On student engagement in whole-class oral interaction: from classroom discourse and sociocultural aspects to implications for language learning

Abstract

This article reports on a study on classroom interaction in an EFL context in Brazil. The study, of an ethnographic nature, analyses recorded lessons, interviews and questionnaires answered by the students. The social rules governing classroom interaction usually determine an asymmetrical relationship between the teacher and the students, though it may be possible, according to the data obtained, to create an atmosphere of co-operation in which interaction may occur within less asymmetrical verbal patterns. This atmosphere, determined by linguistic, pedagogical, psychological and social factors, favours student language production. The data suggest connections between the students’ views of classroom language learning, their engagement in classroom discourse, and possible implications for (foreign) language development.