Questioning Authority: Exploring the Power Dynamics of Language Identities During Retrospective Miscue Analysis

• In Event: Millennium Hotel Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Curriculum and Culture With(in) Literacy and Language

Abstract

This study examines power dynamics in interactions during a Retrospective Miscue Analysis (RMA; Goodman & Marek, 1996) approach that was used with English language learners (ELLs). Interview transcripts from RMA interactions were examined qualitatively for evidence of power dynamics stemming from native vs. nonnative speaker identities and ways that the tutor and ELLs negotiated such power dynamics. The results suggest that ELLs and their tutor may have considered text, tutor and the ELL reader as authority on language as they reflected on their miscues during RMA interactions. Additionally, both tutor and ELLs made specific moves to overcome power asymmetries. These patterns reveal the complex nature of classroom talk that seeks both to instruct and to empower ELLs as English speakers.

Authors

• Melissa Latham Keh, Bridgewater State University

• Emily Spitzman, Bridgewater State University