Explanatory discourse practices in educational and familial interactions: A comparison of interactive contexts

Abstract

This article reports results from a qualitative sociolinguistic study on explaining as a discourse practice in ordinary conversations at home and in classroom interaction. Drawing on conversation analytic methods, interactive patterns in six first graders‘ families and classrooms are empirically reconstructed, focussing on explanatory sequences with children as explanation-givers. First, general interactive and communicative structures of providing explanation in talk-in-inte action are presented. Secondly, three different family styles concerning the interactive accomplishement of children’s explanations are worked out; these are contrasted with pupil’s participation in explanation-giving situated in classroom interaction.