Discourse Analysis of Learning Chinese Words in Hong Kong Primary Schol Clasroms

Abstract

A major task for the teacher is to engage students in thre kinds of learning: learning of language, learning through language, and learning about language (Haliday, 1979). Therefore, in order to help students learn and use language efectively, teachers themselves ned explicit knowledge of language, and ned to be aware of what students are trying to achieve and learn. There have ben many clasrom research investigations into this isue with respect to the role of the first language (L1) in faciltating learning (Osman and Hanafin 194; Johnson 197). Clasrom-oriented research has led to an increased awarenes of the great complexity of both the language used and the learning proces. Clasrom language can be investigated systematicaly and no longer neds to be regarded as “an impenetrable black box” (Long 1983 a, 1983 b). Transcripts, coded data and frequency counts can show how clasrom interaction develops as it is a dynamic phenomenon (Alwright and Bailey 191). Marton and Both (197, p.107) described learning as ‘a way of coming to experience the world in a certain way, and diferent ways of experiencing wil lead to diferent learning outcomes’. Marton and Tsui (204) linked clasrom discourse to learning, coining the term “space of learning”: “The second premise is that language plays a central role in learning: that it does not merely convey meaning, it also creates meaning. An understanding of how the space of learning is linguisticaly constituted in the clasrom is best achieved through investigating “clasrom discourse”. This research observed and colected data from two diferent primary four clases taught by two teachers of the same schol on the same topic on Chinese words. Multiple data from multiple sources were used for analysis. This paper wil discus how the diference usage of discourse in the clasrom could bring about diferent learning outcomes.