Abstract:

This paper reconceptualises ‘directive’ and ‘supportive’ scaffolding (Silliman and Wilkinson, 1994) within the wider neo-Vygotskyan literature to examine how these concepts could be operationalised through the triadic dialogues of IRE (initiate-response-evaluation) and IRF (initiate-response-feedback). This theoretical reconceptualisation is applied to classroom interaction in a multilingual context. The audio-recordings and transcripts of the teaching-learning events are drawn from a long-term research based in schools and communities in Brunei Darussalam, in Southeast Asia. The findings from the discussions with the class teachers, ethnographic observations of the socio-cultural contexts of the two selected classrooms, other similar classrooms and the wider society contribute towards explaining why the directive and supportive scaffolding occurs. This explanation points to the need for combining neo-Vygotskyan approach with the critical perspective for a better understanding of the micro-interaction in the bilingual classroom. It is concluded that micro-analyses of the classroom interaction alone do not provide the whole picture and a universal injunction to incorporate analyses of teachers’ talk cannot be the answer. The way forward is to draw on the linguistic ethnographic approach to study bilingual classrooms that should take into account the complex interaction between the micro-interaction in the classroom, the macro-level socio-cultural factors, as well as micro-interactional practices in the wider society.

Author: Mukul Saxena