Opportunities for second language acquisition and cognitive development in two ESL settings

This study investigated student-teacher interaction in two ESL settings, communicative-based instruction and content-based instruction, in fourth grade elementary school classrooms. The purpose of this investigation was to determine how the settings differed with respect to opportunities for second language acquisition and cognitive development.; Two research questions were posed: (1) How does the interactional structure of conversation differ in the two settings? (2) How is linguistic input made comprehensible in the two settings?; Question #1 addresses differences in the organization and formal complexity of discourse, relationships among features of discourse, and variability among these relationships, between settings.; Subjects for this study were four teachers and their Spanish-speaking language-minority students. Four lessons were videotaped in each classroom. Tapes were transcribed, coded, and analyzed according to various features of discourse. Five variables were subjected to statistical analysis.; Few differences were found in ratios or proportions of variables occurring in each setting, or in ways of making input comprehensible. However, there were qualitative differences in some variables between settings. For instance, scaffolded questions in the communicative-based setting seemed designed to assist students primarily with language, while in the content setting these questions focused more on the development of concepts and acquisition of knowledge.; There was evidence in the data of some relationships among the variables which were investigated. Some features of discourse which appeared to be related were question type, length and complexity of response, and ratio of teacher talk to student talk. While there were few overall differences in ratios or proportions of variables between settings, two lessons in the communicative-based setting were distinct from all other lessons with respect to a number of variables. These two lessons were characterized by a flow of information from students to teacher pertaining to students' own experiences and creations.; Results of the study were discussed in the context of opportunities provided in each setting for cognitive growth and language acquisition. The dissertation concludes with suggestions for future research.