An Exploration of Interpersonal Functions in Iranian Advanced EFL Classrooms

Abstract

The research explores an aspect of teacher-learner and learner-learner interaction in Iranian EFL classroom discourse. Based on the assumption that classroom interaction is inherently a dialogue among teacher and learners, this study looks in detail at key aspects of the ways in which Iranian EFL teachers and learners interact with each other, bring their interactants into the context, and involve them in the construction of the discourse and the arguments in order to contribute to the interactiveness and persuasiveness of the oral discussion in the classroom. To do so, Interpersonal Metadiscourse Resources – Stance and Engagement– are looked at in a corpus totally 14,249 words produced orally by Iranian EFL teachers and female learners at advanced proficiency level in 15 sessions. The oral discussions were transcribed and analyzed using frequency frameworks and formulas. The results reveal that the teachers and learners use stance and engagement markers one about every four words and that both use the devices for fairly similar purposes. The findings, however, show noticeable quantitative differences: the teacher use Interpersonal Metadiscourse Resources more frequently than the learners. The teachers, also, use engagement markers considerably more frequently than stance markers; whereas EFL learners use both use stance markers and engagement markers almost equally. The quantitative differences seem to be related to the teachers’ expertise in English language as well as the teachers’ awareness of metadiscourse. The pedagogical implications of the study for novice EFL teachers, learners and material developers are outlined.