Feedback and Repair Mechanisms in Selected English Essay Writing Classroom Discourse in Ilorin, Nigeria

Abstract

Language classroom discourse is meant to empower learners for acceptable mastery of the skills of listening, speaking, reading, writing and critical reasoning. Nigerian students have, however, been found to perform poorly in essay writing, suggesting deficiencies in classroom interactions. The focus on the Essay Writing aspect of English Language resulted from its overarching importance to every student’s success in the whole subject, other school subjects and other life endeavours. Bernstein’s theory of pedagogic discourse underpinned the study that investigated the influence of the social order, relations and identity on the empowerment of students to attain essay writing instructional objectives. Six Senior Secondary Classes II were randomly sampled in Ilorin Metropolis. A classroom discourse analysis protocol was used for data collection. Two Essay Writing lessons were observed for each class for ample data and to verify consistency of practice. A paucity of interactive feedback was observed. Student-self-made and fellow-learner-made repairs were outweighed by teacher-made repairs. A paradigm shift from teacher-dominated product-focused approach to the interactive process-based approach is recommended.