What counts as context? Examining the uses and construction of context in the classroom negotiation of respect

The central problem examined in this dissertation is what counts as context and the ways in which classroom participants both drew upon and created context(s) while (re)negotiating the meanings of key social processes and practices underlying the conduct of community-building in a bilingual classroom. Through the examination of shared video records, which document the first two days of a fifth-grade class, this study traces the evolution of the classroom principles of practice for Respect.;Using an interactional ethnographic approach, this study demonstrates that context is the outcome of an interactional process of contextualizing, which takes place on multiple interactional channels (semantic, paralinguistic, and non-verbal). The discourse analysis in this study demonstrates that participants draw on contextual presuppositions from previous experience while simultaneously, within the moment, coordinating (with other participants) the interactional contexts themselves.;By following the telling case of Respect, this study illustrates how participants actively contextualize the parameters of their interactions by signaling to each other what an interaction is about, why it is being constructed, who is involved, and when and where the interaction is being engaged. Further, tracing the telling case of Respect over time makes visible how contexts are (re)contextualized---context is not static, it is a social process.