Characteristics of Teachers’ Classroom Discourse in an EFL Setting

Abstract

This study explored the characteristics of teacher classroom discourse in an EFL setting. Two middle school teachers teaching grades seven and eight were observed and data for analysis were collected via audio recording on the two lessons and via some field notes. The first eleven minutes of each lesson were transcribed and analyzed for the most common features of the teacher’s talk. The findings revealed a number of characteristics for their classroom discourse which involved teacher echo, extended teacher turn, display questions, error correction, extended wait time and content feedback. The research suggested that teachers need to be aware of the vast range of classroom discoursal features and to rely less on their current practices that characterize their classroom discourse as they may not result in fruitful learning.