ELT Journal Advance Access published online on October 29, 2009
ELT Journal, doi:10.1093/elt/ccp080
© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press; all rights reserved.
Reducing student reticence through teacher interaction strategy
Winnie Lee is a senior instructor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction of the Faculty of Education at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Her research interest focuses on teaching methodology, materials design, test design, and autonomous learning. Email: winnieyclee{at}cuhk.edu.hk
Sarah Ng is an assistant language instructor at the Centre for Applied English Studies of the University of Hong Kong having graduated with an MPhil (research in second language education) from the University of Cambridge. Her research interests include cross-linguistic transfer, phonics instruction, and foreign language teacher education. Email: harasng{at}gmail.com
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Abstract |
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Reticence is a common problem faced by ESL/EFL teachers in classrooms, especially in those with mainly Asian students. The willingness to communicate model of MacIntyre, Clement, Dörnyei, and Noels (1998. ‘Conceptualizing willingness to communicate in a L2: a situational model of L2 confidence and affiliation’. The Modern Language Journal 82/4: 545–62.) postulates that willingness to speak is determined not only by learners themselves but also by the situation they are in, suggesting that situational variables such as topic and participants should be included in the investigation. This paper aims to examine whether teacher interaction strategy could be one of the factors triggering student reticence in classrooms. A group of Form 1 (Grade 7) Hong Kong Chinese students were given two lessons characterized by different interaction patterns. The two lessons were videotaped for analysis. The results show that teacher strategy is a major determinant of student reticence in classrooms, but it is not the sole factor. Pedagogical factors such as lesson objectives and task type were also found to influence a teacher's classroom-based interaction strategy decision making.