The Effects of Interpretive Authority on Classroom Discussions of Poetry: Lessons from One Teacher

Smith, Michael W.; Connolly, William E.

doi:10.1080/03634520500442145

Cited by 12 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Decades of research studies have revealed the persistence and pervasiveness of recitation in which less than one minute per class lesson involves authentic discussion (as characterized by evidence of dialogicality): (a) open discussion among students without consistent teacher evaluation, (b) authentic teacher questions, and (c) questions with uptake in eighth-and ninth-grade ELA classrooms (Nystrand, 2006). These and other studies (e.g., Alexander, 2004;Applebee et al, 2003;Sherry, 2010;Smith & Connolly, 2005) contribute to a substantial research base that has evidenced how dialogic instruction relates to students' literacy achievement and their substantive engagement in learning.…”

Section: Review Of Literature On Inquiry-based Literary Discussion Imentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although scholars have highlighted the teacher's familiarity with the text (Smith & Connolly, 2005), and her or his use of inquiry-based discourse norms (e.g., visualizing a scene [Wilhelm, 2013]) in characterizing the relationship between interpretive authority and dialogic discussion, our analyses mark interpretive authority as a dynamic concept that is negotiated constantly during dialogic discussions about literature; this tensioned negotiation of centralizing and decentralizing forces can result in either monologic or dialogic exchanges, which potentially mediate productive textual interpretations at opportune moments, what Nystrand et al (2003) identify as "dialogic spells" (p. 136).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In a study of the effects of a teacher's interpretive authority of poetry on the nature of discussions with 14-and 15-year-old students in two advanced secondary English classes, Smith and Connolly (2005) conducted an experiment in which they analyzed discussions subsequent to the reading of a poem that both the teacher and the students were reading for the first time. They found that the balance of interpretive talk shifted from the teacher to the students when the discussion focused on explicating a poem that the teacher had never read before.…”

Section: Interpretive Authority and Dialogic Stancementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Some researchers have conceptualized interpretive authority as a relatively static concept-something that someone either possesses or does not possess (e.g., a teacher who has taught a poem for many years is said to have interpretive authority over the poem [Smith & Connolly, 2005]). The purpose of this study is to offer a dialogic perspective on interpretive authority by mobilizing the Bakhtinian concepts of centripetal and centrifugal forces to analyze how one teacher and his students co-constructed literary meanings.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Tensioning interpretive authority during dialogic discussions of literature

Chisholm¹,

Loretto²

2016

L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature

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This analysis of classroom discourse offers a dialogic perspective on interpretive authority-the argumentative assertion of meaning-by mobilizing the Bakhtinian concepts of centripetal and centrifugal forces to analyze how one teacher and his students co-constructed literary meanings during two 45-minute whole-class discussions of the text Grendel in two secondary English classrooms in the United States. Discussion transcripts were segmented into interpretive episodes and coded for the form and function of students' (a) interpretations (e.g., how students made meanings in interaction by dialoguing with other students, texts, and ideas) and (b) source of authority (e.g., how students asserted text-based meanings that either validated or disrupted conventional or locally ratified interpretations). Micro-level discourse analyses revealed how participants co-constructed interpretive authority by tensioning talk between centripetal tendencies to unify, centralize, and standardize text meanings and centrifugal tendencies that reimagined, expanded, and disrupted standard interpretations of the text. Critical to the development of students' dialogic construction of interpretive authority was the teacher's stance as listener and discussion participant, teacher and student tensioning of standard and non-standard literary meanings, and a classroom environment in which students' colloquial language could be used to support literary sensemaking. Rethinking interpretive authority as a dynamic concept tensioned between centripetal and centrifugal forces may shed light on how dialogic practices are enacted given the complexities that inform how students and teachers participate during literary discussions.

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Section: Review Of Literature On Inquiry-based Literary Discussion Imentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Interpretive Authority and Dialogic Stancementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Tensioning interpretive authority during dialogic discussions of literature

Chisholm¹,

Loretto²

2016

L1 Educational Studies in Language and Literature

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show abstract

“…Strategies and tools for effective discussion are readily available from books on teaching (Davis, 1993;McKeachie & Svinicki, 2006) as well as articles and edited books on discussion (e.g., Christensen, Garvin, & Sweet, 1991;Dallimore, Hertenstein, & Platt, 2004;Frederick, 1991;Smith & Connolly, 2005). Although works like these foster good practice in areas such as questioning and managing classroom interaction, they typically do not offer a general framework within which to situate a semester-long discussion project.…”

Section: Elements Of the Rid Projectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improving Classroom Discussion: A Rhetorical Approach

Bruss¹

2009

The Journal of General Education

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Seeking a Balance: Discussion Strategies That Foster Reading With Authorial Empathy

Brett¹

2016

J Adolescent & Adult Lit

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This study investigates the extent to which students' use of different discussion strategies fosters a balance between attending to the technical elements of authored texts and responding empathetically. Because small‐group discussion is a common approach to literary study, the analysis focuses on two small‐group discussions of “Charlie Howard's Descent,” Mark Doty's poem about the murder of a young gay man by other young men in his community. The two discussions were parsed into episodes that were scored according to the extent that they displayed balance. Then, each student turn was analyzed in terms of the discussion strategies employed. The analysis suggests that the strategies of searching for meaning, contextualizing, and interpreting contribute to the most balanced readings. Noting author's craft can lead to overly technical readings, although it has the potential to be paired with other strategies to facilitate a more balanced discussion.

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The Effects of Interpretive Authority on Classroom Discussions of Poetry: Lessons from One Teacher

Cited by 12 publications

References 6 publications

Tensioning interpretive authority during dialogic discussions of literature

Tensioning interpretive authority during dialogic discussions of literature

Improving Classroom Discussion: A Rhetorical Approach

Seeking a Balance: Discussion Strategies That Foster Reading With Authorial Empathy

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