Data analysis （Discourse and Language Teaching）

Description

Choose one topic from the list below.  Your essay should cover 1. background theory relevant to your topic,  2. analysis of your data,  3. discussion of your analysis in relation to previous research on your topic,  4. and suggestions for teaching using your data.  The teaching suggestions should include a description of the target learner group, the aim of the activity, and a sample of the material you would use in the activity, illustrating how you have used your data analysis to inform your teaching.  You should devote about one quarter of your assignment to each of these areas.  1.Language and Identity  What are some the ways in which the use of language reflects identity? These might, for example, include the use of particular vocabulary, the use of a particular voice quality, or through the way which you express a particular point of view. Choose spoken or written data which you think reflects ways in which language reflects identity. The data much be naturally occurring, authentic (i.e. not text-book or rehearsed) examples of spoken or written language. You can use text message data, on line chat, if you wish, or social media data such Facebook or Twitter. 2.Language and gender What are some the ways in which the use of language is influenced by gender? Analyze an interaction where you think this is relevant. Identify aspects of the conversation which you think reflect the speakers’ ‘gendered identity’. This might, for example, be through the use of a particular voice quality, the things they talk about, or the ways in which the speakers express a particular point of view. The data much be naturally occurring, authentic (i.e. not text-book or rehearsed) examples of spoken language. You can use text message data, on line chat, if you wish, or social media data such Facebook or Twitter.  3.Speech act analysis Collect several examples of naturally occurring, authentic (i.e. not text-book or rehearsed) spoken or written language. You can use text message data, on line chat, if you wish, or social media data such Facebook or Twitter. Try to collect complete examples, rather than just a section of a text. Carry out an analysis of your texts concentrating on direct and indirect speech acts and Grice’s maxims.  4.Politeness theory Collect several examples of naturally occurring, authentic (i.e. not text-book or rehearsed) language. Try to collect complete examples, rather than just a section of a spoken text. You can use text message data, on line chat, if you wish, or social media data such Facebook or Twitter. Carry out an analysis of your texts concentrating on involvement and independence (or in Brown and Levinson’s terms positive and negative politeness). That is, look for strategies which show closeness, intimacy, rapport and solidarity (involvement strategies/positive politeness) and strategies which give the other person choices and allow them to maintain their freedom (independence strategies/negative politeness). How do the speakers use language to do this? How could you focus on involvement and independence strategies in your language teaching?  5.Genre analysis Collect a set of written texts (4-10) that you would like to teach. Identify: the macro-genre the micro-genres in the texts the schematic stages of the macro-genre the schematic structures of the micro-genres Discuss your analysis in relation to background theory and classroom practice. Use these headings for your assignment: Background theory Description of the texts Analysis of the texts Discussion of the analysis Classroom practice You should look at 4-10 texts, depending on the length of the texts. If the texts are short, say 300-400 words each, then 8-10 texts are sufficient. If the texts are longer, say 1000 words texts, 4-5 texts are more appropriate. You must hand in copies of the texts you have analyzed for this assignment. You need to show the schematic stages for each of your texts (in terms of the macro-genre – such as letter to the editor, academic essay etc) and the schematic structures of the micro-genres (such as recount, report, exposition etc) for each of your texts, as per the handout given out in class.   6.Multimodal discourse analysis Collect examples of web pages from an Internet site that you regularly visit. Analyse the pages using Bateman’s (2008) Genre and Multimodality framework presented in Chapter 8 of Discourse analysis (Paltridge 2012). Or you can analyze a movie trailer using Maier’s (2011) framework, also in Chapter 8 of Discourse Analysis (Paltridge 2012). Look at Bezemer and Jewitt. (2010), Kress and van Leeuwen (2006), and Machin (2007) as further starting points for this assignment. Also Iedema (2001) and Baldry and Thibault (2005) for film genres. Discuss multimodal discourse analysis more broadly in the background section of your assignment as well as the specific framework you are using for your analysis.  Your essay should be structured as:  Introduction Background theory Analysis of data   Discussion of analysis  The implications for language teaching Conclusion