In the context of education research, specific types
of talk that are typical in educational settings have
been identified (e.g., Sinclair & Coulthard 1975,
Mercer & Littleton 2007). It is especially ‘exploratory
talk’ (e.g., Mercer & Wegerif 1999) that is valued
as educationally productive. Central to this type of
talk is the creation of a dialogic space for possibility
and provisional thinking.
Maine (2015) links this provisionality language
primarily to the use of modals but also phrases such
as I think. This, in turn, closely relates to
research on vague language, i.e., language that is intentionally
(but also unintentionally) strategically imprecise.
Since the publication of the seminal work Vague Language
by Channell (1994), vague language has been recognised
not only as very common in speech but also as a central
aspect of speakers’ communicative competence, and a
number of reasons why speakers use vague language have
been put forward, for example, Rowland (2007) in his
research in the context of mathematics class explores
how students through talk structure their knowledge
and highlights linguistic vagueness as a beneficial
ingredient as they talk their way “towards mutual understanding
and agreement”.
This talk, based on data from the DIALLS project, DIalogue
and Argumentation for cultural Literacy Learning in
Schools, builds on Cook et al. (forthcoming)
who argue that provisionality language may help to create
a safe and supportive dialogic space for exploration
and elaboration of multiple perspectives, cultivating
thus values of tolerance, empathy and inclusion. Drawing
on data from thirty classrooms in England across three
age groups, I explore how children, by using provisional
and vague language, create and co-construct meaning
from wordless films and seek mutual understanding.
References
Channell, J. (1994). Vague Language. Oxford
University Press.
Cook, V., Maine, F. & Cermakova, A. (forthcoming).
Enabling children to tolerate ambiguity in dialogue:
the role of provisionality in language.
Maine, F. (2015). Dialogic Readers. Children Talking
and Thinking Together About Visual Texts. Routledge.
Mercer, N. & Littleton, K. (2007). Dialogue
and the Development of Children’s Thinking: A Socio-Cultural
Approach. Routledge.
Mercer, N. & Wegerif, R. (1999). Is ‘exploratory
talk’ productive talk? In K. Littleton & P. Light
(Eds), Learning with Computers. Analysing Productive
Interaction, pp. 79-101. Routledge.
Rowland, T. (2007). “Well Maybe Not Exactly but It’s
Around Fifty Basically?”. Vague Language in Mathematics
Classrooms. In J. Cutting (Ed.), Vague Language Explored.
Palgrave Macmillan.
Sinclair, J. & Coulthard, R. (1975). Towards
an Analysis of Discourse: The English Used by Teachers
and Pupils. Oxford University Press. |
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