BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE FOR STUDY
3.11 Genres
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science (for example, the way in which GM features in science discourse) and the discipline-specific literacies in science, are measured through critical research question 2.
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Of significance to this study are Martin and Rose’s (2007) discussions of genre as recounting events, explaining processes, describing entities, debating issues, or evaluating other texts. These researchers explain that genre weaves together the three other dimensions of the social context of texts: field, tenor and mode. They explain that the field of an academic text is located within one or more disciplines. Its tenor enacts relations of academic authority between readers, writers and other authors in these disciplines while its mode is typically densely written, technical and abstract, including accompanying images.
They further expound that the contextual dimensions – genre, field, tenor and mode – are realised as discourse semantic patterns in texts (2).
The discussion of the genre approach in the analysis of the reading of academic texts by Martin and Rose (2007) is pertinent to this study. They point out that reading an academic text involves recognizing its genre, field, tenor and mode which in turn requires recognition of discourse semantic patterns which genre and register are realised. Writing an academic text involves using these patterns to construct its genre and register. Of equal relevance, too, is the link between disciplinary cultures and genres which foregrounds the socially situated nature of genres. “Genre helps unite the social and the cognitive because they are central to how we understand, construct, and reproduce our social realities” (Hyland, 2002b: 123). Berkenkotter and Huckin (1995) noted that genre conventions signal a discourse community’s norms, epistemology, ideology and social ontology (2).
Hyland (2007) draws attention to “genre instruction which stresses that genres are specific to particular cultures … urging us to go beyond syntactic structures, vocabulary, and composing to incorporate into our teaching the ways language is used in specific contexts”
(150). Paltridge (2004a) expounds on genre pedagogy which outlines that language is functional. It occurs in particular cultural and social contexts and can only be understood in relation to these contexts. Speakers and writers use particular genres in order to fulfil certain social functions and to achieve certain goals within particular social and cultural contexts. Language then, is both purposeful and inseparable from the social and cultural context in which it occurs.
The advantages of genre pedagogy “in pulling together language, content and contexts”
(Hyland, 2007: 150) are summarized by Hyland (2004: 10-16):
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Explicit Makes clear what is to be learnt to facilitate the acquisition of writing skills
Systematic Provides a coherent framework for focusing on both language and contexts
Needs-based Ensures that course objectives and content are derived from students’ need
Supportive Gives teachers a central role in scaffolding students’ learning and creativity
Empowering Provides access to the patterns and possibilities of variation in valued text
Critical Provides the resources for students to understand and challenge valued discourses
Consciousness-raising Increases teachers’ awareness of texts to confidently advise students on writing
Table 3: Benefits of Genre Pedagogy (Adapted from Hyland, 2004: 10-16)
These characteristics of genre pedagogy are of consequence to this study. Students studying science need explicit understanding and practise in the genres required for science (which have been discussed in Chapter 2). This is in line with one of the advantages of genre pedagogy listed in the Table 3 above, that it is “systematic by providing a coherent framework for focusing on both language and contexts” (Hyland, 2004: 10-16). Genre pedagogy has the added benefit of providing students with “an explicit understanding of how target texts are structured and why they are written in the ways they are ... the writing outcomes are clear ... and [students] acquire the genres they need from repeated writing experiences” (Hyland, 2003: 26; Hyland, 2007: 151). This entails an explicit provision of specific language patterns needed to express the genre. The characteristic of being
‘supportive’ is crucial in learning situations dealing with students for whom the LoLT is not their native language. The reference to “[g]ives teachers a central role in scaffolding students’ learning” is essential as it points to the use of scaffolding (Wood et al. 1976) as a teaching strategy (which is discussed in the ensuing paragraphs in this Chapter).
Knowledge of and the ability to use the appropriate language patterns are empowering. In terms of conscious-raising, “by categorising and analysing the texts they ask their students to write, teachers become more attuned to the ways meanings are created and more sensitive to the specific communicative needs of their students” (Hyland, 2007: 151).
Engaging in the discourses of different disciplines requires that students draw on the register features that help them simultaneously realize ideational, interpersonal, and textual meanings in appropriate ways, construing the field, tenor and mode anticipated by the genre assigned (Schleppegrell, 2002: 120). There has been much research commentary
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regarding the connection between literacy skill and the learning of content knowledge in specific disciplines. Meltzer and Hamann (2005) distinguish between “two types of content-based literacy instruction strategies: generic literacy strategies that can be applied in similar ways across the content areas and literacy strategies that differ greatly depending upon the particular subject. They add that discipline-specific literacy strategies are “heavily dependent on the particular content being studied” (44).
Lee (2004) defines disciplinary literacy as the ability to understand, critique, and use knowledge from texts in content areas and is the primary conduit through which learning in the academic disciplines takes place. Meltzer and Hamann (2005) suggest that “in order to apprentice students into the disciplinary demands of a content area, teachers themselves must be cognizant of the literacy demands specific to their discipline and the range of strategies they might use to teach others to meet those demands” (45). As stated throughout this Chapter, this study also explores ways in which disciplinary specialists assist students with discipline-specific literacies in science.
Framing genre pedagogy in this study is achieved through critical research questions 1 and 3. The first critical research question seeks to find out the discipline-specific literacies required in science. Reference to ‘genre’ in science, viz. scientific genres of laboratory report writing, academic essays, scientific posters and oral presentations has been made in the Chapters before this. If genres are constructed using specific register, then critical research question 1, which pays attention to literacies required for science, should attempt to isolate those literacies needed for the specific scientific genres in required by students in FP. This can then lead to the ways in which these genres are acquired by students which can then be answered by critical research question 3. Genre pedagogy links with the NLS especially since literacy is dependent on social contexts.