Implementing Dialogic Teaching in a Singapore English Language Classroom

Abstract

Despite the fact that Singaporean students consistently perform well in literacy tests such as the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study, employers have reported that Singaporean employees in general lack confidence in articulating their views in the workplace. This may be attributed to the practice of teacher-fronted and monologic classroom discourse, which does not allow opportunities for teachers and students to construct knowledge and understanding together during curriculum time. The article reports on one classroom-based research conducted on a Secondary Three (age 15) class in one Singaporean government school. The purpose of this article is to show how classroom talk could be made more dialogic, through an intervention, to enhance students’ talk opportunities and to build up literacy skills. The article argues that over time, the habitual practice of a dialogic form of teacher-student talk would help to open up the space of learning for students. To do that, it would be necessary to begin with raising teachers’ awareness of the benefits of dialogic talk.