Positioning Through Hedging: How Adolescents Frame Suggestions in Bilingual Small Groups

• In Event: Teaching and Learning in Linguistically Diverse Settings

Abstract

This study of a high-school dual-language program examines how students of native Spanish-speaking and English-speaking backgrounds interact in small groups. Drawing from positioning theory, we specifically examine how students use hedges to position themselves while making suggestions to peers. We consider: How do adolescents in a high-school dual-language program use or not use hedges while offering suggestions in small groups? Findings include that students used hedges more often in cross-language groups, they generally made hedges and suggestions in English, and native English-speakers more often used multiple hedges. Results indicate a possible relationship between students’ hedging and the closeness they feel to other students, the status assigned to languages within the setting, and the advanced proficiency necessary for sophisticated hedging.

Authors

• Amanda Kibler, University of Virginia

• April Simun Salerno, University of Virginia