Systemic Functional Linguistics, Dynamic Assessment and Academic Writing

Abstract

This chapter introduces Hallidayan Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) (e.g., Halliday & Matthiessen, 2014) which is deployed in this book to complement dynamic assessment (DA). The chapter demonstrates how SFL contributes to researching academic writing systematically. It provides a rationale for using SFL to track learners’ academic writing and conceptual development in their writing (see Shrestha, 2017). In particular, the chapter explains two of the register variables in SFL that are examined in students’ writing: Field (subject matter) and Mode (medium of communication). It then introduces an SFL-based genre theory, followed by the notion of case study analysis genre as used in SFL (e.g., Martin & Rose, 2007; Nesi & Gardner, 2012) and its aspects employed as a tool in the analysis of learners’ writing.