Mazlin, Azizan
(2015)
POSITIVE REINFORCEMENTS AS EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
SKILLS: USING NEGATIONS IN CLASSROOM INTERACTIONS.
PROCEEDINGS 3rd REGIONAL CONFERENCE ON EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT.
pp. 232-247.
Abstract
The role of positive reinforcements in educational contexts is undeniably crucial in
any academic institution. It is perceived to have a significant role in shaping a
promising classroom scenario that will help create positive outcomes in both
academic and disciplinary purposes. In this paper, discourse analysis (DA) is used to
enfold this pedagogical issue at the tertiary level. Pregnant with contexts, DA could
provide vital information pertaining to the pedagogical approach used by
instructors; the social positions of the people involved in a particular classroom
event, and the roles that the instructors play in it. In this study, primary focus was
given to teacher talk particularly the use of negations during classroom interactions.
The functions of negations observed were then examined from discourse analysis
point of view. After analysing the transcripts from the classroom observations, the
findings suggest that the authoritative role of an instructor is pertinent towards
actualising the positive reinforcements intended. The meaning of negations used was
also found to be much more complex than normally perceived, and what is actually
conveyed could be exclusively understood from the shared background knowledge
that exists between the teachers and the students. These meanings could then be
translated into some kind of positive reinforcements depending on the contexts of the
speech events. This study will suggest ways in which negations could be properly
used in achieving positive atmosphere in tertiary classrooms and most importantly, it
implies that the leadership role of an instructor should not be taken lightly.
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