changes in instructional practice
• Contextualized grammar instruction
• Discourse-level practice
• Focus on form within communicative context
• Assignment design

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Matching Technology and Pedagogy

• Threaded Discussions
• Accessible
• Threaded, linked
• Asynchronous
• Archivable

• Grammar Pedagogy
• Meaningful language production
• Purposeful language production
• Authenticity of context and language production
• Contextualized language practice
• Interactive, communicative exchanges

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Matching Technology and Pedagogy

• Threaded Discussions
• Accessible
• Threaded, linked
• Asynchronous
• Archivable

• Grammar Pedagogy
• Negotiation of meaning
• Subsidiary role of grammar
• Noticing
• Recycling
• Testing in context
• Providing meaningful feedback

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Assignment Design

• Instructional setting
• Sequencing
• Timing
• Recycling
• Grouping
• Topics
• Assessment
• Training
• Integration in course

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Meaningful Language Production

• Connection between grammar structure and
  communicative function
• First responses to Dons prompts typical
  information when getting to know one another (cf.
  small talk)
• I have been being here in the US almost for 8
  months. The reason I have been here is the US
  will give me a lot of knowledge and degrees. My
  future plans are to become an ESL teacher and a
  computer programmer.
• I arrived into the US at the 2001 the February. I
  am here for continuing my study. I have learned
  things that are related to the American type of
  living, as well as how to be a well independent
  person. I am planinig to be a chiropractic in the
  future. I am not certain yet weather i would
  choose the US for the rest of my living or not.

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Meaningful Language Production

• Form-function connection going beyond
  teacher-prompted phrases - expressing opinions
  and facts about a topic
• Id like to say THAT IM A SUPER SMART KID , but
  first at all Im not a kid, and second I believe
  THAT IM NOT SUPER SMART. It is a fact THAT I
  NEED TO WORK MORE, because at my age I wont
  learn as fast as I used to when I was a teenager.
• Also Im amazed THAT SOME KIDS USED SCHOOL JUST
  FOR THEIR SOCIAL LIFE, and most of the time I
  wonder IF THESE KIDS UNDERSTAND THEIR PARENTS
  EFFORT TO GET THEM A GOOD EDUCATION. In my
  opinion, I think THAT FAMILY IS VERY IMPORTANT TO
  PUSH CHILDREN THROUGH ACADEMIC SUCCESS. It is the
  fact THAT PARENTS ARE CLOSEST TO THE KIDS. I
  agree with HE LI THAT REWARDS AND PUNISHMENT PLAY
  A MAJOR ROLE.

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Purposeful Language Production

• Students use language to accomplish communicative
  purposes, not to manipulate grammar structures
• If you have some ideas , please tell everybody
  about that . soliciting opinion
• Thanks a lot for agreeing with my feelings , Ms
  Yoko expressing gratitude
• As you know, we aren't native speakers, so you
  should take your free time to learn English. Try
  to view English learning as a hobby. giving
  advice
• In my last discussion, about the Japanese future
  plan, I gave you a wrong information. NOT from
  2006, BUT in five years. I'm sorry.
  self-correcting
• I'd like to share my feeling about this
  controversial issue. expressing purpose

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Authenticity of Context and Language Production

• Discussion board postings authentic
  communicative activity in academic context
• Students responses to points in each others
  postings
• I have a question. What does mean for you to be a
  well independent person?
• Do you want to be ESL teacher in America or in
  your country?
• Emotional reactions to topics example gay
  marriage
• I dont care that Gays should be allowed to
  marry.
• It is absurd and weird to think about a marriage
  of the same sexes. I don't know how people
  support this issue.

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Authenticity of Context and Language Production

• Response to Dons response, where tangent leads
  to authentic elaboration
• I think, online communication its a great idea
  to brush up on writing English. So far, I havent
  written many online letters. Actually, I attend
  on Tuesday a course in a library Small talk.
  For me, its very useful. First of all,.
• Admitting ones own weaknesses and obtaining
  support from classmate
• Actually I am lagging behind in English writting.
  When I want to write something, grammer and lack
  of vocabulary squeeze my hand.

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Authenticity of Context and Language Production

• Authentic context for specific language phrase
• Yes, Elena. That issui is interesting, because
  communi-cation is important. Right. I didnt know
  about your kids. Good for you!!!
• The wheather has become very nice, hasn't it?
• Conveying ideas to classmates is more relevant
  than grammar and mechanics
• I like N.Y. only to visited. But, I didnt like
  the people. Becausem are so rud, unfrieds
  sometimes. Fore example when you are in the
  subway everyone have been worried about time,
  wether, terrorist attack or something else. The
  people never smile. Mayeb, I was so homesick in
  that time. That situaticion was unconfortoble to
  me. In contrat with Dallas the people are more
  frienly, more happy, also Texan have a good
  matters.

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Subsidiary Role of Grammar

• Emotional engagement with and strong opinions
  about topics
• Complex ideas realized in complex grammar
  structures
• Students use grammar structures to support their
  communicative purposes, not to demonstrate
  mastery
• Alright , what would I do in order to stamp out
  this hard solvable issue if I were the UN's
  Representative General ?
• First of all , I have to find out what main
  reason cause terrorism . And then, I would ask
  many countries related to this issue to attend
  some meetings to discuss the best way to overcome
  it. Second, Disarmament is one of many points
  I would first raise for discussion and find an
  answer for it .
• From my Asian viewpoint , I think that a marriage
  is a linking of two unknown families, and then
  those families will keep their alliance by
  bearing descendants in order to maintain the
  continuity of the family line.

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Subsidiary Role of Grammar

• Another example students eagerness to voice
  complex opinions pushes them to produce complex
  structures
• Moreover, a heterosexual marriage is regarded as
  a procreant connection. Also founded on the
  tenets of Buddhism, the obedient children are
  viewed as good effects, but the bad-manned
  children are viewed as bad effects passive
  constructions. There are many, many things
  abnormal happening around us , and going to our
  children's minds existential there construction,
  which splits be and V-ing form. When in our
  future life, the percentage of same-sex marriages
  makes up a high rate, where can we find chidren
  to adopt them because same-sex marriages can't
  give us naturally real children except
  artificially-fecundated ones use of present
  tense in time clause with future reference? If
  government allows the same sex marriage, those
  people will file for income tax jointly. So
  government will lose taxes real conditional.
  If America approve the same sex marriage like
  Canada, it will not only loses taxes but also
  loses the respects from the other countries
  real conditional, and not only, but also
  construction.

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Contextualized Language Practice

• Discourse context
• Extended, interactive discursive contexts
• Instructional context
• Real life context
• Personal interests
• General topics of interest

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Focus on Form in Meaningful Contexts

• Form, meaning, use (Larsen-Freeman, 2003)
• Proactive focus on form
• Reactive focus on form
• (Doughty Williams, 1998)

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Focus on Form in Meaningful Contexts

• Subject Verb Tense Review
• Your topic for Week 1 When and why did you come
  to the US? What have you
• learned since coming to the US and what are your
  plans for the future? Be careful
• of your use of verb tenses.
• Subject Discuss Writing Topic, Be Careful of
  Verb Tenses
• Your topic for Week 2 I'm very interested in the
  topics you have chosen for the
• first essay assignment in our Writing class!
  Discuss with your group the topic that
• you are writing about in our Writing class.
  Share your own information with your
• group and comment on your group members'
  information. BE CAREFUL WITH
• YOUR USE OF VERB TENSES!
• Subject What do you think?
• Your topic for Week 3 One of the most serious
  issues society faces today is
• terrorism. There are many related questions
  What are the causes/reasons for
• terrorism? Is terrorism a new phenomenon? How
  has it affected society? What
• are the solutions? Discuss these questions--and
  your own--in your group. You
• may want to use the following structures I don't
  understand why...Do any of you
• know what...? I think that...BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR
  USE OF NOUN CLAUSES.

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Interactive, Communicative Exchanges
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Interactive, Communicative Exchanges

• Emotional Expression humor, self-disclosure
• Open Communication
• Mutual awareness directing comment at
  individual, quoting directly, explicit references
  to content of others messages
• Recognition of others contributions explicitly
  expressing appreciation/agreement, complimenting
  others, encouraging others
• Group Cohesion explicit references to group,
  explicit invitation to respond (e.g., let me
  know), inclusionary comments (e.g., like you,
  I)
• Adapted definition of social presence from
  Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2001)

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Negotiation of Meaning

• Informational equality
• (Long, 1983)
• Prompting input from others
• Adjusting lexicogrammatical aspects of language
  for clear communication
• (Van Patten, 2003)
• Task characteristics
• Responsiveness of participants
• Willingness to alter course of communication
• (Ko, Schallert Walters, 2003)

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Noticing

• It is what is noticeable to them that matters.
  (Batstone, 1994)
• Students notice how classmates use language.
• - May I rewrite your own message in my own
  writing?
• Im here for IMPROVING my English.
• Nice to MEET you, group!!!

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Recycling

• Grammar structures are reviewed and used in a
  variety of ways.
• Examples of student uses of Simple Past
• - I moved to United States in August 2004.
• - I travelled with my brother for 8 days.
• - He went back to Thailand a few days ago.
• - I worked that day from 115 pm to 1000 pm.

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Testing in Context

• Giving Discrete-Point Grammar Tests vs Evaluating
  Grammar in Context
• - Next week I plan to go somewhere Id never
  gone there. My friend recommended that we go to
  santoneo. My friends went there last year and
  they said that River walk was beautiful. I
  couldnt remember somewhere else they went there,
  but it was interesting for me.

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Providing Meaningful Feedback

• Students can ask for clarification. For example,
• - What do you mean same language will be
  polite to someone, but not others?
• In response to
• - why the usage of it the Spanish language
  can be consider for some groups polite or not
  polite