Discourse Patterns in First Language Use at Hcme and Second Language Learning at School: an Ethnographic Approach

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It is indeed the problem of all disciplines applied to education
<Bru≡fit,1985:43). And it is here that the attitude of the researcher
towards qualitative versus quantitative approaches (not techniques)
becomes clear.

I will give as an example the case of Test Questions, but the same could
be said for many other features of language use. Test Questions represent
a type of question which is consistently found very frequently in the
classroom and not so frequently in home conversations. A number of
different conclusions may be drawn from this relative frequency:

a) 'Children are not familiar with Test Questions before going to school,
therefore the teacher should avoid them in classroom interaction to
minimize the adverse effects of the mismatch'.

There are two problems with this position. First, it is impossible to
determine in quantitative terms the threshold after which Test Question
would be considered a familiar experience, whatever criteria one uses. The
same applies to the assessment of the child's competence in replying
correctly to such questions: is this ability a sign of the emergence of
the phenomenon or of its acquisition?

Second, school cannot possibly avoid test questions because one of the
features of education as a system is evaluation, and one of the methods
teachers use to evaluate is asking test questions. Therefore the
recommendation In (a) is both unprincipled and unrealistic.

b) 'Children have some experience of Test Questions at home, so the
Teacher can legitimately use them in classroom interaction'.

The recommendation In (b) is too general: verbal interaction in the
classroom is used in different events and for different functions such as
presenting new material, evaluating, debating issues for concept
development and/or language practice, management, etc. Test Questions are
appropriate only for certain events and functions, not for others.

c) 'Children have some experience of tutorial events at home, in which
adults ask Test Questions and they reply with appropriate discourse
features; therefore they are likely to reply appropriately to Test

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