Social Interaction and L2 Classroom Discourse

Olcay Sert is Professor of TESOL and Applied Linguistics at Mälardalen University, Sweden. He is the editor of the journal Classroom Discourse, author of Social Interaction and L2 Classroom Discourse (2015) and co-editor with Silvia Kunitz and Numa Markee of Classroom-based Conversation Analytic Research: Theoretical and Applied Perspectives on Pedagogy (2021).

Social Interaction and L2 Classroom Discourse is a meticulous and well-written book that provides rigorous empirical analysis of important moments in the L2 English classroom, including the co-construction of understanding, interactional troubles and their resolution, and the microgenesis of L2 (classroom) interactional competence. It is an important contribution to the field of applied linguistics because it consolidates ideas in conversation analysis in order to make recommendations for L2 pedagogy that are both well-warranted, deriving as they do from a robust empirical record, and exceptionally practical.

• Acknowledgements; Chapter 1: Introduction to the book; 1.1. Introduction; 1.2. The significance of this book; 1.3. The dataset; 1.4. Contents of the book; Chapter 2: Social interaction and L2 classroom discourse; 2.1. Introduction; 2.2. Interaction as a social phenomenon; 2.3. Approaches to (L2) classroom discourse; 2.4. Conversation Analysis: a sequential approach to classroom interaction; 2.4.1 Conversation Analysis; 2.4.2 Conversation Analysis in CD: Turn-taking, allocation, and triadic dialogue; 2.5. Transcription conventions; 2.6. L2 classroom contexts; 2.7. Conclusion; Chapter 3: Co-construction of understanding in L2 classroom interaction; 3.1. Introduction; 3.2. CA-for-SLA and L2 interactional competence; 3.3. Epistemic, Multimodal, and Multilingual resources; 3.3.1. Epistemic orientations of participants in language classrooms; 3.3.2 Multimodal resources in language classrooms; 3.3.3 Multilingual resources in language classrooms; 3.4. Teacher talk, student participation, and L2 learning opportunities; 3.5. L2 Classroom Interactional Competence; 3.6. Conclusion; Chapter 4: From troubles to resolution: management of displays and claims of insufficient knowledge in L2 classrooms; 4.1. Introduction; 4.2. The interactional unfolding of claims of insufficient knowledge; 4.3. Epistemic Status Check (ESC) as an interactional phenomenon; 4.4. (Un)willingness to participate as participants’ concern; 4.5. Successful management of CIK; 4.6. Discussion and Conclusion; Chapter 5: Use of multimodal resources in L2 classroom interaction; 5.1. Introduction; 5.2. Multimodal resources used in repairing hearing and understanding problems; 5.3 Multimodal resources used in doing correction; 5.4. Multimodal resources in elicitation sequences; 5.5. Multimodal resources in explanation sequences; 5.6. Multimodal resources in ‘orientations to learning’; 5.7. Conclusion; Chapter 6: Use of multilingual resources in classroom interaction; 6.1. Introduction; 6.2. Teacher initiated code-switching; 6.3. Teacher induced code-switching; 6.4. Management of student-initiated code-switching; 6.5. Conclusion; Chapter 7: Implications for teaching in L2 classrooms; 7.1. Introduction; 7.2 Management of interactional troubles; 7.3 Increased awareness on UTP; 7.4 Multimodal aspects of CIC; 7.5. Multilingual aspects of CIC; 7.6 Learner initiatives and managing epistemic, multilingual and multimodal resources; 7.7. Conclusion; Chapter 8: Implications for language teacher education; 8.1. Introduction; 8.2 Tracing the development of CIC; 8.3 A microscopic and reflective model for language teacher education; 8.4. Conclusion; Chapter 9: A Bright Future?; 9.1 Introduction; 9.2 Research ethics; 9.3 Future directions; 9.3.1 Implications for researchers; 9.3.2 Implications for practitioners; 9.4 Conclusion; References; Appendices