Are we speaking the same language: Exploring meaning construction in a first-year composition classroom.

Abstract

Data revealed that disjunctions occurred between the teacher's intentions for making the assignments and the students interpretations of the assignments on some level with all three essays. Data analysis also indicated that the written texts which the students produced were shaped by sociocultural influences, personal and educational influences, intertextual influences, and motivational influences.

Current studies of writing and literacy are focusing much attention on the construction of meaning through sociocultural approaches and semiotics. This social interactive and meaning constructive perspective involves not only the written text but also what the writer brings to the text and the contextual elements of the writing. This exploratory study had two primary focuses. It investigated how first year college composition students understood and interpreted classroom writing assignments and to what extent the teacher's intentions for the assignments were fulfilled by the students. Also, the study examined how the students constructed meaning from the classroom writing assignments and to what extent these meanings were shaped not only by personal knowledge and investment but also by social and cultural influences as well.

The study was conducted in a first year Composition 1213 class at a two year college. Data were collected from the entire class as well as four volunteer student participants and the teacher. Concurrent think-aloud protocols from three essay assignments along with open-ended interviews over each assignment were the primary data sources. The protocol and interview data were collected from each of the volunteer student participants. The teacher also participated in four interviews. Observational and questionnaire data from the entire class and the teacher supplemented the primary data sources.